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Immobilier en vente
en France,
en Suisse et en Espagne
Contact:
Jamil Boukarabila - Jaquemet
tel: +41 26 660 31 27 -
mobile: +41 79 332 06 80 -
fax: +41 21 544 13 24
Formulaire on-line |
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(Photo: Stefano
Grasso/LGCT)
In a rare
alignment of the stars, all of the
Top 18 show jumping riders in the
world have arrived in London and are
ready to compete in the 11th round
of the 2014 Longines Global
Champions Tour, hosted by Horse
Guards Parade Ground. Not even at
major international championships do
we usually see such a complete,
star-studded turnout of the world’s
top ranked riders.
British World No1
Scott Brash heads up an exciting
line-up of Olympic, World and
Continental champions all coming to
London hunting glory. As 2013
Longines GCT overall Champion, Scott
Brash is still the one to beat, with
just four events remaining including
the series final in Doha. Last
year’s London Grand Prix winner and
Brash’s 2012 Olympic gold
medal-winning teammate Ben Maher
will be battling to retain his
London crown, so we could well see
another spectacular home win this
weekend.
Drawn by one of
the most exciting and unique venues
in the show jumping calendar and one
of the richest prize funds of the
year, the level of world-class
talent present in the British
capital for three days of top
international sport will undoubtedly
produce a thrilling Grand Prix on
Saturday. Over 50 riders will start
in the Longines Global Champions
Tour of London Grand Prix presented
by Qatar including a mouth-watering
27 of the Top 30 riders in the
world.
With the World
Equestrian Games just weeks away,
the Tour’s London event presents the
perfect opportunity for top riders
to demonstrate their world-beating
form on the renowned Longines GCT
international stage. The winner of
Saturday’s Grand Prix will take home
the lion’s share of €450,000
(£360,000) - the biggest prize of
the year in British showjumping.
The BBC's Clare
Balding will be presenting live
coverage from the event on BBC TWO
from 3pm on Friday and the Longines
Global Champions Tour of London
Grand Prix presented by Qatar will
be live on BBC TWO on Saturday from
5.15pm. The winner of this crucial
Grand Prix, round eleven of the
14-leg Longines GCT Championship,
will earn 40 points which could well
set them on the path to becoming
overall season Champion and holder
of the majority share of the
€1million (£800,600) Championship
bonus.
For tickets,
please visit
ticketmaster
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(Photo: Stefano
Grasso/LGCT)
The CSI5* Maybourne Hotel Group
Cup was won by legendary
horseman Beat Mandi (SUI) with
Antares F who set the field
alight from near the very start
of the 21-horse jump-off with a
time of 31.67s. In second was
fellow Suisse Jane Richard
Philips with Quister de
Guldenboom in a time of 32.15s
and third went to Robert
Whitaker (GBR) and Catwalk IV in
a time 32.25s. Despite testing
weather conditions the class was
a fast and furious battle of the
best, as the riders fought for
the majority share of €60,000.
The gorgeous
VIP hospitality area was crammed
with the great and glamorous
show jumping crowd who enjoyed
the world-class sport on offer
this afternoon. Though storm
clouds gathered and heavy rain
fell, the enthusiasm of
spectators was not dampened. The
spectacular Horse Guards Parade
Ground backdrop provided a feast
for the eyes as the action
unfolded at one of the most
iconic locations in London.
There was a
stellar line-up of talent in the
first round which featured the
World’s Top 18 riders in a rare
coming together of the best show
jumpers in the world. The
handsome Maybourne Hotel Group
fence was the first obstacle on
the course built by Italy’s
Uliano Vezzani. The class saw 62
starters take on the challenge
set and it was a testament to
the level of talent present that
the jump-off totalled 21 riders.
Mandli set
the pace early but always looked
like he might be beaten, however
his deceptively fast time forced
those that followed him into
making errors. The jump-off was
incredibly close with the top
ten placed riders all finishing
within two seconds of each
other. The oneupmanship as
riders chased the leading time
drew cheers from the crowd as
each one galloped for the finish
line. As the riders entered the
arena for the prize giving,
clearly pleased with himself,
Mandli’s mount Antares danced
beneath his rider as the Swiss
national anthem rung out.
All of the
Top 18 riders in the world will
be competing on Saturday for one
of the biggest prize funds in
the show jumping calendar in the
Longines Global Champions Tour
of London Grand Prix presented
by Qatar, which will be shown
live on BBC, Eurosport, beIN
Sports and GCT TV. For tickets
click here. For more information
on the broadcast schedule
click
here.
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(Photo: Stefano
Grasso/LGCT)
The feature
class of Friday’s Longines
Global Champions Tour of London,
the Sapinda Prix, was won by
Harrie Smolders (NED) and Regina
Z who put in their usual
unbeatably speedy performance to
take the honours in this €90,500
class. Second went to McLain
Ward (USA) with Rothchild,
winners of the Longines GCT
Antwerp Grand Prix at the start
of the season, and 3rd to
leading lady rider Pénélope
Leprevost (FRA) and Vagabond de
la Pomme.
The first
round of the Sapinda Prix
welcomed some much-missed
sunshine at Horse Guards Parade
Ground this afternoon. VIP
Guests and spectators enjoyed
the grand, imposing backdrop of
Horse Guards and the London Eye,
as grey clouds parted and blue
sky peeped through. Top names
from the worlds of business and
culture, including Roman
Abramovich and Bruce
Springsteen, savoured the
world-class equestrian sport
from their VIP tables.
