Forty-six horse and rider combinations took part in the CSI4* Grand Prix on this last Sunday of September. Eleven combinations managed to qualify for the jump-off on the 1m55 course designed by Louis Konickx, boasting sixteen jumping efforts. Although France was the most represented nation in the jump-off, Italy ended up being victorious, thanks to Piergiorgio Bucci’s wonderful performance with Driandria.

Initially the 4* Grand Prix appeared to smile upon the French riders. After the first clear round of Taiwan’s Jasmine Chen, France’s Bruno Garez, Morgan Bordat, Thierry Rozier, Marie Demonte and Julien Gonin also jumped clear in the allowed time, to the extent that at the end of the first round, five of the fourteen jump-off riders in this Grand Prix were French. Facing them, Portugal’s Luis Sabino Gonçalves, Brazil’s Yuri Mansur, Mexico’s Eugenio Garza Perez, Switzerland’s Janika Sprunger and Italy’s Piergiorgio Bucci also had clear rounds when they left the ring allowing them to go through to the jump-off …which promised to be very high-level!

First to go in the jump-off, Jasmin Chen and Ninyon’s hopes were dashed when they had one rail down on the vertical, the second fence in the jump-off. The first French rider, Bruno Garez and United Sunheup had one down on the second element of the double. Morgan Bordat and Julien Gonin were also unlucky and each left the ring with four faults. Thierry Rozier and Star put a smile back on the faces of the French members of the public, with a perfect, fast round, in a time of 31.72 seconds.

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