Another Vital win for Swail

Down man headlines strong weekend once more for Irish athletes

Conor Swail was on the five-star victory trail again late Saturday night Irish time, landing the $62,500 individual speed class at the Ottawa leg of the Major League Show Jumping competition.

We have seen Swail enjoy emotional success with a yard veteran this year already when Aga Khan Cup hero Count Me In won the million-dollar Queen Elizabeth II Cup at Spruce Meadows in July.

This time, it was another long-standing performer, Vital Chance De La Roque that delivered a top-flight success for the Down athlete, and in the process, contributed to the Trelawney Trailblazers’ runner-up finish in the $200,000 team contest.

At 15, Vinny has a couple of years on his stablemate and he has been showing good form in the Major League, combining with Swail to help the Trailblazers win the Vancouver leg in May. They had also finished runner-up in the individual class but it was the other way around at Wesley Clover Parks.

The dynamic duo delivered in the five-star 1.50m round against the clock, blitzing the field of 39 with a clear in 67.83 seconds. That was a stunning 3.9 seconds faster than runner-up Grant Seger (USA), riding Frieda.

With Daniel Bluman (ISR) also going clear on Hummer Z, the Trailblazers were in joint first in the team competition but an injury to Lillie Keenan’s Agana van het Gerandal Z meant they had to withdraw from the jump-off for overall honours, victory going to the all-Canada team of Elizabeth Bates, Sean Jobin and Nicole Walker.

This came 24 hours after Galwegian Andrew Bourns had registered a five-star podium finish in the same ring, combining with nine-year-old Irish Sport Horse Tranquility Bay to be third behind local hero Jobin and Coquelicot VH Heuvelland Z.

It was an excellent effort by horse and rider, with the gelded son of Emerald, bred in Wicklow by John Mulvey, giving up plenty of experience to many of his rivals in the field of 26. He proved up to this elite competition, along with his Nations Cup-winning owner/pilot, and they made Jobin and runner-up Bruno Diniz Das Neves (POR) work with their second clear in 36.25, which was more than two seconds faster than fourth but less than one shy of the winning time of 35.47.

Earlier yesterday, Denis Lynch and Michael Duffy were on the podium in five-star competition at the Longines Global Champions League in Valkenswaard.

Lynch and Vistogrand carried on the good form that helped the Underwriting Exchange Ireland Show Jumping team secure second in the Aga Khan Cup at the Dublin Horse Show, by recording a runner-up finish in the second speed class of at the Longines Tops International Arena.

World No 1 Henrik von Eckermann (SWE) was the only pilot able to get the better of the Tipperary athlete and his high-flying stallion in the 1.60m examination, joining forces with Glamour Girl to take the overall garlands with an electric time of 71.22 seconds.

Lynch and Vistogrand stopped the clock on 74.18 and Galway man Duffy,  navigated Calypso de Beaufour to third with a clear in 75.91 in the Grass Arena.

Jeremy Sweetnam posted a fantastic three-star victory in Zelhof on Saturday also, securing ultimate honours in the 1.45m competition along with the ten-year-old Bojaro, who is owned by Frank and Maja Auer.

A mammoth field of 99 combinations entered, so the course builder would have been happy with 15 going clear and a further five had just one time fault, indicative of the questions that were asked of the contestants.

Ballinascarthy man Sweetnam, a nephew of double Olympian Shane Sweetnam, had no such worries though in partnership with his gelding, who having done the needful to make the jump-off, then showed the required pace and accuracy to snatch the honours from Thibeau Spits (BEL) and Conrad Quality Z thanks to a time of 36.72 seconds.

BREEDING

TRANQUILITY BAY (ISH) – 2015 gelding by Emerald (BWP) out of Tullibards Lux Sensational (ISH) by Lux ZZ (HANN). Breeder: John Mulvey, Co Wicklow. Owner: Andrew Bourns Sport Horses. Rider: Andrew Bourns (IRL)