| Most influential person in career |
German equestrian jumper Ludger Beerbaum, and horse owner Madeleine Winter-Schulze. (ludger-beerbaum.de, 12 Apr 2016) |
| Hero / Idol |
German equestrian jumper Ludger Beerbaum. (voneckermannsportstable.com, 06 Mar 2018) |
| Injuries |
In February 2012 he broke his collarbone in a fall while training at home. He required surgery on the injury. (worldofshowjumping.com, 02 Feb 2012) |
| Sporting philosophy / motto |
"If you don't step out into the unknown, you will never grow. If you don't fall and hurt your knees, you will never learn to cycle. If you don't risk something in life, you will never learn. But if you do, if you challenge yourself and step out of your comfort zone, you have a good chance to succeed. To win. And that to me is what life is." (equilifeworld.com, 27 Feb 2017) |
| Awards and honours |
He and his Swedish national jumping teammates Peder Fredricson and Malin Baryard-Johnsson received the 2021 Jerring Award in Sweden. The award is voted on by listeners of Sveriges Radio, who selected the team's gold medal at the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo as the best Swedish sporting performance of the year. (svt.se, 18 Jan 2022) |
| Famous relatives |
His wife Janika Sprunger has represented Switzerland in equestrian jumping. She competed at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro and the 2018 World Equestrian Games [WEG] in Tryon, NC, United States of America. (fei.org, 15 Oct 2022; equnews.com, 18 Jan 2021; SportsDeskOnline, 18 Mar 2019; expressen.se, 23 Apr 2018) |
| Ambitions |
To compete at the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris. (fei.org, 12 Aug 2022) |
| Other information |
TOURNAMENT HORSE
He competed at the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo on his horse King Edward, which had previously been ridden by his wife Janika Sprunger. He took over the ride in August 2020 after Sprunger took time away from the sport while pregnant. He went on to win gold in the team competition and finish fourth in the individual event with King Edward in Tokyo, and then claimed both team and individual gold at the 2022 World Championships in Herning, Denmark. "Both Janika and I were sure he would be something special – we obviously didn't know he'd be what he is now, but we thought he'd be very good. When you trotted and cantered, King Edward had such unbelievable power, and that power is what he has when he springs off the ground. I don't know where it comes from, it's just unbelievable." (horseandhound.co.uk, 21 Aug 2022; worldofshowjumping.com, 27 Dec 2021; aftonbladet.se, 30 Jul 2021; ridsport.se, 08 Jun 2021)
STABLES
He and his wife Janika Sprunger run Cyor Stables in Kessel, Netherlands. They began construction on the facility in 2020 after buying the property from Dutch equestrian Emile Hendrix. Von Eckermann had previously ran Von Eckermann Sport Stable in Bonn, Germany. "Seeing everything take shape is very exciting, but this has been a long time coming." (Instagram team profile, 10 Aug 2021, 28 Feb 2021; Dutch Sport Horse Sales, 25 Dec 2020; Instagram profile, 05 May 2020; horses.nl, 20 Nov 2020; tidningenridsport.se, 06 May 2020; equilifeworld.com, 27 Feb 2017)
FAMILY BUSINESS
His family owns the Countess von Eckermann luxury accessories and interior design business. The company was founded by his grandmother and is run by his brother Carl. (Facebook profile, 11 Apr 2016; sn.se, 26 Nov 2014) |
| Milestones |
He became the first equestrian jumper representing Sweden to win individual gold at the world championships when he triumphed at the 2022 edition of the tournament in Herning, Denmark. He was also part of the team that won Sweden's first team jumping world championship gold medal in Herning. (SportsDeskOnline, 07 Feb 2023; horseandhound.co.uk, 14 Aug 2022) |
FEI Database
www.voneckermannsportstable.com 
www.facebook.com/voneckermannsportstable 
instagram.com/henrikvoneckermann_ 
