Two-star wins for Nallon, O’Connor and Turkington
Shane Sweetnam maintained his remarkably consistent run of Grand Prix podiums this year when third in the four-star $200,000 feature in Wellington, USA on Sunday night Irish time.
This came at the end of a Floridian show during which Philip McGuane was regularly in among the higher echelons in terms of rosettes, recording two podiums and a fourth-place finish.
Ciarán Nallon was a two-star Grand Prix winner in Germany, while Cian O’Connor and Emily Turkington were two-star victors also, in Belgium and Spain respectively.
A high-class field registered for the 1.55m Holiday & Horses Grand Prix in Wellington but the difficulty of the challenge laid before them was best illustrated by the fact that a third of the dozen combinations progressing to the second round, did so as fastest four-faulters.
Sweetnam and Coriaan Van Klapscheut Z, who the rider owns in partnership with Voquest LLC, were among the eight clear, however.
The nine-year-old provided Sweetnam with his maiden GP triumph of the year when winning at three-star level in Wellington less than a fortnight ago. That ended a run of five runner-up finishes recorded at various levels for the Castlemagner man.
His consistency yielded another GP podium despite four faults in the difficult decider. The pair’s time of 42.46 was enough for third with only two double clears.
World No 1 Kent Farrington (USA) claimed the first prize of $66,000, as Greya floated around the International Ring flawlessly for a second time and in 39.34 to win by more than six seconds from fellow American Hallie Grimes, with Karoline Of Baltimore.
It was a fantastic show overall for McGuane. On Thursday night, the Corofin (Clare) native piloted Evergate Stables’ Coronado to a berth just off the podium in the 1.45m Two Phase Special.
Sixteen combinations registered double clears and victory went to Nayel Nassar (USA), riding another Evergate horse Dorado De Riverland with a speed time of 36.31. That was 2.25 seconds quicker than the rest of the pack, with McGuane not far off the silver medal as Coronado stopped the clock on 38.91.
McGuane went one step better in Friday night’s 1.50m Grand Prix qualifier with Orphea HQ.
After a baker’s dozen progressed to the tiebreaker, it came down to fractions of a second with one of show jumping’s hugely talented youngsters, Nina Mallevaey (FRA) and My Clementine winning in 36.42 seconds. Chris Pratt (CAN), aboard Ideaal Es (Ukato x Conway), clocked 36.96 with McGuane and Orphea HQ, another Evergate horse, hot on their heels with a time of 37.01.
And it was third again when returning once more with Coronado (above) in the 1.50m Classic on Saturday night Irish time, won in 66.62 by Canada’s Erynn Ballard with New Star VD Berghoeve. McGuane and Coronado registered a time of 68.58 to bag the bronze medal from the 40-strong speed competition.
Nallon guided Beerbaum Stables’ talented nine-year-old Casalla Blue Ps to victory in the Risenbeck Grand Prix on Saturday.
A field of 61 went through the pocket for the 1.45m class and a whopping 16 of those survived the first round. That tally included Wexford pilot Páraic Kenny, who steered another youngster, the eight-year-old Ganele De Rie Z to an impressive clear. It was notable that Kenny did not go flat out in the jump-off, opting instead for an educational solid clear on BPK Equestrian’s chestnut stallion to bag eighth.
In contrast, Nallon (below during the presentation ceremony) had the handbrake off and the pedal to the metal and Casalla Blue relished the challenge, proving quick and nimble, leaving every fence intact and stopping the timers in 34.07.
That was too hot for the rest, as the home contingent chased hard for the German supporters to fill every place from second to sixth.
Philipp Schuze Topphoff was closest to the Knockmore man, with Corny M, seven-tenths of a second in arrears, with Christian Ahlmann in third on Applebridge Tag Z but it was Amhrán na bhFiann that rang out as the Tricolour was raised for a memorable Green Jacketed victory.
Conor Swail’s former mount, My Lady Lavista was fourth, piloted nowadays by Janne Friederike Meyer-Zimmermann.
Genghis Khan enjoyed operating in two-star competition when guided to a comfortable victory by Cian O’Connor at Sentower Park on Friday night.
Making the 1.45m obstacles look insignificant, the nine-year-old owned by Coolmore Showjumping was among nine combatants in the jump-off. That tally included O’Connor’s protégé and newly crowned Longines FEI Rising Star of 2025 Tom Wachman, with Obora’s Laura, but they were among the three combos to knock obstacles and had to settle for seventh.
Amongst the remaining sextet, there was no matching the time of 31.84 posted by the exciting Genghis Khan with, of course, the considerable aid of the jump-off maestro O’Connor.
There was victory at a two-star show too for Emily Turkington, who was in the irons as the Donald Loughran-owned Cornet jumped a double clear and was lightning quick in the jump-off to bag the 1.45m Trofea Oliva Nova on the Mediterranean Equestrian Tour in Oliva on Saturday.
Only six were in contention after the initial test and of the quartet that replicated that effort second time around, Turkington and her 12-year-old grey gelding were too speedy, clocking a time of 39.44 seconds, a full second clear of Rogier Linssen (NED) and Commander Lux.
Turkington made the jump-off in Sunday’s Grand Prix as well, this time with Vanilla and though they were clear again in the jump-off, the Cookstown athlete clearly had no intention of over-facing her eight-year-old and they finished tenth, with the triumph going the way of Briton Anna Power, riding the Anne-Marie O’Gorman-bred Irish Sport Horse McQueen.
MCQUEEN (ISH) – 2013 gelding by Cobra (HOLST) out of Carevara Z (ZANG) by Caretano Z (HOLST). Breeder: Anne-Marie O’Gorman, Co Tipperary. Owner: Bina Ford & Anna Power. Rider: Anna Power (GBR).