Son of HH Conrad Z triumphs in the CSI4* Grand Prix of Bourg-en-Bresse

Last weekend's competition in Bourg-en-Bresse turned into a true success story for our blue and yellow colours of Zangersheide! In the CSI2* Grand Prix on Saturday, Christian Ahlmann and Dacantos Boy Z already produced a strong performance by jumping to a handsome ^4th place, but the CSI4* Grand Prix on Sunday afternoon also got a particularly nice denouement.

Finished over two rounds at a height of 1.55m, the CSI4* Grand Prix of Bourg-en-Bresse proved to be a particularly tricky course on two occasions. Olympic course designer Grégory Bodo and his team had laid out quite challenging rounds and of the 50 combinations that took their chances in the first round, only Christian Ahlmann and the 9-year-old stallion Untouched LB (United Touch S) managed to stay clear. For the second and decisive round, Ahlmann and Untouched LB were therefore joined by 12 combinations who had already incurred penalties in the first round. They included Frenchwoman Megane Moissonnier with the 13-year-old stallion Crooner Tame, a son of our stallion HH Conrad Z out of a Quaprice du Bois Margot dam. Moissonnier and Crooner Tame did manage to leave all obstacles untouched in the first round, but were charged two penalty points for exceeding the time allowed. In the decisive round, the duo then did manage to keep zero on the scoreboard and as no one managed to top the total of two penalty points over the two rounds, Moissonnier and Crooner Tame wrote this Grand Prix on their record.

However, Moissonnier and Crooner Tame were not the only ones to ensure a blue/yellow victory within the four-star competition of Bourg-en-Bresse. On Thursday morning, for example, the opening day saw an immediate victory for Dutch rider Kevin Jochems and the 10-year-old mare Looks Good de Liebri Z, a daughter of Lector Vd Bisschop and Bentley van de Heffinck bred by Lieven Bruyneel of Liebri BVBA. In the 1.40m opening class, Jochems and Looks Good de Liebri Z outclassed the competition, where a clear round in 60.04 seconds gave them a comfortable lead over the competition.

In addition, French rider Olivier Perreau also managed to jump into the prizes in this first class of the competition with the 11-year-old gelding Calypso des Joanins Z, a son of Clearway and Chellano Z from the Stephane Monier breeding farm. Perreau and Calypso des Joanins Z also produced a flawless performance and their finishing time of 62.84 seconds then earned them ^5th place in the rankings.

On Friday afternoon, the 1.50m main class in Bourg-en-Bresse was on the lookout for Perreau's compatriot Michel Robert securing a podium place with the 11-year-old gelding Calasto Z, a son of Calvaro F.C. and Stakkato bred in the Netherlands by Hans Schipper. In a jump-off for which ten combinations managed to qualify, Robert and Calasto Z again kept all the bars neatly in the scoops, giving them a final ^3rd place in the standings.

Finally, in the 1.50m class on Saturday we also saw a Z-horse at the top of the leaderboard thanks to Belgian rider Rik Hemeryck and the 10-year-old mare Benedictine de Ma Campagne Z, a breeding product of Christian Breyne who combined the blood of Balou du Rouet with that of Nabab de Rêve. Hemeryck and Benedictine de Ma Campagne Z also kept clear in both the basic round and the jump-off, which also earned them ^3rd place in the rankings.