Czech athlete and Prague Lions manager Anna Kellnerová was having a difficult time waiting for the performances of the runners, whose failures could propel her team to the Super Cup final.
She didn’t want to be seventh again in the team competition at the show jumping playoffs in Prague, as has been the case for the past two years. And he threatened this time too, because ahead of the bottom two teams, the Lions finished fifth and had to wait to see if they would make it to the final six.
Kellnerová recalled the years 2019 and 2021. “My first thought was that we will make it again. But I thought to myself that it’s impossible, that we can’t be so unlucky, and I tried to think in a positive way.” he told reporters.
He lived a lot of waiting. “I was a little expressive, so people laughed at me. But that’s part of the sport,” she confided.
In the end, it was immediately clear after two riders from the immediately following Stockholm Hearts team. “That’s true, but even if it’s only four minutes, it’s a long wait,” Kellner commented.
She herself was thrilled that she managed the challenging course with just one mistake riding the Catch Me If You Can. “Catchie had such an amazing jump and I have to say I’ve never felt like this in parkour,” she revealed.
She was happy that, given the start number ten, she and her teammates could see how the other runners coped with the challenging parkour. “Even though we’ve all been there, there were parts that we didn’t know how to ride. When we saw some horses ahead of us, we could get a better picture of the trail,” she said.
The experience gained during previous years of elite parkour events in Prague has been accumulated. “I am very happy that I started training with Niels in the middle of last season. Thanks to his way of training and the fact that he is easygoing but tells it like it is, I was able to ride a little fresher, not be so stressed I have more things under control, which is a huge difference,” described the rider, who is coached by Belgian teammate Niels Bruynseels.
This year, his compatriot Pieter Devos joined the team, and due to problems from other team members, they had to spend most of the season the same way as the three-man Prague event. This strengthened their team spirit. “We fought not only for ourselves, but for all three of us as a team. We have no rituals, we always try to maintain a fun atmosphere, which helps us,” said the participant of last year’s Olympic Games in Tokyo.
Also in the final the Prague Lions will try to get the best possible result, just like everyone thinks about the podium. But Kellner has planned some relaxation for this late evening. “I’m going to say goodbye to my family and friends, because I haven’t seen them yet, and then we’ll have to sit down to let the adrenaline we’re full of now subside a bit,” he added. .
The two-round final of the Super Cup gets underway on Sunday at 3.30pm.
