Admittedly, one or two big names were missing, but it was still a star-studded starting field that started the World Cup final in jumping in German Leipzig on Thursday.

The last of the 35 crews that qualified was Jens Fredricson with his Markan Cosmopolit - and they got exactly the start Fredricson had hoped for: a flawless round and a place among the top ten for the sequel.

Impressive considering the level of difficulty on the track with short distances between obstacles and sharp turns.

- I feel connected before tomorrow, now we are at least in the match and that was important to me.

I had said top ten today, ride as fast as I can without a chance anywhere, we have so many more days ahead of us and if you ride too fast it is easy for the horse to get a little too hot.

He was sharp today and it was a great feeling, he was maybe a little too alert really to be the first day, we are often best the last day, says Fredricson to SVT Sports reporter Maria Wallberg who is on site in Leipzig.

You say you're stuck together but I guess it's a relief and a little joy to get this start anyway?

- No, I'm in the next step now.

How fun is that then?

- It may not be fun, it may be fun afterwards when you get home.

For me, the most important thing is to do the best I can, not to miss any details in the plan or in the preparations, you run around and are happy and cheer, you lose like that, so it is important to keep a cool head.

An attitude SVT's expert Lotta Björe thinks is absolutely right.

- He is super serious, he wants to make a much better result than he had in his previous World Cup finals, so I understand him, he does not take anything in advance.

You see that the horse jumps incredibly carefully, the riding is cold and he reloads, it's so real athletes do, that you rejoice but you recharge and do not take anything out in advance, says Björe in SVT's broadcast from the World Cup final.

As for the other Swedish crew that competes in the jumping in Leipzig, Angelica Augustsson Zanotelli with Kalinka van de Nachtegaele, it did not go as well.

Two impacts mean that they will most likely have nothing to do with the really high investments in the total.

- I'm not happy with that of course but she felt very nice.

If you look at her story, she usually just gets better and better the more she jumps, so I hope it continues like this this week as well, says Augustsson Zanotelli.