Release date: 10/07/2021

It was a day full of fierce young female talent as Kim Emmen took the first CSI5* win of the day on Warriors Glory followed by Evelina Tovek who cruised to the top of the leaderboard in the 1.55m CSI5* speed class with the huge striding Winnetou de la Hamente Z.

Tovek clinched her first victory of the weekend with the exceptionally fast gelding Winnetou de la Hamente Z. The clears were hard to come by in a highly competitive speed class this afternoon on the stunning grass arena with only six combinations managing to keep all the fences up and inside the time. Many riders brought their top horses to this competition and the calibre of sport was second-to-none.

A beaming Tovek explained: “I have a lot of fun here at Tops International Arena, the grass arena is super and the horses really like it. I tried to just do my own thing and I can really use Winnetou's canter and trust him.”

Smiling Evelina explained her thoughts on her trainer von Eckermann going last: “I was nervous because I know he can beat me. The horse is very very fast and of course he would never let me win!”  

Some of show jumping’s brightest stars were early out of the starting blocks but the poles fell in the early rounds, demonstrating the high level of difficulty of this exciting class. Marlon Módolo Zanotelli couldn’t continue his good form from recent weeks having three fences down with Obora's Chloe.  Simon Delestre followed shortly after and similarly found challenges around the course, dropping two poles for 8 faults.

It was Harrie Smolders who produced the first clear with Bingo du Parc seeing a perfect stride to the tricky combinations and sailing around the course in a smooth 72.12 seconds but leaving the door open for the rest of the field. Swedish superstar Malin Baryard-Johnsson followed straight after taking it all in her stride on El Barone 111 Z and claimed the second clear of the class slipping into the lead for a short while as she stopped the clock a fraction faster than Smolders in 71.47 seconds.

Young talent Jordy van Massenhove piloted Gaga E d' Augustijn to a foot perfect round, sealing the third clear of the class in a quicker time of 69.10 seconds. They set off on a mission and took out strides where possible taking the lead at this stage. But Evelina Tovek was hot on his heels, she got long into the Streetlight double but Winnetou de la Hamente Z was careful and produced a stylish clear round Uliano Vezzani’s testing track in 68.66s, a time no other combination could catch.

There was drama when Laura Klaphake had to do an extra turn to the third fence putting them straight out of contention of the win before it all fell apart and came home with a very unusual score of 19 faults. Julien Epaillard had a surprise refusal with speed demon Usual Suspect d’Auge at the fence in front of the VIP building opting to retire and save the gelding for another day. It was also not to be Scott Brash’s day, as he picked up an uncharacteristic 16 faults with Hello Shelby.

It looked like Ludger Beerbaum was set to take over the lead as he didn’t waste any time in the air and Cool Feeling flew round the expansive grass arena. But Ludger took the outside turn to the final fence that cost them crucial seconds and having to settle for third place overall in 70.55 seconds.

Last to go, yesterday’s winning combination and Tovek's trainer Henrik von Eckermann set off at a flat out gallop but luck wasn’t on their side as they had they second part of the double down, they finished in the fastest time of 64.92s but with 4 faults on the board.

Also on Saturday, the young horses opened the competition day at Tops International Arena. This time the horses got to know the beautiful grass surface in the big arena. Bas Moerings took the lead as the fifth starter and his time was so fast that no one after him could match it. The 21-year-old Moerings rode his six-year-old KWPN mare Kwik Tweet over the finishing line in 61.06.

29-year-old Cecile Klaassen-Van den Broek won the 1.25m competition,  a Table A with an immediate jump-off after the first round. The Dutch rider completed her jump-off in 37.36 seconds with her 14-year-old mare Cilydi. She could hardly believe that she had won: "This is only my second international competition.” Cilydi is her own horse, "It is my only horse. She is very sweet in the stable and in the ring she is fast and wants to win. We are a real team." It was her first time in Valkenswaard. "It's like a dream. Everything is so big and beautiful."

The first class of the CSI2*, 1.40m against the clock, was won by Belgian Jos Verlooy. The 25-year-old, who won the individual bronze medal at the European Championships in 2019, rode the eight-year-old BWP mare Next Funky de Muze through the course in 60.05 seconds. Flying frenchman Julien Epaillard and American Claire McKean also took wins today in the competitive CSI2* classes.

Riders now look ahead to tomorrow's 1.55m CSI5* Grand Prix that starts at 16:15 CET where all the action will be streamed on GCTV with expert commentary.

Tickets for the final day of the thrilling competition are still available for just €5 via this link or can be bought at the venue on the day.