Frederic Tillmann: Derby Win on the Fifth Try

Melitta Extends Partnership Agreement

May 17th will be a day of celebration for the Tillmann family! On May 17, 2013, Gilbert Tillmann won the Deutsches Spring-Derby in Hamburg; on May 17th, 2026, his brother Frederic won the Al Shira'aa 95th Deutsches Spring-Derby presented by Melitta in Hamburg. Tears rolled down their faces; the joy was boundless.

For the fifth time, Frederic Tillmann competed in Hamburg’s Derby with the now twelve-year-old DSP Comanche; he had already finished second twice and fourth once, but now—finally—he had secured the victory.

Tillmann entered the Derby course as the 14th of 32 starters. Cheered on by thousands of spectators, the pair cleared one difficult jump after another; 164.30 seconds later, it was clear: This was the 166th clear round in the history of the Deutsches Spring-Derby! Complete disbelief on the rider’s face, a kiss for Comanche, and then the long wait. 72 minutes after Tillmann’s superb clear round, the last rider entered the course: 33-year-old Simon Heineke in the saddle of Derby specialist Cordillo. Sensation number two on this Derby day and clear round number 167! With that, the matter was settled: The 95th Deutsches Spring-Derby would also be decided in a jump-off.

Tillmann had to go first. He got off to a quick start, brought his Comanche back sharply before the train racks and the wall, and finished clear in 54.84 seconds. “This was my third time in the jump-off at the Derby,” he summed up. “I hadn’t finished so well the two times before, but I learned from those mistakes. Today everything went perfectly. But those two minutes I had to wait before I found out Simon’s result—those were the worst.” But Heineke had two faults over the jumps. Victory for Frederic Tillmann, second place for Simon Heineke.

“Of course I’m very happy,” emphasized Simon Heineke. “Even though I would have loved to give Cordillo another chance to leave the arena here as a Derby winner at the age of 18.” The 18-year-old Cordillo was competing in the Derby for the sixth time today, the fourth time with Simon Heineke, and twice previously under Nisse Lüneburg, with whom he had actually already won the Derby in 2019. “But overall, I’m just happy and grateful.” Heineke not only had an experienced Derby specialist under his saddle, but also by his side. He is trained by Achaz von Buchwaldt, himself a Derby winner in 1996 with Lausbub.

It was a mix of excitement and drama. Last year, André Thieme won the Derby for the fourth time, his first victory with Paule. He was riding Paule again today and finished the 1,250-meter course with 17 obstacles with one fault: at the lowest obstacle of them all, the takeoff of the big wall. “I can’t say I was too confident, but I was a bit shocked after jump three,” Thieme described his ride. “Paule usually jumps those Irish banks without any problems, but today he hesitated briefly there. That threw us off our rhythm a bit, and we even stumbled slightly. After that, I actually felt really good again over the water jump and the palisade. In hindsight, I don’t even know exactly why I approached the wall so close to the inside rail.” The 168th clear round would have been within reach and perhaps even a historic sensation: never before has a rider come so close to winning the Grand Prix and the Derby in Hamburg in the same year. After initially processing this mistake, however, Thieme emphasized: “In the end, I’m incredibly happy with Paule. But if I hadn’t already won yesterday, I’d probably be really pissed off right now,” he grins. “But joking aside—this week was incredibly successful, everything went perfectly, and it was just great.”

Perhaps the significance of experience has never been more evident than on this Derby day. Winner Comanche was competing in the Derby for the fifth time, and rider Frederic Tillmann for a full ten times. For second-place finisher Cordillo, it was his sixth Derby start, and for rider Heineke, his fourth. André Thieme has already won the Derby four times; Paule was competing for the fourth time and has won once. And the twelve-year-old C the Stars, who finished fourth this year with Stephan Dubsky, is also no stranger to the Hamburg Derby course. In 2025, he placed second under the saddle of the Spaniard Esteban Benitez Valle.

Tournament director Matthias Rath concluded the Al Shira’aa Deutsches Spring- und Dressur-Derby with a beaming smile: “A lot has already been said over the weekend, but today’s Derby finale in particular was once again something very special. Everyone was on the edge of their seats right up to the end: Will there be a jump-off or not? The fact that the very last rider made it to the jump-off was the perfect touch of suspense. The atmosphere today—as it has been every day—was simply outstanding. It’s just such a joy to be part of this event.”

Rath was also delighted following a conversation with the derby’s presenting sponsor, Melitta. Matthias Rensch, Melitta’s Managing Director for Europe, Africa, and Asia in the Coffee Division, announced: “The second year was different from the first in yet another way. And we’ve once again received an incredible amount of positive feedback.” He noted that the sportsmanship, ambition, and passion evident everywhere were particularly impressive. These are values with which Melitta, as a company, can identify very well. “We’ve become so enthusiastic about the event,” explains Rentsch, “that Matthias Rath and I actually sat down yesterday and discussed that we’d like to continue the partnership long-term. We’ll be talking about that in more detail in the coming weeks.” Rath was pleased: “I believe this continuity is enormously important for the Derby. It’s about creating stability for the future as well.”

Clara Blau Wins Style Award

Hamburg is the only tournament where the well-known Anrecht Investment Harmony and Fairness Award is also presented in show jumping—specifically at the Deutsches Spring-Derby. Based on a spectator vote, the decision on Derby Sunday was clear: Clara Blau wowed the crowd with her horse Paul and received this prize, which comes with a cash award of 10,000 euros. Although the pair had two faults in the derby course, the 25-year-old was absolutely thrilled with her beloved horse and beamed: “I was so happy every time he cleared a jump so beautifully. It was so much fun.”