Uliano
Vezzani’s course was a cocktail
of tricky distances and rider
problems which needed some
careful consideration. Many
riders walked the course a
number of times in order to
choose their tactics between the
selection of awkward distances.
The bright Ruco Line Shoe
upright to a water tray oxer in
front of the bustling VIP area
was the most troublesome fence
of the competition, the front
rail of the oxer ended up in the
water below during many star
riders’ rounds. The final Qatar
oxer was also tough, as one of
the biggest fences on the course
off a tight line, it caused more
than a few riders the
disappointment of lowering the
final fence.
There were no
clears in the jump-off until
Laura Kraut (USA), fifth to go,
set the standard of clear in
34.26s, her round was quickly
followed by another swift clear
from Gudrun Patteet (BEL). But
it was another top lady rider
Pénélope Leprevost (FRA) who
raced to first position on the
leaderboard mid-way through the
draw with 34.05s. With just one
rider left to follow him, McLain
Ward and his feisty mount shaved
nearly a second off Leprevost’s
time with 33.22s.
As of the
fastest riders on the Tour,
Harrie Smolders enjoyed the
benefits of being last to go,
pushing his reliable mare to
turn tighter and gallop faster,
crossing the line in 32.71s.
Harrie was placed in his first
LGCT Grand Prix last year in
Vienna and will be chasing
another podium finish tomorrow
in the Longines Global Champions
Tour of London Grand Prix
presented by Qatar. With an LGCT
Gold medal under his belt
already this season, McLain Ward
would be firm favourite for a
strong performance tomorrow.
However, all
eyes will be on the Championship
Ranking top four - Rolf-Göran
Bengtsson (SWE), Edwina
Tops-Alexander (AUS), Henrik von
Eckermann (SWE) and Bassem
Hassan Mohammed (QAT). With just
40 points separating them, the
leading pack could well see a
shake up tomorrow following this
crucial 11th round of the
season, hosted by Horse Guards
Parade Ground. Watch the
Longines Global Champions Tour
of London Grand Prix presented
by Qatar live on GCT TV,
ClassHorseTV and Equidia Life
from 3.15pm, on beIN Sports from
4pm, on BBC TWO from 5.15pm or
on Eurosport from 6pm.
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(Photo: Stefano
Grasso/LGCT)
World No1
and 2013 LGCT Champion Scott
Brash won the Longines
Global Champions Tour of
London Grand Prix presented
by Qatar in spectacular
fashion in front of a
rapturous home crowd who
would have raised the roof
of Horse Guards Parade
Ground if there had been
one. From the very
beginning, Brash was hailed
as the one to beat and he
never faltered. With three
LGCT Gold medals and a
Bronze under his belt so far
this year, the Scotsman is
well on his way to defending
his Championship title for a
second consecutive year.
Second
place went to Ludger
Beerbaum (GER) and Zinedine
who executed three lovely
rounds - the only other
treble double clear of the
class. In the press
conference after the prize
giving Beerbaum said that he
was thrilled with the horse,
as 2nd place was the maximum
he could have hoped for
against Brash and his 2012
Olympic Gold medal-winning
partner. Third went to
Madrid Grand Prix winners
Maikel van der Vleuten (NED)
and VDL Groep Verdi who
lowered a rail in the
four-horse jump-off. Katie
Dinan (USA) and Nougat du
Vallet were the fourth
combination to go forward to
the final round, but in a
race to catch Brash, a tight
turn resulted in horse and
rider parting company - the
talented young rider was
unhurt and happy to claim
4th.
Crowds
packed into Horse Guards
Parade Ground for the
feature class of the show to
be greeted by gorgeous
sunshine and the very best
international show jumping
in the world. The elegant
VIP Hospitality suite was
buzzing with the glamorous
show jumping crowd who
enjoyed a rare coming
together of the world’s Top
18 riders for one of the
biggest and highly
anticipated events of the
show jumping calendar.
Twenty-two riders went
through to the 2nd round, a
testament to the incredible
level of talent present here
for the 11th round of the
series.
Uliano
Vezzani’s first round course
was a cur ling and twisty
creation that rode much
better than expected. The
last fence in front of the
vibrant VIP, the
commemorative 1908 Olympic
fence from London 2012,
broke quite a few hearts -
the front rail rolling
gently off its cups for a
number of big names. The
second round was a tough
ride with technical, angled
distances running the length
of the arena. Last year’s
winning combination, Ben
Maher (GBR) and Cella, were
caught out by an awkward
turn from the Longines
combination to the GCT Oxer,
collecting four faults in
the second round.
The
Championship Ranking Top 3
now sees two Swedes 1st and
2nd as we head into Round 12
in Lausanne, Rolf-Goran
Bengtsson at No1 and Henrik
von Eckermann at No2 with
Edwina Tops-Alexander (AUS)
in No3 on the same points as
Eckermann but with less
podium finishes, however the
chasing pack are gaining
momentum while Beerbaum and
Brash charge up to within
pouncing distance of the
leaders. Lausanne, 12- 14
September, will see the
pressure rise again as the
final in Doha approaches
fast. Early in the season
Brash voiced his intention
to defend his LGCT title
this year and he seems to be
executing his plan of attack
perfectly.
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