The CHIO Rotterdam (Concours Hippique International Officiel) is an annual international horse show held in Rotterdam, Netherlands. The show is held every year in June. Is the largest international equestrian outdoor event in The Netherlands, hosted at the 'Rotterdamse Manege' in Kralingen.[1]
Two equestrian disciplines, show-jumping and dressage, are part of the CHIO Rotterdam in which both competitions hosts the Nations Cup. Only one Nations Cup in each discipline can be staged in a country, according to the regulations of the International Federation for Equestrian Sports, the FEI. For show-jumping the 5* CSI event is part of the program, while for dressage the 5* CDI event is part of the program. Hosting a 5* in both show-jumping and dressage, making it one of the most prestigious equestrian shows in the world.[2]
In 1937 the Rotterdam local riding school hosted its first national show at a substantial piece of land. Also in 1939 and 1940 the local riding school hosted the two-day event, but were forced to quit because of World War II. In 1947 the local show was back on the calendar and also welcomed riders from Belgium. The first official international edition of CHIO Rotterdam was in 1948, which makes it the oldest international sport event in the city of Rotterdam. Already during the first edition of the show, a nations cup in show-jumping was held, while dressage was not yet not part of the event. In 1961 a permanent tribune was built for the CHIO Rotterdam, which was sponsored by several local businesses in Rotterdam. The same year the freestyle to music in dressage was introduced. Winner of the first dressage freestyle was the late German Reiner Klimke. A year later, in 1962, the Nations Cup for dressage was also introduced. In 1967 the CHIO Rotterdam hosted the European Championships for show-jumping, celebrating its 20th anniversary. Ten years later in 1979, Rotterdam again hosted the European Championships for show-jumping.[3]
In 1980 the Olympic Games in Moscow were boycotted by a major number of countries because of the protest against the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. CHIO Rotterdam was designated to organize the alternative Olympic Games for equestrian and was won by Austrian Hugo Simon.[4] Nine years later, CHIO Rotterdam hosted again the European Championships for show-jumping.
The 90's was a difficult decade for the organization as the standards of the International Federation became stricter, the costs of organizing the event became significantly high because of the growth, and the municipality in Rotterdam could not agree on the progress and organization surrounding the event. The CHIO Rotterdam takes place in a forest and to further expand, 51 trees had to be cut to make the expansion possible. Ultimately, the plan fell through.[3] Also a setback in the 1990s was the fire at the Rotterdamse Manege, which resulted in the destruction of the specially built tribune.[5]
In the 2000s the event is able to grow again and a new era for the event begins, while the popularity of equestrian in The Netherlands was rising. The grass in the main arena was replaced by sand and dressage moved from the smaller second arena to the main arena, while the event became more popular by visitors because of the expansion of exhibitors and more entertainment besides the sport.[3] In 2006 Dutch Olympic gold medalist Anky van Grunsven sets a new world record with her horse Salinero in the freestyle to music.[6] In 2011 a complete new modern tribune was built which resulted in the allocation of the European Championships for dressage. In 2019, for the first time in history the CHIO Rotterdam hosted a multi discipline European Championship for show-jumping, dressage as well as Para-equestrian.[7] In 2023, the FEI announced that Rotterdam will be part of a new format of the show-jumping Nations Cup, the League of Nations. Only five competitions are part of the League of Nations, of which two are on European soil.[8]
The list of winners names the winner of the Grand Prix of Rotterdam in show-jumping and dressage. [9] The first Grand Prix was in 1937. From 1938 until 1947 the Grand Prix of Rotterdam was cancelled because of the World War II, excluding 1939.
