Jessica von Bredow-Werndl

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Jessica von Bredow-Werndl is one of Germany’s most successful dressage riders, renowned for her elegant style and record-breaking performances. She became the individual Olympic champion at the Tokyo Games in 2021 with TSF Dalera BB, scoring over 91% in the freestyle, and added team gold alongside Isabell Werth and Dorothee Schneider. She repeated her individual Olympic triumph at the 2024 Paris Games, once again claiming gold with Dalera, and helped Germany secure another team gold, riding alongside Werth and Frederic Wandres.

Born on 16 February 1986, Jessica grew up in a sporting family. Her mother, Micaela, competed on Germany’s junior ski team, and her father, Klaus, is a national sailing champion. After the family moved to Aubenhausen in southern Germany in 1993, Jessica and her brother Benjamin began riding, starting with a Lewitzer pony named Little Girl. Jessica’s early training was guided by Paul Elzenbaumer, followed by Stephan Münch, who developed both siblings from E level to Grand Prix between 1995 and 2007.

Jessica first rose to prominence in youth competition. With Bonito and Duchess, she won six gold and two silver medals at European Championships and three German national titles. At just 15, she made the jump to competing horses, and by 2006 had reached grand prix level. She and Benjamin committed to producing young horses for top sport, working with trainers including Isabell Werth, Jonny Hilberath, and Andreas Hausberger of the Spanish Riding School in Vienna.

After university, she spent three months living in the UK, basing her horses with Emile Faurie, in order to improve her English.

A major turning point came in 2012, when Jessica began riding Unee BB, a Gribaldi stallion owned by Beatrice Bürchler-Keller. The pair became fixtures on the international stage, earning top placings in the FEI World Cup Finals – seventh in 2014, and third in both 2015 and 2016 – and winning team bronze at the 2015 European Championships.

Jessica’s career reached new heights with TSF Dalera BB, a Trakehner mare by Easy Game. Together, they helped Germany to team gold and finished ninth individually at the 2018 World Equestrian Games. The following year, they secured team gold and individual bronze at the 2019 European Championships. Jessica dominated the Western European League of the World Cup in 2019/2020 and 2020/2021, though the finals were cancelled in those seasons.

Her crowning achievements came with Dalera at the Tokyo and Paris Olympics, where she claimed back-to-back individual Olympic titles, becoming one of the most successful riders in dressage history.

Beyond the competition arena, Jessica co-manages Gestüt Aubenhausen with Benjamin, turning it into a prominent dressage training and competition hub. She and her brother have also launched DressurFit, a fitness program for riders, and the Aubenhausen Academy for dressage education. She published her book Das Glück der Erde (“The Happiness of the Earth”) in 2020, with an English edition planned.

Jessica is married to German eventer Max von Bredow, with whom she shares a son, Moritz. The couple follow a vegan lifestyle, which Jessica credits with improving both her health and her performance.