Howley the Man in Rome

Richard Howley and Mansini Ltd stand to attention as Amhrán na bhFiann is played in Rome (Photo: Sportfot)

Sligo athlete’s five-star triumph comes 24 hours after four-star success for McAuley

Richard Howley and Mansini Ltd have proven a combination to be feared in speed classes since discovering the winning thread last year and they registered an eighth victory of 2024 in the five-star Lugano Diamonds Trophy at the Longines Global Champions Tour in Rome earlier today.

This success is a 14^th since the beginning of 2023 for the duo. The stellar run of form kicked off at elite level in Bordeaux 19 months ago and the triumph at the Piazza di Siena is a fifth five-star win for the combination.

Enniscrone native Howley and the 15-year-old HK Horses-owned bay gelding were nimble, quick and accurate, completely in sync as every tight line was taken, while putting on the after-burners when the opportunity presented itself.

The pair stopped the clock on 50.73 seconds, which was enough to take the first prize.

Howley, whose Rome Gladiators team finished third in their home leg of the Global Champions League yesterday, did have some anxious moments though with some fast pairings following on.

And the margins could not have been tighter, as Victor Bettendorf (LUX) and Cancun Torel Z produced an almost mirror effort of their Irish counterparts. When Bettendorf glanced up at the clock after passing the line following another clear round, it revealed a time that was four-hundredths of a second off the target.

That saw them claim the middle spot in the podium, with France’s Edward Levy and Lyon van de Plataan in third.

But it was another day on top of the pile for Mansini and a delighted Howley.

“It’s amazing to be able to compete in the capital of Italy, in Rome, on the Global Champions Tour. It’s unbelievable to be able to ride in the middle of an historic city like that, surrounded by generations of culture and historic buildings. It’s incredible,” the winning pilot declared.

“You never get an easy class at these five-star shows. Every rider is very competitive and you’re competing against the best horses and riders in the world, so it’s nice to come out with a win every now and then.

“I was delighted with Mansini. He performed brilliantly. He’s a real fighter. He’s been a very good horse for me for about two years now and he never lets me down. It’s great to have that partnership with him.

“The course suited us. It was a nice, spread-out course, so I was able to leave out a few strides and potentially, I suppose, that’s what gave me the edge to be able to hold onto the lead.”

Mark McAuley has been banging out some really consistent performances of late and the Louth athlete registered a victory his efforts have deserved with a four-star success in Münster last evening.

Remarkably, Destinee de Vains (below) produced the fastest time in the jump-off of 39.67 seconds, despite McAuley having decided to take a safety first policy with his 11-year-old mare over a difficult course.

Only seven of the 37 competitors went clear in the first round, and with Douglas Lindelöw (SUI) withdrawing Charlie’s Way from the tie-breaker, that left only six in contention for the €12,500 first prize for the Marktkauf Cup.

And it was the Irish that prevailed, Antonio Maria Garofalo (ITA) and Carem Sandy taking second with German pilot Laura Klaphake and Quin 13 completing the podium.

“My mare, Destinee de Vains, is very cautious,” McCauley explained. “She tends to overjump. That’s why I just wanted to do a quiet, safe round with some tight turns and see how far I’d get. I’m naturally delighted that it led to victory.”

Bertram Allen had one hand on victory in Gijon this evening before being nabbed late on, but 48 hours after his brother Harry posted a runner-up finish in four-star competition under the Spanish sun, the Wexford athlete did the same and then grabbed another chunk of prize money when fourth in the four-star Derby, the Gran Premio de Gijón.

Allen and the exciting eight-year-old Gary de Cerisy were 27th of 35 pairings into the arena for the Trofeo Lacera, a 1.45m speed class. They moved serenely to the top of the leaderboard with a clear round in a time of 67.62 that was a second a half quicker than eventual third, Julio Arias Cueva (ESP) on Dolce Vita des Ouches.

This mark survived until the third-last combination of Kara Chad (CAN) and Igor Gph sauntered into the ring. It was the only sauntering from them however, as they flew from start to finish to comfortably better Allen’s time, clocking 65.19.

Nonetheless, it was a cracking result for the Irish pair on a fruitful couple of days for the Ballywalter Stables team.

Allen teamed up with Caprisco in the Derby, being quickest of the four-faulters in the jump-off for fourth and €20,000, with victory going to Sanne Thijssen (NED) and Con Quidam RB.

Only six qualified for the second round and Harry Allen was best of the rest on Calculatus to make €6,000.

The younger Allen is the fourth-ranked U25 show jumper on the planet and we were reminded why once again when he secured two ribbons including that aforementioned four-star podium finish on Friday.

Allen began his raid with a fifth-place finish in the two-star 1.45m Grand Prix on nine-year-old mare Kazelli VDL before taking second in the day’s 1.50m feature on Lukaku Vd Bisschop.

Only Allen, with his 13-year-old partner, and Álvaro González De Zarate (ESP) on Casa Diva PS, could answer Frank Rothenberger’s questions flawlessly on two occasions, but it was the home contingent that were celebrating as their time of 43.54 was less than half a second quicker than the Irish pair.

For Gold truly has been a spectacular performer for Jordan Coyle, having lived up to his name time and again for the Derry athlete and the duo went so close to taking registering another major triumph in the five-star Douglas Elliman Grand Prix at The Hampton Classic Horse Show in New York on Friday night.

As runners-up, Coyle and his brilliant 13-year-old gelding still picked off a considerable chunk of the $70,000 prize fund on offer in the 1.60m event in Bridgehampton.

A dozen of 47 protagonists qualified for a jump-off, a cohort that included Darragh Kenny and Rockstar, but they had a rail down to finish in ninth.

Seven pairs registered double clears. Some of those were of the safe variety, however, while Coyle and For Gold pinned their ears back in pursuit of total glory as seven-time McLain Ward (USA) and his new mount High Star Hero held the lead with a time of 34.91 seconds. The Irish duo gave it all they had but were just shy, stopping the clock on 35.31 for the middle podium position and $14,000.

This came after Kenny had posted a top three finish at five-star level. The 1.45m two-phase class was won by Kristen Vanderveen (USA) with Bull Run’s Hesed, the pair nabbing long-time leader Mark Bluman (COL) and Ubiluc with a clear of 30.39 seconds in the speed element.

Kenny and Serendepety had gone closest to overhauling Bluman with a really strong, galloping finish, the nine-year-old mare showing an excellent attitude before stopping the clock at 31.29. That placed the Offaly rider and his talented chestnut in third of 77 participants.

Chat Botte ED provided Billy Twomey with a second ribbon and first podium of the week in Gijon.

The Cork pilot and his ultra consistent 16-year-old were in top form in four-star 1.55m fare, making the obstacles look small when registering their first clear round.

Ten combinations made it through to the jump-off and Twomey and Eddie looked super smooth in navigating the tie breaker sublimely to take the lead with a time of 50.74 seconds.

Pedro Veniss (BRA) and Nimrod de Muze Imperio Egipcio were unable to supplant the Irish pair, but last combo in, Abdullah Alsharbatly (KSA) and Ermindo W were electric, slicing more than a second off the target to secure the spoils.