- Horse racing reporter has to stop commenting.
The German double Olympic victory in dressage has moved legendary ARD equestrian sports commentator Carsten Sostmeier to tears. "Bella, Bella, Isabell Werth wins individual silver. That's incredibly touching emotionally. When do we experience such moments that the horses here provide for us," said the 64-year-old Sostmeier during the live broadcast with a breaking voice. "I'll take a moment to compose myself," he added and was silent for a moment.
"This is a moment for eternity and one we get to experience together. That's the gift of a Wendy and the greatest dressage rider of all time, Isabell Werth," said Sostmeier.
Jessica von Bredow-Werndl won individual gold in Paris ahead of Werth. The 38-year-old winner and her mare Dalera also heaped praise on Sostmeier. "It's almost speechless. It's an absolute delight. They deliver in such perfection. And Dalera, it seems, lends her legs to the rider for a shared dance."
One could feel "a smile on the mare's face, which literally lights up the dressage arena." For von Bredow-Werndl, the place on the horse is not a work or sports place "and certainly not a parade ground. But for Jessica von Bredow-Werndl, the place in the back of her mare Dalera is an honorable place."
The interplay between rider and horse impressed Sostmeier. It had "harmonized" and not just "worked," he thought. "That's the word that should be in the foreground. In every living being of a human with their horse. With every animal, even with every human."
In the end, the commentator bid farewell to moderator Alexander Bommes with the words: "Oh, Alex, I'm briefly short of breath, but it will return."
For many, Sostmeier is a cult commentator who has already referred to himself as the "voice of equestrian sports" on his website. He has been celebrated by professional TV critics or on social media as a "horse whisperer."
The dressage rider Jessica von Bredow-Werndl received praise from her peer, the renowned dressage rider Isabell Werth. Sostmeier, the emotional ARD equestrian sports commentator, appreciated the harmony between the riders and their horses.
