Impress-K van ’t Kattenheye Z is now also on display in St Tropez

What a superb performance once again from Belgian rider Thibeau Spits and his black stallion Impress-K van ’t Kattenheye Z! After the successful duo had been stringing together good performances for several months, last weekend saw a new highlight with a podium finish in the LGCT Grand Prix of St. Tropez.

Following last week’s leg in Cannes, the LGCT circuit remained on French soil this week, specifically in sunny St. Tropez. On Saturday evening, the three-day competition concluded with a particularly thrilling LGCT Grand Prix, in which Thibeau Spits and his 11-year-old stallion Impress-K van ’t Kattenheye Z once again played a leading role. the son of Indoktro-K van ’t Kattenheye and Vagabond de la Pomme, bred by Tony Raman and Mieke Strobbe. The 1.60m basic course proved to be a tough challenge, as only two of the forty combinations that lined up at the start managed to progress to the jump-off. One of those two jump-off riders was Thibeau Spits and Impress-K van ’t Kattenheye Z, who had already recorded two clear rounds in the Global Champions League team competition on Thursday, the opening day. The pair got off to a flying start in the jump-off, but a fault on the take-off of the double jump meant they ultimately had to settle for^second place.

Thibeau Spits: “I’m very pleased with my weekend. The consistency we’ve shown at this level is what makes me happiest. I know that in every Grand Prix we compete in, we’re capable of riding four clear rounds. Being successful at this level means a lot to me.”

However, Thibeau Spits and Impress-K van ‘t Kattenheye Z were not the only ones to secure a fine blue-and-yellow result in this seventh LGCT Grand Prix of the season. In^4th place we saw his compatriot Abdel Saïd and the equally 11-year-old gelding Wathnan Quaker Brimbelles Z, a son of Quicksilver St. Simeon and Hickstead who was born in France at Haras des Brimbelles. Saïd and Wathnan Quaker Brimbelles Z knocked a rail in the first round, but thanks to a fast finishing time, they still managed to secure a top-five placing in the end.

With two placings, it was also a successful weekend for Swiss rider Jane Richard and the 11-year-old gelding Aequitus vh Bergerhof Z, a breeding product of Frank Damiaens who combined the bloodlines of Andiamo Z with those of Limbus Z. Richard and Aequitus vh Bergerhof Z first made their mark on Friday with a^4th place in the 1.45m class, and a day later they rounded off their competition with a^7th place in another 1.45m class.

Finally, there were also two pairs who managed to secure a^6th place over the weekend. For the British rider Oliver Fletcher and the 10-year-old stallion Cassanova One Bvl Z ( Codex One Z x Air Jordan Z – breeder: H.L.M. van Lier), this was in the 1.45m class on Friday, whilst Swedish rider Peder Fredricson and the 12-year-old chestnut stallion SV Vroom de la Pomme Z (Vigo d’Arsouilles x Untouchable – breeder: Geert Baertsoen) stole the show in the 1.50m main class that same day.