British Children’s team finish 2nd in Fontainebleau plus solid performances in the Junior & Young Rider teams
Saturday 05 May 2018
It has been a busy two days in Fontainebleau (FRA), at the Grand Prix Classic, with three youth Nations Cup teams flying the flag for Great Britain under the generous title sponsor branding of Team NAF.
It was the Children’s team that posted the best result of the three with a 2nd place finish, which they shared with the Netherlands, behind Germany who took pole position. Finishing on 12 penalties, they sat just one fence behind Germany who finished on 8 penalties and two fences ahead of France who took 4th position.
With all riders jumping clear in the second round, it put the team in a strong position to climb up from the 3rd place they held at the end of the first round. It was 13 year-old Megan Li from Chalfont St. Giles, Buckinghamshire that took the role of pathfinder with Alex Li’s 14 year-old black gelding Eclips Van Erpekom. Two good forward riding rounds saw her return back on just 4 penalties in the first round and 0 penalties in the second round.
Next to go was Madison Heath, aged 13 from Nantwich, Cheshire with Burgana, a 12 year-old bay mare owned by Claire Beecroft. Two down in the first saw them return on 8 penalties before returning for the second time for their faultless second round.
Isabella Litchfield Gomes, aged 12, from Welwyn, Hertfordshire with Roulette VI, an 11 year-old British bred grey roan mare owned by Nina Gomes incurred the same score as Madison before her finishing with two down in the first round before a penalty free clear in the second.
Taking the role of anchor was Iwan Carpenter, aged 14 from Holywell, Clywid with Amanda Carpenter’s 8 year-old bay gelding Merllyns Chacco . Posting a clear in the first round he went on to produce another in the second making him only one of three riders that managed to finish on a penalty free score.
Results:
1 Germany (8)
2 Great Britain (12)
Megan Li / Eclips van Erpekom – 4/0
Madison Heath / Burgana – 8/0
Isabella Litchfield-Gomes / Roulette – 8/0
Iwan Carpenter / Merllyn’s Chacco B – 0/0
3 Netherlands (12)
Junior Nations Cup
The Junior team narrowly missed out yesterday in their Nations Cup competition and had to settle for joint 4th with France on 8 penalties just one pole behind the leaders that claimed the places above them. With three nations sitting on just 4 penalties at the end of the second round it was a three-way jump off between Belgium, Ireland and Germany that became the final line-up decider. It was Belgium in the end that claimed the victory with Ireland taking 2nd and Germany 3rd.
For Great Britain it was a particularly impressive performance from 17 year-old Jodie Hall-McAteer from Borehamwood, Hertfordshire with the 9 year-old bay stallion Coquin de Coquerie Z owned by Mandy Hall. Clear in the first round she also delivered the same faultless performance in the second to finish on a zero score. Ben Clark, aged 16 from Southampton, Hampshire with the 16 year-old grey Valentino VII owned by Kim Clark was the next to go for the team picking up 4 penalties in the first round and 8 in the next.
Robert Murphy, aged 17, from Preston, Lancashire posted a superb clear in the first round with Newbridges Chablis SW, an 11 year-old bay gelding owned by Stacey Webb. A pole down in the second round however saw them return home on 4 penalties. Jack Whitaker, aged 16, from Whatton, Nottinghamshire delighted the team when he also put in a clear round performance in the first round with Arlo de Blondel, an 8 year-old chestnut stallion owned by Michael Whitaker. Mirroring Robert’s score, it was an unfortunate fence down in the second round to see him return with a 4 penalty score.
Results:
1 Belgium (0/4/4-113.31)
2 Ireland (0/4/4-114.29)
3 Germany (0/4/4-114.38)
4 France (8)
4 Great Britain (8)
Jodie Hall-McAteer / Coquin de Coquerie Z - 0/0
Ben Clark / Valentino – 4/8
Robert Murphy / Chablis – 0/4
Jack Whitaker / Arlo de Blondel – 0/4
Young Rider Nations Cup
Yesterday afternoon, after the Juniors had finished, it was the turn of the Young Rider team who took an eventual 6th place in their respective Nations Cup competition.
The team of Leonie Aitkenhead, aged 20, from Gainsborough, Lincolnshire with Clane K, an 11 year-old bay mare owned by Beverley Aitkenhead opened up for the team with a clear in the first round following by 8 penalties in the second. Christie Pritchard, aged 21, from Holyhead, Gwynedd with the 15 year-old bay gelding Waldemar, both owned by Tracy Pritchard came forward next. A good performance in the first round saw them finish on just 4 penalties, however slightly unsettled in the second they returned home on 12 penalties to become the dropscore in round two.
Will Fletcher, aged 19, from Faringdon, Oxfordshire with Persimmon, a 12 year-old British bred brown gelding owned by Graham Fletcher returned a brilliant clear in the first round with 4 penalties being picked up in the second at a light touch of a pole. Last to go Georgia Tame, aged 20, from Horsham, West Sussex with Cash Up, a 14 year-old bay gelding owned by Team Z7 finished on 9 penalties in first round to be the drop-score however this was quickly put behind them in the second when they had just one down outside the time allowed.
Results
1 Switzerland (4)
2 Denmark (9)
3 Germany (12)
6 Great Britain
Leonie Aitkenhead / Clane K – 0/8
Christie Pritchard / Waldemar – 4/12
Will Fletcher / Persimmon – 0/4
Georgia Tame / Cash Up – 9/5
All three groups of riders will contest their Grand Prix’s tomorrow before travelling home. For full results visit www.grandprix-classic.com.
British Showjumping would like to thank NAF, title sponsors of the Senior Nations Cup Teams along with the Children, Junior and Young Rider teams.
NAF’s premium range of Five Star brands include Superflex, Superflex Senior, PROFEET, Optimum, Magic, Oestress and Respirator Boost with quality at the heart of everything they do. They are a UFAS (Universal Feed Assurance Scheme), GMP+ (International Feed Assurance Scheme) and BETA NOPS (Naturally Occuring Prohibited Substances) accredited company and this enables them to guarantee full traceability on all the natural ingredients they utilise in their formulations, which are also selected in compliance with the FEI guidelines for Clean Sport. For further information, visit www.naf-equine.eu/uk/index.jsp.
The GBR showjumping teams are supported by the British Equestrian Federation’s World Class Programme, funded by UK Sport through the National Lottery. The Programme focuses on identifying talent, developing potential and maximising medal-winning performances on the world stage.
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