O’Connor fourth and Babington sixth in $380,000 Florida five-star Grand Prix
- 26 February 2017, 02:46
Two Irish riders finished among the prizes in the $380,000 Suncast five-star Grand Prix at Florida’s Winter Equestrian Festival in the early hours of this morning (Sunday), with Cian O’Connor taking fourth and Kevin Babington claiming sixth place.
Twelve combinations managed to jump clear in the opening round to set up a thrilling jump-off and Tipperary-born Babington briefly held the early lead against the clock when he crossed the line clear in 41.37 seconds aboard Shorapur.
Meath-based Cian O’Connor and the stallion Good Luck (pictured above) were last to go of the 12 against the clock, and they crossed the line clear in 40.21 to finish best of the Irish in fourth overall while Babington eventually finished sixth.
Kevin Babington and Shorapur
Victory went America’s McLain Ward and HH Azur after they set what proved an unbeatable target of clear in 39.70. Canada’s Eric Lamaze finished as runner-up with Fine Lady 5 (40.07), while Spaniard Sergio Alvarez Moya took third spot on the podium with Arrayan (40.10).
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