Z-horses have strong weekend at CSI Ommen

Besides the first week of the Summer Tour at the Longines Tops International Arena in Valkenswaard, international show jumping also took place on Dutch soil last weekend at the beautiful CSI in Ommen, home of the Schuttert family. A lot of Zangersheide horses also appeared at the start in the north-eastern part of the Netherlands and throughout the weekend they not only managed to win a lot of places of honour, they also took care of some blue/yellow victories!

One of those wins came in the name of Belgian rider Annelies Vorsselmans and the 10-year-old mare C. Kulottie W Z, a daughter of Comme Il Faut and Guidam from the breeding farm of P.H.B.M van Wegen. Vorsselmans and C. Kulottie W Z had immediately impressed on Thursday during the opening day with a nice ^3rd place during 1.50m-high Big Tour, but experienced their highlight of the weekend during the 1.45m-high Medium Tour Final on Saturday afternoon. The Medium Tour Final ran over two rounds, with the best 15 combinations from the first round qualifying for a second round, with the counters again going to 0. Vorsselmans and C. Kulottie W Z did manage to keep all the bars in the scoops in that first round, but they did encounter one penalty point for exceeding the permitted times. However, the result was more than enough to place themselves among the top 15. During the second and decisive round, Vorsselmans and C. Kulottie W Z did manage to keep the 0 on the scoreboard and with a whirlwind finishing time of 44.45 seconds, they ended up more than two full seconds ahead of the rest of the field of competitors.

Annelies Vorsselmans: "I have had C. Kulottie W Z under saddle since she was seven years old and she has been jumping really well for a long time, but luck has often been lacking until now. Last year we were ^4th at the Belgian championships, in Mannheim she jumped really well in the Grand Prix but we had a fault. In Sopot we had a fault in the 1.50m, otherwise we would have been^2nd. Still, I notice that she is getting faster and growing into it. She is a big, very careful horse that needed time. I always tried to build her up nicely and give her good experiences. She is protectively trained. Sometimes you can't go faster than what your horse indicates either. I felt it was in there, it is only now starting to become nicely stable."

Vorsselmans and C. Kulottie W Z also led an integral blue/yellow podium with their victory in the Medium Tour Final. So^2nd place went to her compatriot Niels Bruynseels and the 9-year-old mare Devidanga SW Z, a daughter of our black pearl Dominator 2000 Z and Numero Uno bred in the Netherlands by the Zijlstra family. Bruynseels and Devidanga SW Z also ensured a flawless second round, but it took them 46.74 seconds to complete their run.

The bronze then stayed at home thanks to rider Meike Zwartjens and the 9-year-old gelding Akarad Tivoli Z, a son of Akarad Hero Z and Landwind II B who was born and raised by the Zwartjens family and with whom Zwartjens also managed to finish ^10th in the 1.45m class the day before. Zwartjens and Akarad Tivoli Z also made no mistake in that decisive round, finishing in 47.66 seconds.

Also on Saturday, a 1.45m Speed & Handiness class was also on the programme for the CSI4* competition and in that class, too, victory was blue and yellow. It was American rider Ansgar Holtgers Jr. who managed to claim the top prize there with his 14-year-old home-bred chestnut gelding Kennedy Z, a son of Kashmir Van Schuttershof and Drosselklang II. Holtgers Jr. and Kennedy Z kept it neatly clear and with a finishing time of 64.13 seconds, they had a small lead of two hundredths of a second over the competition.

First in that list of competitors was Swedish rider Ebba Danielsson and her likewise 14-year-old mare T-Gavoli Z, a daughter of Twister de la Pomme and Calvaro Z bred by G.J.A. Moerings, with whom Danielsson has already managed to amass a fine record in recent years. After a clear round, Danielsson and T-Gavoli Z crossed the finish line in 64.15 seconds, narrowly missing out on a win in this class.

Whereas on Saturday Danielsson and T-Gavoli Z still had to settle for the first place of honour, on Sunday the fast duo finally made it. In the 1.40m morning class, they raced to the finishing line in a superb 63.53 seconds, two full seconds ahead of the competition.

With their victory, Danielsson and T-Gavoli Z beat the likes of Dutch rider Bart Lips and the 8-year-old gelding Estrello EH Z (Emerald van 't Ruytershof x Graf Top), with the letters EH referring to the Verlooy family's Eurohorse. Lips and Estrello EH Z stopped the clock in 65.96 seconds after a clear round, giving them a final^2nd place in the standings.

Then, in the CSI3* Grand Prix on Sunday afternoon, Meikje Zwartjens managed to achieve another top 10 ranking with the 11-year-old gelding Denzel Tivoli Z, a son of Denzel van 't Meulenhof and Landwind II B who was also bred by the Zwartjens family. In a seven-strong jump-off, Zwartjens and Denzel Tivoli Z ran into eight penalties on the way, which was finally good for ^7th place.

Finally, British rider Harry Charles managed to place twice in Ommen with the 8-year-old grey gelding Fighting Phil, a son of Cornet Obolensky and Contender who was born to breeder Edel Fitzpatrick as Couer de Cornet Z. Charles and Fighting Phil jumped to ^5th place in the 1.45m class on Friday, and a day later they confirmed that good performance with ^8th place in the 1.45m Medium Tour Final.