Luciana Lossio (BRA) found out she would jump her first-ever five-star last Sunday night. Just under a week later, she stood atop the podium of the $385,000 Bainbridge Companies CSI5* Grand Prix during the ninth week of international competition at Wellington International’s Winter Equestrian Festival. In front of a buzzing ‘Saturday Night Lights’ crowd, the 49-year-old rider guided long-time partner Lady Louise Jmen to a win she never dreamed of having.
“This is unbelievable for me; I’ve been with this mare for six years and in the beginning I just wanted to jump 1.20m, but we became so much more,” said Lossio of her 14-year-old mare. “We went higher and higher, and today I’m here in my first five-star and winning alongside these riders that I just enjoy watching.
“She’s so confident; she doesn’t change from day to night or from the grass to the sand; she’s perfect,” continued Lossio of Lady Louise Jmen.