Christian Ahlmann

Four-time Olympian Christian Ahlmann was a German showjumper participating from Athens 2004 to London 2012. He won two team bronze medals, in 2004 and 2012. In 2004, Germany had initially won the gold medal with a score of 9.00 points. However, [Ludger Beerbaum] () was subsequently disqualified because his horse, Goldfever 3 tested positive for a banned substance. As a result, Christian Ahlmann’s score - previously the “dropped” (discarded) score - was factored in, causing the team to fall back to the bronze medal position. The IOC reached this retroactive decision in September 2005.

Ahead of the 2008 Beijing Games, where the riding events were held in Hong Kong, Ahlmann was suspended due to doping allegations after capsaicin was detected in his gelding, Cöster, during a medication control test. Although he was still permitted to compete with the team at The Games, he was subsequently handed a retroactive two-year ban, and his and his team’s results were annulled.

Ahlmann was a horse trainer and riding instructor by profession and was himself trained by Paul Schockemöhle. Ahlmann won team bronze at the 2006 World Championships. Even more successful, Ahlmann won team gold medals at the European Championships in 2003 and 2005, and team silver medals in 2007, 2013, 2015, and 2019. Individually, his greatest moment came in 2003 winning the gold medal at the Europeans. In 2011, he won the World Cup Final with Taboulet Z. He was ranked #1 in the World from 2012-13 and again in 2016. The same year he was awarded the Silver Bay Leaf, Germany’s highest sports award.