| Year | Show-Jumping | Dressage | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1937 | Jan de Bruine on Milord | No Dressage | |
| 1939 | Christiaan Tonnet on Kantaka | No Dressage | |
| 1947 | Jan de Bruine on Kantaka | No Dressage | |
| 1948 |  Ziya Azak on Rizgar | No Dressage | |
| 1949 |  Jane Starkey on Cascade | No Dressage | |
| 1950 | Major G. Gibbon on Sarah | No Dressage | |
| 1951 | Harry Llewellyn on Foxhunter | No Dressage | |
| 1952 |  Victor Carrillo on Resorte II | No Dressage | |
| 1953 | Magnus von Buchwaldt on Jaspis | No Dressage | |
| 1954 |  Kevin Barry on Hollyford | No Dressage | |
| 1955 |  Paco Goyoaga on Toscanella | No Dressage | |
| 1956 | Dawn Wofford on Earlsrath Rambler | Liselott Linsenhoff on Adular | |
| 1957 | Hans Günter Winkler on Halla | ||
| 1958 |  William Steinkraus on Ksar d’Esprit | ||
| 1959 | K. Pade on Domherr | ||
| 1960 | Anna Dehning on Nico | ||
| 1961 | V. Clark on Atalanta | Reiner Klimke on Arcadius | |
| 1962 | Harvey Smith on O’Malley | Reiner Klimke on Arcadius | |
| 1963 | Charles David Barker on Mister Softee | ||
| 1964 | Seamus Hayes on Goodbye | ||
| 1965 | William Barker on North Flight | ||
| 1966 |  Nelson Pessoa on Caribe | ||
| 1967 | David Broome on Mister Softee | ||
| 1968 | Carol Hofmann on Out Late | ||
| 1969 | Harry Wouters van den Oudenweijer on Abadan | ||
| 1970 | Hauke Schmidt on Causa | ||
| 1971 | Alison Dawes on The Maverick | ||
| 1972 | Not held | Not held | |
| 1973 | Alwin Schockemöhle on Rex the Robber | ||
| 1974 |  Piero D'Inzeo on Easter Light Harvey Smith on Salvador III | ||
| 1975 | Hendrik Snoek on Gaylord | ||
| 1976 |  Christophe Cuyer on Varin | Reiner Klimke on Andiana | |
| 1977 |  John Simpson on Texas | ||
| 1978 | Terry Leibel on Sympatico | ||
| 1979 | Johan Heins on Argonaut ‘Z Paul Schockemöhle on Deister Gerd Wiltfang on Roman | ||
| 1980 |  Hugo Simon on Gladstone | ||
| 1981 | Gilles Bertrán de Balanda on Galoubet A. Malesan | ||
| 1982 | Paul Schockemöhle on Deister | ||
| 1983 | Walter Gabathuler on Beethoven | Annemarie Sanders on Amon | |
| 1984 | Paul Schockemöhle on Deister | ||
| 1985 | Philip Heffer on Viewpoint | ||
| 1986 | Bruno Candrian on Lampire | ||
| 1987 | John Whitaker on Milton | Robert Dover on Federleicht | |
| 1988 | Jos Lansink on Felix | ||
| 1989 | Pierre Durand on Jappeloup John Whitaker on Milton | ||
| 1990 | Elmar Gundel on Prints | ||
| 1991 | Franke Sloothaak on Walzerkönig | ||
| 1992 | Ludger Beerbaum on Almox Grand Plaisir | Anky van Grunsven on Olympic Cocktail | |
| 1993 | Ludger Beerbaum on Almox Rush On | ||
| 1994 | |||
| 1995 | Michael Whitaker on Everest Two Step | Gonnelien Rothenberger on Ideaal | |
| 1996 | Franke Sloothaak on San Patrigano Joly | Anky van Grunsven on Bonfire | |
| 1997 | Paul Estermann on Flying Shark CH | Anky van Grunsven on TCN Partout | |
| 1998 | Rodrigo Pessoa on Gandini Lianos | No Dressage | |
| 1999 | Beezie Madden on Innocence | Anky van Grunsven on Bonfire | |
| 2000 | Hugo Simon on E.T. | No Dressage | |
| 2001 | Franke Sloothaak on Joli Coeur | Hans Jorgen Norgaard on Pianostar | |
| 2002 | Rodrigo Pessoa on Baloubet de Rouet | Anky van Grunsven on Salinero | |
| 2003 | Lars Nieberg on Loreana | Edward Gal on Gestion Lingh | |
| 2004 | Gert-Jan Bruggink on Joel | Anky van Grunsven on Salinero | |
| 2005 | Lars Nieberg on Lucie | Kirsten Beckers on Broere Jazz | |
| 2006 | Marcus Ehning on Gitania | Anky van Grunsven on Salinero | |
| 2007 | Laura Kraut on Anthem | Anky van Grunsven on Salinero | |
| 2008 | Albert Zoer on Sam | Hubert Perring on Diabolo St Maurice | |
| 2009 | Steve Guerdat on Tresor V | Edward Gal on Totilas | |
| 2010 |  Rolf-Göran Bengtsson on Casall La Silla | Edward Gal on Totilas | |
| 2011 | Beezie Madden on Coral Reef Via Volo | ||
| 2012 | Marc Houtzager on Sterrehof's Tamino | Tinne Vilhelmson-Silfvén on Don Auriello | |
| 2013 | Philipp Weishaupt on Monte Bellini | Charlotte Dujardin on Valegro | |
| 2014 | Patrice Delaveau on Orient Express Hdc | Adelinde Cornelissen on Parzival | |
| 2015 | Lucy Davis on Barron | Patrik Kittel on Watermill Scandic | |
| 2016 | Luciana Diniz on Fit for Fun 13 | Tinne Vilhelmson-Silfvén on Don Auriello | |
| 2017 | Peder Fredricson on H&M All In | Laura Graves on Verdades | |
| 2018 |  Jos verlooy on Caracas | Edward Gal on Zonik N.O.P. | |
| 2019 | |||
| 2020 | |||
| 2021 | Sanne Thijssen on Con Quidam | Isabell Werth on Weihegold OLD | |
| 2022 | Daniel Coyle on Oak Grove's Carlyle | Patrik Kittel on Zepter | |
| 2023 | Willem Greve on Highway M TN | Morgan Barbançon on Habana Libre | |
| 2024 | Marc Houtzager on Dante | Dinja van Liere on Hermes |