09 February '26
Tobago Z offspring shine in Bordeaux World Cup
/
Studbook
© Sportfot
After a week's break, jumping for World Cup points within the Western European League took place again last weekend. The calendar was now up to the eleventh leg of the season and for that, the caravan headed to the south of France, where a new edition of Jumping International de Bordeaux took place. The Longines FEI Jumping World Cup undoubtedly formed the apotheosis of the weekend and in it, the offspring of our new stallion Tobago Z emphatically made their mark.
Unlike most other European competitions, in Bordeaux the Longines FEI Jumping World Cup is invariably scheduled on Saturday evening. The basic round of the French course designer Yann Royant and his team had many technical challenges, which meant that only four of the thirty-five combinations managed to qualify for the jump-off. One of those four prospective winners were German rider Daniel Deusser and his 12-year-old stallion Otello de Guldenboom, a son of our new trump card Tobago Z combined with the blood of Caretino. Deusser and Otello de Guldenboom re-entered the ring as the second combination in that four-strong jump-off and managed to put the fastest time on the scoreboard in 35.72 seconds by a comfortable margin. Unfortunately, in their haste they saw the very last bar go down, which meant they had to settle for a second place.
However, Otello de Guldenboom was not the only Tobago Z offspring to shine at this Longines FEI Jumping World Cup. Belgian rider Frédéric Vernaet also produced a stellar performance with the also 12-year-old stallion Orak d'Hamwyck T&L, a son of Tobago Z out of a Toulon dam. Vernaet and Orak d'Hamwcyk T&L neatly kept all the rails in the basic round, but two penalties for exceeding the time allowed unfortunately kept them out of the jump-off.
Besides the various Tobago Z offspring, many Z-bred horses showed their best again at the show in Bordeaux. One of those horses was the 14-year-old gelding Verdiamo Z, a son of Verdi TN and Andiamo Z from the stud farm of Jordy van Massenhove. Under the saddle of his breeder, Verdiamo Z also jumped a World Cup without jumping faults, but they had one penalty point for time.
On Sunday afternoon in the French wine city, it was then looking forward to the famous Grand Prix Audi, in which a Z-horse secured a place on the Grand Prix podium. That honour was reserved for German rider Michael Jung and the 9-year-old gelding Fischerheros Z, a son of Hotspot and Odermus who was born to his breeder Peter Hofmann as Heros vd Windelsteen Z. Jung and Fischerheros Z, who had already finished 10th in the 1.50m class on Friday, had a flawless round in the jump-off as well, finishing in 3rd place with a time of 35.30 seconds.
In doing so, they did just one place better than French rider Cedric Hurel and the 16-year-old gelding Fantasio Floreval Z, a son of Florian de la Vie and Clinton bred by Evelyne Pater. Hurel and Fantasio Floreval Z, winners of the CSI2* Grand Prix in Opglabbeek last week, also produced a clear jump-off, but needed 36.25 seconds to complete their round.
Besides his podium place with Fischerheros Z, Michael Jung also jumped into the spotlight again with the 9-year-old chestnut mare Eclaire Z, a daughter of our chestnut stallion Epleaser van 't Heike Z and Stakkato bred in the Netherlands by W. Vestjens. Jung and Eclaire Z, who was sold in 2024 at our MBA Auction, immediately secured 4th place in the 1.40m opening class on Friday.
Finally, Belgian rider Gudrun Patteet also managed to finish in 4th place with the 12-year-old stallion Sea Coast Enjoy Z, a son of Emerald van 't Ruytershof and Parco who was given the birth name Enjoy van de Kromsteeg Z by his breeder Ann Van Putte. Patteet and Sea Coast Enjoy Z achieved this 4th place during the 1.45m speed class on Saturday, in which they did not have any faults.