It was an overwhelming victory for Gudrun Patteet in the Longines Grand Prix of the CSI5 * A Coruña. Her speed on Sea Coast Pebbles Z in the jumpoff left the other participants no choice but to risk it all, but no one could better the 40.65 seconds achieved by the Belgian, who went back up to the top of the podium of Casas Novas after winning the Longines Trophy in the summer edition 4* in 2016. In the victory gallop she was accompanied by her compatriot Dominique Hendrickx, second, and Menéndez Mieres, third.
Twelve pairs made it to the jump off without penalty at the end of the first round of the 38 participants. Among them were three Spanish riders: Gerardo Menéndez Mieres on Costello DC, Julio Arias on Reggae du Tillard, and Eduardo Álvarez Aznar on Seringat. The group also included Robert Olivier on Eros who, after winning the Massimo Dutti Trophy yesterday, fought it out for the leading award again. A knockdown in the last obstacle prevented the Frenchman from taking a place on the podium, with 41.39 seconds on the clock, pushing him into the fourth position.
The Belgian Hendrickx was the first to tackle the track on Kannabis van de Bucxtale, and he did it without fault and stopping the clock at 43.07. It was not until Patteet, the fourth participant, when there was another clear round, and Menendez Mieres immediately afterwards battled it out for the top place with a good performance, but not fast enough to defeat the winning time.
There were no more clear rounds; the risk that those who came back had to take made obstacles fall while Patteet was closer to the final triumph. In the end, it was a double podium for Belgium and a third meritorious place for Spain in one of the highest-level tests of this CSI5 *-W/2 * A Coruña.
In addition to the third-place finish, Gerardo Menéndez Mieres received the Tyco trophy for being the best Spanish rider in the Grand Prix.
The winner lavished praise for Sea Coast Pebbles Z at the end of the test. “It has been an incredible victory, but also because I have an amazing horse,” said Patteet. “There were great riders in the jumpoff, as Olivier Robert who won yesterday, so I went pretty fast. I didn’t have the impression of being risky but, when I tried it, this horse is really faster than the others,” she explained.
Emotional Tribute To Carlo For His Retirement
Before the Grand Prix, the centre of Casas Novas was the scene of an emotional tribute to Carlo 273, ridden by Sergio Álvarez Moya for the last five years, which he is retiring from competition. With a warm ovation from the stands, the Asturian rider removed the saddle for the last time to put on his back a blanket with the legend “Thank you Carlo.” Alvarez Moya said he was “privileged” for sharing part of his career with him, which he described as “exceptional in every sense.” In the career of the 17-year-old Carlo, he competed at the Olympic Games in Río, won two medals at the European Championships, took part in two World Cup finals including the Gothenburg 2013, in which a fourth historic place was taken by Spain, as well as many other great prizes.