Iron Maiden triumphs in Ocala World Cup

The World Cup circuit of the North American League produced another success for our blue/yellow colours of Zangersheide last weekend. Two weeks after American rider Kyle King and his top mare Kayenne Z won at the stage in Thermal, now the seventh and final heat of the season also got a Z horse at the top of the standings. At the magnificent World Equestrian Centre of Ocala, it was American rider Mimi Gochman and her Iron Maiden who came out strongest and impressively wrote this final round of the season on their record.

The World Equestrian Centre of Ocala was once again well-filled on Saturday evening, and the numerous spectators who turned up were once again treated to absolute top-class sport. The basic course during this final stage of the season was designed by a team led by Portuguese course designer Bernardo Costa Cobral and featured many technical challenges and delicate obstacles. This tough combination meant that of the thirty-eight combinations that took their chances, only four managed to advance to the decisive jump-off. One of those four were home rider Mimi Gochman and the 11-year-old grey gelding Iron Maiden, a son of Clarimo ASK and Kashmir van Schuttershof who was born Cadans van de Ijzervallei Z to breeder Titus Vereecke. Gochman and Iron Maiden reappeared in the jump-off as the first combination in the ring and produced a cracking performance. They quickly went to the finish in 41.79 seconds and by being the only combination to go clear again in the end, they took the World Cup title with a lot of flair.

"Iron Maiden can sometimes get a bit stressed in the jump-off and I just wanted it to go as smoothly as possible with him," says Mimi Gochman. "I was already so happy with his performance in the first round and he really took steps forward. He kind of saved me at one of the jumps, so I'm very satisfied." Gochman started riding Iron Maiden - whose stable name is "Bruce", named after lead singer Bruce Dickinson of the band Iron Maiden - in the summer of 2025 and knew immediately that he would be a good partner for her. "I always felt he had the ability and potential. He's super, super brave. He can jump over mountains and we worked on consistency, but I always knew he was very special."

Also in this Longines World Cup, Gochmann's compatriot Charlotte Murray also produced a fine performance in the saddle of the 13-year-old gelding Magnum Z, a son of Messenger and Diarado bred by Erik Verbist. Murray and Magnum Z did keep all the bars neatly in the basic round, but two penalties for exceeding the time allowed unfortunately kept them out of the jump-off and meant they had to make peace with ^7th place.

Earlier on Saturday, a 1.50m class also took place in Ocala for the five-star competition and there was some blue/yellow success in that too. For that, American rider Laura Kraut and her 11-year-old gelding Trés Bien Z, a son of Toulon and Nabab de Rêve from the breeding farm of S.T. Dingen in the Netherlands, took care of that. Kraut and Trés Bien Z, who already started their competition on Thursday with a ^5th place in the 1.55m class, crossed the finish line in 57.12 seconds in this speed class, securing ^3rd place.

Following their victory in the CSI4* Grand Prix of Wellington earlier this month, Ocala also saw another win for Irish rider Shane Sweetnam and the 10-year-old chestnut stallion Coriaan Van Klapscheut Z, a son of Comme Il Faut and Lord Z bred by the Van Rossem family of Mivaro BVBA. In the 1.50m main class on Friday, Sweetnam and Coriaan Van Klapscheut did not make a mistake in either the first round or the 'Winning Round' and with a convincing finishing time of 35.80 seconds, they were not one and a half seconds ahead of their closest pursuer.

The five-star competition undoubtedly received the most attention in Ocala, but in addition to that, there was also jumping at two-star level, among others. Here too, several Z-horses managed to stand out, including the 12-year-old mare Diamantina Z (Diamant de Semilly x Narcos II - breeder: Ushuaia Horses NV). Under the saddle of American rider Katherine A. Dinan, Diamantina Z signed for a flawless performance in the CSI2* Grand Prix on Sunday in both the basic round and the jump-off, which finally earned them ^4th place in the standings.

In the 1.40m speed class on Saturday, Brazilian rider Eduardo Pereira de Menezes jumped into the limelight by securing a place on the podium with two Z-horses. He came^2nd with the 8-year-old stallion Excellent Sunshine Z (Emerald van 't Ruytershof x Dutch Design - breeder: Tom De Waele), while he came ^3rd with the 10-year-old stallion Kadco Hero Z (Kassander van 't Roosakker Z x Aganix du Seigneur Z). Moreover, with Excellent Sunshine Z this was already the second top ranking of the weekend, after they also secured ^5th place during the 1.40m class on Thursday.

Silver in this 1.40m class on Thursday then went to American rider McLain Ward and the also 10-year-old gelding Snapchat van de Broekkant Z (Hunter's Scendix x Concorde - breeder: Inno Lamers). With a clear round in 60.61 seconds, Ward and Snapchat van de Broekkant Z were more than half a second short of snatching the top prize.

Finally, Mexican rider Carlos Hank Guerreiro also managed to snatch a podium place with the also already 10-year-old stallion H5 Chillipepper Z (Crunch 3 x Diarado - breeder: Martin Poppen). During the 1.40m class on Wednesday, they kept nicely clear during both the^1st and^2nd phases, with a ^3rd place final result.