London turns three times in blue and yellow

While the year is slowly approaching its end and we are preparing for the final straight of 2025 with Jumping Mechelen, the British capital London has been dominated by London International Horse Show over the past few days. The World Cup competition in the iconic setting of ExCeL turned out to be a particularly successful one for our blue/yellow colours, with the Z-horses winning no less than three victories over the weekend.

One of those wins came in the name of Luxembourg rider Victor Bettendorf and the 14-year-old black mare Cancun Torel Z, a daughter of Cosinhus and Grannus born in France to breeder François-Xavier Guyard. Bettendorf and Cancun Torel Z already jumped a fine record over the past few years, and so that record has been extended again in recent days. Indeed, the successful duo jumped to victory in the 1.50m class on Saturday evening. In a class against the clock, Bettendorf and Cancun Torel Z jumped to the finish in 58.34 seconds, more than three quarters of a second ahead of the rest of the field.

On Monday during the final day there was also a 1.50m speed class on the programme for the riders of the five-star competition and in it, too, Bettendorf and Cancun Torel Z managed to secure a top ranking. This time they crossed the finish line in 57.88 seconds after a flawless round, which was good for^2nd place in the rankings.

A second blue-and-yellow victory went to home rider Jessica Mendoza and the 13-year-old gelding I-Cap CL Z, a breeding product of Alexander Liefsoens who combined the blood of I'M Special de Muze with that of Air Jordan Z. Mendoza and I-Cap CL Z, who also triumphed in Geneva last time out, were the final winners of the 1.50m class on Friday morning, where a flawless round in 57.35 seconds put them more than half a second ahead of their closest pursuer. During the 1.50m class on Monday, they also confirmed this performance by taking another ^3rd place.

Moreover, on Thursday during the opening day, Mendoza's compatriot Rachel Proudley had also ensured a Zangersheide victory with the 11-year-old stallion Easy Boy de Laubry Z, a son of Elvis Ter Putte and Ogano Sitte out of the Haelterman family's breeding at Haras de Laubry. Proudley and Easy Boy de Laubry Z triumphed in the famous Puissance, where they defied the wall without any problems.

Another notable combination in the British capital was Dutch rider Sanne Thijssen and the 12-year-old mare Cupcake Z, the daughter of Chacco Blue and Caretano Z bred in the Netherlands by Sandra van den Broek-Wilmes. Thijssen and Cupcake Z immediately started their competition on Thursday with a great ^4th place during the 1.55m main class and a day later they managed to secure another ^3rd place during the 1.55m high Grand Prix Qualifier.

During this 1.55m-high Grand Prix Qualifier on Friday, we also saw a second Z-horse at the top of the leaderboard, thanks to French rider Marc Dilasser and the 10-year-old mare Make My Day Z Du Gevres, daughter of Mylord Carthago and Ukato from the breeding farm of Jan Sips and Martijn Cerpentier. Like Thijssen and Cupcake Z, Dilasser and Make My Day Z Du Gevres also kept nicely clear in both the basic round and the jump-off, finishing in ^5th place.

Furthermore, French rider Kevin Staut also had a successful weekend with the 9-year-old chestnut mare Vida Loca Z, a daughter of Vigo d'Arsouilles and Cornet Obolensky from the breeding farm of Soc. Agricola A R.I. Edeldame in Italy. Staut and Vida Loca Z made their first appearance on Saturday with a ^9th place in the 1.50m class and on Monday they closed their competition with a handsome ^6th place in The Turkish Airlines Grand Prix. Then a fault in the basic round kept them out of the decisive jump-off.

Also in that 1.50m class on Saturday, British rider Tim Gredley made his presence felt with the 9-year-old mare Vuitton of Picobello Z, a daughter of Vagabond de la Pomme and PKZ Contact van de Heffinck from the Ruant family breeding farm of Picobello Horses. With a clear jump-off they secured ^5th place.

Finally, several offspring of our Z stallions also managed to jump into the picture in the British capital. The most eye-catching name here was the 8-year-old stallion VDL Mindset ES, a son of Aganix du Seigneur Z and Kannan out of Egbert Schep's breeding. VDL Mindset ES, together with his Dutch rider Hessel Hoekstra, appeared three times at the start and three times their round resulted in a handsome top 5 ranking. On Saturday they started their competition with a ^4th place in the 1.50m class and the following days they finished ^5th in both the 1.50m class on Sunday and Monday.

Finally, Belgian rider Rik Hemeryck also produced another strong performance with his 11-year-old stallion Inoui du Seigneur (Jenson van 't Meulenhof Z x Aganix du Seigneur Z - breeder: Marc Van Langendonck). At the Longines FEI World Cup, they neatly kept all the bars in the reels, but a mistake on the way unfortunately kept them out of the jump-off and made them settle for ^eighth place.