New GCT victory for Beauville Z N.O.P.

Last weekend there was of course a lot of attention for the famous CHIO of Aachen, but at the very highest level there was also renewed action in the Longines Global Champions Tour. For the eighth stage of the season, the international show jumping elite descended on idyllic Monaco, on the azure-blue French Riviera. Amongst the luxury yachts and iconic Monte Carlo scenery, Dutch rider Maikel van der Vleuten and his top horse Beauville Z N.O.P. also appeared at the start and together they managed to produce another cracking performance.

With a victory in the first round of the Global Champions League in Cannes and two clear rounds in the Longines League of Nations in Rotterdam, van der Vleuten and Beauville Z N.O.P. (Bustique x Jumpy des Fontaines - Breeder: Pascal Habets) already showed in the past weeks that they are in top form. In Monaco, the successful duo continued that good form with a resounding victory at the 1.50m Prix Fédération Équestre de la Principauté de Monaco on Friday evening. Van der Vleuten and Beauville Z N.O.P. were one of the nine combinations that managed to clear the basic round of course designer Uliano Vezzani and his team to advance to the jump-off. In there, they managed to repeat that flawless performance and with a finishing time of 32.22 seconds, they thus secured another Global Champions Tour victory.

The absolute highlight of the weekend was of course the LGCT Grand Prix on Saturday evening, and in it too there was success for our blue/yellow studbook colours. Belgian rider Pieter Devos took care of that with his 10-year-old mare Casual DV Z, a daughter of Cornet Obolensky and Cicero Z who was born and raised at the home of the Devos family. In a jump-off for which twelve combinations managed to qualify, Devos and Casual DV Z again left all obstacles untouched and this performance earned them a great ^5th place.

Earlier on Saturday, Italian rider Giacomo Casadei also managed to finish in ^5th place with the 11-year-old mare Corradiena van 't Klein Asdonk Z, a breeding product of Eddy Thomas who combined the blood of Cornet Obolensky with that of Andiamo Z. Casadei and Corradiena van 't Klein Asdonk Z, who also finished ^9th in the 1.50m class the day before, achieved this top 5 ranking in the 1.45m speed class.

Furthermore, French rider Alexa Ferrer also managed to jump into the picture in Monaco with her 10-year-old mare Caetlin Vd Heffinck Z, a daughter of Chacco Blue and Cabrio Z who, as her name suggests, was bred by the Hamerlinck family. Ferrer and Caetlin Vd Heffinck Z secured a creditable ^4th place in the individual standings during the second round of the Global Champions League on Thursday.

Finally, the team competition of the Global Champions League was also a success story for Swiss rider Jane Richard and the 13-year-old mare Molly Mallone Z, a daughter of Mylord Carthago and Cassini II from the breeding farm of Henk van Brussel. In both the first and second rounds, Richard and Molly Mallone Z ensured a clear round and thus had an important share in the ^3rd place of their team the Stockholm Hearts.