Rob Bevis jumps brilliant Double Clear for Team Cavalor in Dublin Nations Cup
Saturday 23 July 2016
The British Showjumping team finished in joint 5th place yesterday with The Netherlands in the Furusiyya CSIO 5* Nations Cup at Dublin Horse Show riding under the banner of Team Cavalor. It was Italy who took the eventual victory over Ireland in a 3rd round jump off for the coveted Aga Khan Trophy following one of the most thrilling jump-offs the series would have seen.
At the halfway stage there was a three-way tie on a zero score between Italy, Ireland and the USA however the Americans were relegated in the second round when things didn’t go quite as well as they had in the first to see them finish on 12 penalties.
This saw them take 3rd place alongside Sweden who also finished on 12 penalties with just Ireland and Italy managing to retain their zero penalty tally thus forcing a jump off situation for first place. As always at Dublin Horse Show, the stands were absolutely heaving with spectators supporting their home crowd despite the incredibly hot weather..
It was Denis Lynch with the big striding All Star that was first to go in the jump-off and his round was almost too difficult to watch as he galloped his way round taking turns that looked almost impossible. Clear at the penultimate fence you could of heard a pin drop as he galloped to the last asking All Star to jump on a long stride. However at the last minute the 13 year-old stallion veered to the left before coming back and clearing it easily having been hampered by 6 penalties for the stop and finishing just outside the time allowed. The Italians who had also fielded a strong team put forward Piergiorgio Bucci and Casallo. Deciding to go for a clear he rode a slower round, which ultimately paid off when he returned home on zero penalties to declare Italy the winners.
For Great Britain it was primarily a team of horses just stepping up to CSIO 5* level and the performance of the day for the team came from Robert Bevis from Wrexham, Clwyd with his own 15 year-old grey gelding Courtney Z. A foot-perfect double clear, which they made look easy, saw them come home on a zero penalty score in this, their only second 5* Nations Cup. An absolutely stunning performance which certainly drew a smile from World Class Showjumping Performance Manager Di Lampard.
Ben Maher from Bishop’s Stortford, Hertfordshire with Sarena II, a 10 year-old bay mare which he jointly owns with Jane Forbes Clark took the role of pathfinder. An unfortunate touch at two of the fences saw them return on 8 penalties in the first round before going on to deliver a fantastic clear in the second. For Sarena, making her debut appearance on a top level team it was an extremely promising performance and one couldn’t of got any better in the latter round.
Laura Renwick from Maldon, Essex with Heliodor Hybris, a 9 year-old chestnut gelding owned by Colin Bates, was also making only his second appearance on a 5* Nations Cup team having jumped on the Gijon team earlier in the year. It was a 4 penalty finish in each round for Laura in what was otherwise two extremely solid performances within the time allowed.
Robert Smith from Shrewley, Warwickshire with his own 11 year-old bay mare Bavi jumped their first 5* Nations Cup in Sopot recently making this Bavi’s only second appearance. Not the greatest start for them when they returned home with 19 penalties however an extremely marked improvement in the second round saw them come home with just 4 penalties allowing the team to finish on an overall score of 16 penalties alongside The Netherlands.
For further information on the show and full results visit www.dublinhorseshow.com.
British Showjumping would like to thank Cavalor, who are the title sponsors of their Senior Nations Cup Teams. More information on Cavalor and their products dedicated to the nutritional needs of high performance horses can be found at www.cavalor.com/uk-en.
The British Jumping teams are also supported by the Equestrian World Class Programme.
The programme, which encompasses both Podium and Podium Potential squads, focuses on identifying talent, developing potential and maximising medal winning performances on the world stage. The Programme has been funded by the National Lottery via UK Sport since 1998 and is a portfolio within the British Equestrian Federation.
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