In the most thrilling jump-off of the season so far, wild card rider Abdel Said from Egypt left many of the sport’s greatest stars in his wake when winning today’s fourth leg of the Longines FEI World Cup™ Jumping 2016/2017 Western European League at Verona, Italy. It isn’t easy to get an invitation to compete at the top shows when you are 142nd in the world rankings, but the 27-year-old set an impossible target when third to go in the 13-horse jump-off with his feisty mare Hope van Scherpen Donder, and not even world no. 2, Simon Delestre from France, could catch him.

Delestre won the Verona leg last year and is no shrinking violet when it comes to speed against the clock. Last to go with Chesall Zimequest the 35-year-old rider gave it everything he had, but as he said afterwards, “Abdel was almost invincible today! I was two seconds slower, but I’ve no regrets because I’ve picked up good points towards the Final!” He is now just six points behind Western European League leader Romain Duguet from Switzerland going to the fifth leg in Stuttgart, Germany next Sunday, and a ticket to the Longines Final in Omaha, Nebraska (USA) next March already looks well within the Frenchman’s grasp.

There were 10 clears from the first 21 riders over Uliano Vezzani’s track, but then only three more of the 37 starters managed to make the cut into the jump-off. And despite the best efforts of three of the Rio 2016 Olympic Games gold-medal-winning team from France – Philippe Rozier, Penelope Leprevost and Kevin Staut – it was the younger generation that really shone when 24-year-old Swiss rider Martin Fuchs produced a careful clear with Clooney to slot into third while 25-year-old Swede, Douglas Lindelow, did likewise with Zacramento to finish fourth.

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