Behind the Camera - “Bouncing Back” with Christian Ahlmann

In Rising Above: Episode 2 “Bouncing Back” presented by Longines, we learn about Christian Ahlmann’s most significant setback of his career. We follow his return to the top, winning the Longines Global Champions Tour Grand Prix of Paris just six weeks after sustaining a serious injury at the LGCT of Mexico City. We sat down with Christian Ahlmann to learn more about his road to the top and how it helped him overcome this obstacle and return to the pinnacle of the sport.

Ahlmann began riding before he could remember. Growing up in an equestrian family, he rode a horse before he could walk and “horses were part of the family,” says Ahlmann. Despite the sport being a prominent part of his childhood, it was the enjoyment of being with horses, the fun of riding, and the camaraderie of friends at his grandfather’s riding school that he fell in love with. He explains, “this was the place where I started riding regularly.” It wasn’t until he earned his riding pass at age eleven that he began to seriously pursue competition. And he never looked back.

Ahlmann’s talent was evident from the beginning, winning his first ‘S’, or national level, 1.50m class aged just twelve years old. After this success he dove headfirst into the world of competitive show jumping, dedicating his life to the sport. “I had good horses and good support from my family,” says Ahlmann, “and with the success, I was really into it and got really, really motivated. Horses became my life.” He quickly racked up a number of successes, rising through the ranks to become one of the world’s top riders.

Despite his success and fame within the sport, Ahlmann’s relationship with his horses has always been paramount. He loves bringing a horse up from the beginning, building the fundamentals and watching the horse develop to their full potential. While it may seem that a top rider like Ahlmann is the one teaching the horse, he explains that “there is no rule book for all of this, you have to discover everything with your horse”. From when to push and when to be patient to how to cope with setbacks, Ahlmann maintains that “the animal will teach you a lot more than you can teach them.”

This unique relationship with his horses is something he credits with his swift return to the sport. Ahlmann was back in the barn soon after his accident, eager to get back to the basics and build back his confidence alongside his horses. Ahlmann said, “it felt very good to sit on the horse and feel that the horse is with you and still trusts you. The most important thing is that you feel that the horse is trusting you. With this the success will come, and on the right day also the win.”

And so it did. Hoisting the trophy in Paris just a short six weeks after his devastating fall in Mexico, Ahlmann had overcome what had seemed at one point to be a potentially insurmountable obstacle in his career. His love of the sport and passion for the horses helped him to remain positive and come back more determined than ever before, as we learned in “Bouncing Back”, now available to stream on all of LGCT’s social channels.

Next week, we sit down with Dutch talent Sanne Thijssen to learn about her road to the top in Rising Above: Episode 3 “Proving Them Wrong.” This eight-episode series is quickly becoming a must-watch for equestrian enthusiasts and sports fans alike, offering an intimate look at the lives and careers of the top show jumpers in the world.

Rising Above: Episode 3 “Proving Them Wrong” presented by Longines premiers August 20^th at 8pm CET.