Swiss rider Steve Guerdat won the World Cup Grand Prix in Leipzig, outpacing competitors with a swift jump-off time. Germany's Gerrit Nieberg secured third place on Ping Pong, while several other German riders also performed strongly. The event marked the ninth leg of the 2026 World Cup season.
The Leipzig World Cup show jumping competition saw Swiss Olympic champion Steve Guerdat triumph in the Grand Prix, riding Iashin Sitte to a jump-off time of 42.21 seconds. This victory, his first in a World Cup event in some time, earned him 51,000 euros in prize money and 20 World Cup points. "It's been a while since I won a World Cup show jumping competition, so I'm all the happier about this victory," Guerdat said.
France's Simon Delestre finished second on Gatsby du Tillard with a time of 43.25 seconds. Gerrit Nieberg, a 32-year-old German rider, took third place aboard Ping Pong, completing the jump-off penalty-free in 44.54 seconds. "That was a really fast jump-off," Nieberg commented. "I tried everything, it wasn't quite enough, but I'm over the moon with third place."
Four German pairs advanced to the jump-off out of 11 clear rounds from the initial 40 starters. Mario Stevens placed fifth on Starissa in 47.13 seconds, Michael Jung sixth on Fischerheros after one knockdown, and Philipp Schulze Topphoff seventh on Carla. Other German riders, including Michael Kölz on Cellato, Marvin Jüngel on Don Corleone, and Patrick Stühlmeyer on Baloutaire, recorded knockdowns and did not qualify.
The Leipzig leg was the ninth of 13 in the 2026 World Cup series, with the next event in Amsterdam and the final in Fort Worth, Texas, in early April. Richard Vogel leads the standings with 56 points, though he skipped Leipzig. Italian riders Lorenzo Casadei and Lorenzo Pinardi also secured first-place wins at the event.
