Germany’s Marcus Ehning guides Stargold over an obstacle during the Commercial Bank CHI Al Shaqab Grand Prix presented by Longines, yesterday.
Doha: Germany’s Marcus Ehning and bay Stargold continued their domination in Qatar to retain the prestigious CHI Al Shaqab Grand Prix title on the final day of the 10th Commercial Bank CHI Al Shaqab presented by Longines, yesterday.
H H Sheikha Moza bint Nasser, Chairperson of Qatar Foundation honoured the podium winners of the Commercial Bank CHI Al Shaqab - Grand Prix presented by Longines while H E Sheikh Joaan bin Hamad Al Thani, Qatar Olympic Committee President and Al Shaqab Chairperson and Omar Al Mannai, Event Director of Al Shaqab, were also present.
From left: Sport Director Alejandro Ancin, CHI Al Shaqab Grand Prix podium winners Simon Delestre, Marcus Ehning and Mike Kawai along with Event Director Omar Al Mannai and Course Designer Uliano Vezzani pose for a photograph. Pic: CHI Al SHAQAB
After winning the CSI 5*1.50m crown on first day of three-day equestrian extravaganza, Ehning, a former Olympic champion and 12-year-old Stargold produced another sparkling performance at the magnificent Longines Arena in the €410,000 CSI5* - 1.60m that saw seven riders qualifying for the jump off after clearing the first two rounds with an error-free run.
Ehning and Stargold after zipping through the course in 71.67 sec and 72.80 sec in the first two rounds, finished the challenging jump off course in 41.74 sec to emerge champions of the event for the second successive year.
The 48-year-old German rider, who pocketed €135,300 for his victory, was ecstatic on his back-to-back victories in the coveted event.
“I can’t believe it. Our victory last year was already incredible, but to repeat this year… I’m so proud of Stargold,” a jubilant Ehning told reporters yesterday.
Dressage winners of the Commercial Bank CHI Al Shaqab Freestyle Presented by Longines pose with Michael Vuilleumer, International Sponsorship and Events Project Leader of Longines and Ali Al Rumaihi, Event Sport Manager.
“I believe he is more of a star than I am. He makes things so easy for me. I don’t have the words. He’s a great horse and I’m really proud of him. I would like to thank its owners, the Dimartini family. They bought it for me and I’m more than happy tonight,” he said, almost teary eyed.
“There were three tough courses tonight, and it didn’t matter much between Simon and me. Either way, I’m thrilled,” Ehning added.
After penalty-free rounds of 71.66 sec and 70.83 sec, the team of Frenchman Simon Delestre and 10-year-old Dexter Fontenis Z secured second position after clocking 42.03 sec in the jump off to claim a purse of €82,000.
Japan’s Mike Kawai and 17-year-old Saxo de la Cour combined to seal third place after clearing the jump off in 44.98 sec, and €43,050. The pair had cleared the first two rounds in 76.20 sec and 75.01 sec.
Commercial Bank CHI Al Shaqab Presented by Longines CSI2* - 1.45m event podium winners with officials at Al Shaqab, yesterday.
Speaking at the final press conference, Al Mannai said: “It’s always a pleasure for us to gather everyone around us to witness top performances and a great competition. The riders, the horses – everyone is doing their best to put on a great show here in Qatar. We truly appreciate that our 10th edition has been celebrated with some great sport over the past three days.”
Kittel clinches Grand Prix Freestyle win
Sweden’s Patrik Kittel continued his love affair with Doha as he clinched the FEI Test Grand Prix Freestyle - CDI5* title after a spectacular performance with 11-year-old bay Touchdown. The pair scored an impressive 84.070 % to seal a dominant victory.
It was Kittel’s seventh appearance in Qatar as he is a regular visitor at the CHI Al Shaqab since it was launched in 2013.
“It felt really, really cool to win, I have to say. I was quite nervous – I’m a bit of a nervous type, and I envy the girls because they never look nervous, they just jump up and do it! I’m not like that, even though I’ve been in the sport for 25 years,” the Swede told reporters.
“I’m always doubting if I can be at the top of the sport. But today I got on and the horse felt so good that I thought, ‘Whatever happens, if you win or you lose, you should be able to do a really good test for you. The moment the judge rings the bell all my anxiety goes away, and from the first halt to the last halt, the horse just flew through the test, and it was really cool to ride,” he added.
The team of Netherlands’ Dinja van Liere and 11-year-old Hartsuijker, who clinched the FEI Test Grand Prix - CDI5* triumph on Friday, ended runner-up after a total of 78.455 % while Germany’s Evelyn Eger and 18-year-old gelding Westminster combined to score 77.840 % and took third position in the contest.
In the penultimate 5-star Jumping class – the CSI 5* 1.50m – Flying Frenchman, Delestre completed a double on his stallion, I Amelusina R. Having already won Friday’s 1.45m event in the same class, he triumphed over a field of 28 riders yesterday, crossing the finish line in a time of 57.66 secs – a clear margin of victory over second-placed Briton, Jack Whitaker (60.03 secs) riding Equine America Valmy de la Lande, and third-placed rider, Germany’s Hans-Dieter Dreher (60.40 secs) on Vestmalle des Cotis.
Meanwhile, Kuwait’s Ali Al Khorafi, astride 10-year-old I, recorded victory in the CSI2* - 1.45m after completing the jump off in 34.70 sec. They completed the course in 70.13 sec in the first round.
Saudi Arabia’s Kamal Abdullah Bahamdan, who was on 13-year-old Kwikly, finished second after clocking 35.37 sec in the jump off after their first round time of 68.59 sec. Teaming up with Lissabon, Qatar’s Mohammed Khalifa A Al Baker earned third position after clearing jump off in 36.30 sec following a first round show in 71.46 sec.
The CHI Al Shaqab – one of the five CHI (Concours Hippique International) competitions worldwide and the only event of its kind in the Middle East and Asia – witnessed over 130 riders and more than 190 horses from 28 countries featuring in spectacular showjumping, dressage and para-dressage events during three days of quality action.
