Last weekend, Rotterdam and Paris were the main venues for show jumping, and, of course, Holstein horses were among the top finishers.
Spectators were on the edge of their seats right up to the very last rider at the third leg of the Longines League of Nations in Rotterdam (NED). As the penultimate starter, the Dutch team’s final rider, Harrie Smolders, rode Monaco by Cassini II-Contender (Ralf Lütje, Haseldorf), line 429, at the end of the second round. Unfortunately, the pair had one knockdown, but sometimes it is precisely that oft-described ‘bit of luck’ that ultimately leads to success. This was because Kevin Staut, the French team’s final rider, knocked down two fences, allowing the Dutch to celebrate a home victory. “Monaco is already 16 years old and today’s course was really tough. Fortunately, it was enough for us today,” said Harrie Smolders.
Cordial by Casall-Chicago Z (Hans-Hermann Gempf, Stelle), line 325, and Denis Lynch have already celebrated many successes together, and this weekend at the Longines Global Champions Tour beneath the Eiffel Tower in Paris, they added another: they finished fourth in the Grand Prix. In their first joint appearance at five-star level, Maximilian Weishaupt and Zuccero HV by Zirocco Blue-Caretino (Hanno Köhncke, Badendorf), line 4539, at this competition just how well they are already working together after less than two months of training together: they finished fifth in the Grand Prix over 1.55 metres. Marco Kutscher placed his Catelly by Catalido-Ephebe For Ever (Wulf Hinrich Hamann, Ammersbek), line 242, in seventh place.
Further results for Holsteiners from around the world can be found here:
Photo: Longines Global Champions Tour (Monaco and Harrie Smolders)
