Founded in 1921, the Fédération Equestre Internationale (FEI) has been the governing body for equestrian disciplines, including jumping and dressage, for more than 100 years. It has organized the FEI World Championships every year since 1953 and also produces the world rankings for each equestrian discipline.
Below is a look at five of the top-ranked competitors in dressage for 2022. Rankings were last updated in September.
Jessica von Bredow-Werndl (Germany)
A two-time Olympic gold medalist and four-time gold medalist at the European Championships, Jessica von Bredow-Werndl is a 37-year-old rider from Germany who finished the 2022 season as the top-ranked dressage competitor in the world. Riding horse Tsf Dalera Bb, von Bredow-Werndl led all riders with 3,042 points in 2022, which was 251 more than any other rider-horse combination.
Von Bredow-Werndl, ranked No.1 in the world since August 2021, had 24 starts in 2022 and recorded victories at events in Stockholm, Lyon, Stadl Paura, Leipzig, Ornago, and Neumünster. She registered a season-best score of 90.836 at the GP FS – Grand Prix Freestyle to Music in Leipzig in April and made history as the first German rider to win the FEI Dressage World Cup on home soil. The competition was made even more emotional considering the fact it was the final event for Tsf Dalera Bb, a 17-year-old mare.
“This mare is just incredible,” von Bredow-Werndl said of her horse after winning in Leipzig. “When I enter the arena, I know she will give her very best. Always. She leaves her heart in there.”
Cathrine Laudrup-Dufour (Denmark)
Cathrine Laudrup-Dufour of Denmark has the unique distinction of holding the second and third position in the FEI Dressage World Ranking. She is in second with her horse Vamos Amigos and third with Galleria’s Bohemian. Laudrup-Dufour made 18 starts in 2022 and had nine first place finishes, four with
Galleria’s Bohemian and five with Vamos Amigos. She won events in Herning and Aachen. Her best score was a 90.005 at the GP FS – Grand Prix Freestyle to Music, where she finished first with Galleria’s Bohemian.
Laudrup-Dufour was a bronze medalist in dressage at the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games and also represented Denmark at the 2016 Olympics. She was one of five Danish competitors to win a gold medal at the 2022 FEI World Championships in Herning.
Isabell Werth (Germany)
Despite her fourth-place position in the 2022 FEI Dressage World Ranking, Isabell Werth is among the most decorated dressage competitors of all-time. The 54-year-old German rider has made nearly 550 starts since 2010, including 130 at the World Cup. She was last ranked No. 1 in July 2021, ending a 34-month stretch as the top dressage athlete in the world. A 12-time Olympic medalist, Werth has won more medals at the Olympics than any other rider in history. She won six team dressage gold medals with Germany and won the individual gold medal at the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta. She’s a five-time silver medalist in the individual dressage competition. Werth has also won a combined 30 gold medals at the World Championships and European Championships.
Riding Dsp Quantaz, Werth made just 11 starts in 2022, her second fewest since the 2015 season. She finished first or second in all but one of those events and had victories in Ludwigsburg, Stuttgart, and Frankfurt. Werth’s best score of the season was an 87.945 at the GP FS – Grand Prix Freestyle to Music in Lyon, where she finished second place behind von Bredow-Werndl—the German rider won the competition just 11 weeks after giving birth for the second time.
Carina Cassøe Krüth (Denmark)
A 39-year-old rider from Denmark, Carina Cassøe Krüth and her horse Heiline’s Danciera fell from No. 4 to No. 5 in the last FEI World Dressage Ranking for 2022. Krüth made 30 starts last year and finished the season with 2,589 points, just eight more than Dinja Van Liere of the Netherlands.
Krüth was part of the Danish team that won gold at the FEI World Championships in Herning and finished seventh in the individual event. She had four first-place finishes in 2022, three of which were with Heiline’s Danciera. She also won the GP – Grand Prix at the CDI3* event in Herning in March with
Heiline’s Zackton. She was No. 338 in the FEI World Dressage Ranking with Heiline’s Zackton.
Dinja Van Liere (Netherlands)
A 33-year-old native of the Netherlands, van Liere was sixth in the FEI World Dressage Ranking in 2022 with horse Hermes N.o.p. She also rode Hartsuijker and Vita Di Lusso. Van Liere won 11 events with Hermes N.o.p. in 2022, including three CDI3* events in Leeuwarden and the GP FS – Grand Prix Freestyle to Music in Mechelen in December. She won the individual bronze medal at the 2022 FEI World Championships in Herning. Her best score was an 86.900 in the GP FS – Grand Pri