Hello William adds a splash of colour to the Grand Prix podium in Birmingham

Last weekend, much attention was focused on the various five-star shows around the world, but of course there were also plenty of other international shows taking place. One of these was the Horse of the Year Show in Birmingham, where a Z-level horse graced the podium during Sunday’s CSI3* Grand Prix.

Four days of national and international show jumping came to a close on Sunday evening in Birmingham with the Leading Showjumper of the Year – Grand Prix, which saw a total of thirty-two rider-horse pairs take to the arena. Eight of them managed to keep all the bars clean in the first round, thereby progressing to the decisive jump-off. One of those eight jump-off contenders was British rider Oliver Fletcher and his 13-year-old gelding Hello William, a son of Waldo van Dungen and Stakkato who was born in Ireland at Lissava Stud Farm as Willie Wonka LVS Z. Fletcher and Hello William, who have already built up an impressive track record together in recent years, also managed to keep the round clear in the jump-off and secured^third place after clocking a time of 33.76 seconds.

Furthermore, his compatriot Guy Williams also qualified for the jump-off with the 8-year-old grey stallion Kazandor Hero Z, a son of Kassander van ’t Roosakker Z and Zandor Z, who – as his name suggests – was bred by Luc Henry. After a clear-round jump-off, they crossed the line in 35.28 seconds, which was enough for^sixth place in the rankings.

On Saturday, British rider James Smith secured a podium place with the 9-year-old mare Astrade Z, a daughter of Air Jordan Alpha Z and Indoctro, who was bred in the Netherlands by Stal Borst. In the 1.50m class, Smith and Astrade Z managed to ride flawlessly in both the first round and the jump-off, a performance that earned them a fine^second place.

Another podium finish in Birmingham went to British rider Thomas Pritchard and the 14-year-old stallion Angot HH Z, a son of Ablesse and Upsilon van de Heffinck, bred by New Nordic Horses BVBA. Among other events, they competed in the 1.45m class on Friday, where they secured^third place.

Another standout combination was the British rider Joseph Trukfield and the 8-year-old stallion Chacstar Z, a breeding product of Mts. Van de Donk-Kooi that combined the bloodlines of Chacfly PS with those of I M Moerhoeve’s Star. In both the 1.45m class on Friday and the one on Saturday, Trukfield and Chacstar Z took^fourth place following a flawless performance.

Finally, British rider Holly Smith and the 8-year-old gelding Sing Z (Copycat Z x PKZ Contact van de Heffinck – breeder: Marcel Schrijvers) also managed to make their mark twice in Birmingham. Following an ^8th place in Friday’s 1.50m class, they secured a^6th place on Saturday in another 1.50m class.