8 years ago the Swiss team succeeded at the Skinners World Cup…
At the Skinners World Cup 2013 in Highclere a total of 12 teams competed for the coveted title: Austria, Denmark, England, Finland, France, Germany, Holland, Ireland, Italy, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland & Wales.
Start for Switzerland at test 3! Judge Allan Schofield explains that there will be a marking and a blind with shot behind the fence (distance to the fence about 120 meters). First he wants the blind and then the memory up on the slope (160 meters).
Claudia & Temba compete with number 29 as first.
Second: Daniel & Tara with number 30.
Third: Andi & Yon with number 31.
Fourth: Béa & JB with number 32.
The results for test 3: 17/17/10/16
The next exercise (test 1) is judged by Colin Pelham: Walk-up in the forest with four in line. Each dog has to retrieve a double mark. Despite the very difficult ground the scores are: 19/18/18/19
The third exercise (Test 2 with Lydia Goossens) takes again place in the forest! 2 blinds in very difficult ground, one shot. Scores: 17/18/16/20
The fourth exercise (test 5) is judged by Richard Beckerleg: Marking in thick woodland and just in the same line a little bit further on their is a blind.
They all did quite well: 18/18/18/16
Lunchtime and time for a picture of all the teams!
Test 4 is judged by Rupert Hill: A long marking on the grassland (150 meters) with reed and afterwards a long blind in a ditch (170 meters) in a 45 angle up a slope.
Success for all: 20/18/19/18!
The results of the day are announced at the dinner: 1. France, 2. Switzerland and 3. Austria!
Second day: Test 8 is judged by Rupert Hill at the water: Marking over the water into the reed (120 meters).
No problems at the water: 20/19/12/19...
Test 9 with Collin Pelham: A long blind (100 meters) without shot through a gap in the wood; start over a trunk.
Not easy to see and handle the dogs: 18/20/12/19
Test number 10 is judged by Allan Schofield: A blind with shot in the wood (80 meters). It is placed behind a little summit.
A nearly perfect demonstration - IF...! 20/20/20/0
Test 7: Lydia Goossens is judging a short and a long mark from grassland over a fence into the wood.
Fences? No problems: 18/16/19/13
The last exercise - Test 6 - is judged by Richard Beckerleg: walk-up with 4 dogs in a very grown over wood. Every dog gets a marking. A nice finish: 20/18/18 and 19 points!
At the end everybody takes off to the great "run-off"! Every team can choose one dog...
...that has to find a long (250 meters) blind - without shot. Daniel & Tara are running for Switzerland.
The tension rises, the fingers are crossed and some eyes are clossed...
17 points! A proud teamcaptain with his Tara because she is still fit after two days - having had a litter on the 27th of February with 8 pups!
And - never ever dreamed about that! Switzerland has won the Skinner's World Cup Retriever Event 2013...
...and even better: Claudia Gross gets with Lockthorn Temba the titel of the highest placed dog of the competition!!
Brilliant, Switzerland wins before England and Austria.
Lockthorn Temba & Claudia Gross became Top Dog! Congratulations!!!!
From left to right: Bea Loetscher-Zufferey (with Funnyline Fieldquest J.B.), Claudia Gross (with Lockthorn Temba), Team-Captain Daniel Marx (with Lockthorn Tara) and Andi Güntert (with Waterfan's Seawolf Yon).
And the "Top 10"-Singles:
187 Pts: Claudia Gross (CH)
183 Pts: Anthony Giraud (F) and Heike Rohm (D) 182 Pts: Daniel Marx (CH) and Imma Walderdorff (A) 180 Pts: Ingrid van der Ven (NL) 179 Pts: Jayne Coley (GB), Béatrice Loetscher-Zufferey (CH) and Bernd Janich (D) 178 Pts: Brendan Kelly (GB) and Anne Besnard (F)
Great memories!
In memoriam: Tara (26.11.2005 - 19.10.2017)
and Temba (26.11.2005-13.11.2019), the two unforgettable sisters!
