Ireland’s Stephen Smith pulled off his first ever CIC*** win at Barroca in Portugal riding Quality VH, reports Rachel Wakefield.
New Zealander Joe Meyer and Snip finished second, while Vittoria Panizzon was third with her own Rock Model. Swiss rider Tiziana Realini pulled up into fourth place on Gamour CH. Portugal’s Olympic rider Carlos Grave finished fifth with Samaritano to secure the Portuguese national title.
The CCI** was won by Dutch rider Florinoor Hoogland on Top Gun, with fellow countryman Huub van der Mark runner-up on Exquis Idem Du Roc. Vittoria Panizzon again finished third, this time with Keeper Of The Castle II. Tamsyn Hutchins was the best of the Brits in this section, pulling up nine places after dressage to finish fourth on her own Drama Queen III.
The CCI* saw huge local entries from Portugal and Spain with 85 competitors. Belgium’s Vincent Martens was the eventual winner, but British riders occupied three of the top seven places. Kathryn Robinson, 21, had her best result to date, finishing second on her dressage score of 48.9 on her own Hugo Simon. Lucy Wiegersma and 2006 Pavo BE Breeding Championships six-year-old winner Granntevka Prince finished sixth and Clementine Shipp finished in seventh place with Park Keeper II.
Read this report in full, with photos and further comment, in this Thursday’s Horse & Hound (15 March, ’07)
