Peter Charles speeds ahead at Olympia

The Christmas Hamper

Irish rider Peter Charles galloped to success in the Christmas Hamper competition at Olympia, when Jes Nielsen and Paul Stamp’s 10-year-old chestnut gelding Traxdata Mulligan clocked the fastest time to win from a hotly contested field, which included many notable speed specialists.

The later stages turned into a fast and furious affair, the huge crowd delighted with many thrills, and some spills along the way before Peter’s victory was secured.

Setting the early pace for France and Belgium were Hubert Bourdy and Ludo Philippaerts, whose efforts on Querjac De LFAin and Espadon V, deservedly earned second and third places.

Throwing caution to the wind, Peter Charles set sail in the later stages riding the economical Traxdata Mulligan, and despite a hefty clout at fence eight, everything remained intact, the pair taking the lead bytwo seconds.

John Renwick gave immediate chase with Brookend Fuehrer, and with the huge crowd roaring them on, they arrived at the final fence ahead on time, but sadly a rail down there added another four seconds to drop them down toseventh.

Spectators again gave next drawn Robert Whitaker a great reception with Qualisca, but he slipped from the saddle on a tight turn into an early fence.

Describing Traxdata Mulligan as a “useful horse to have”, Peter Charles confessed to being grateful for his luck at fence eight.

“We’ve been out of luck all week, so we were due a change of fortune. This was a very difficult class to win, it got madder and madder as it progressed, and I just had to hit the overdrive button from the word gov,” said Peter.

Results – The Christmas Hamper. 1, Traxdata Mulligan (P Charles); 2, Querjac De LFAin (H Bourdy); 3, Espadon V (L Philippaerts); 4, Warren (M Armstrong); 5, Opus Sept (M Ehning); 6, Dismene De Baugy (H Godignon).

For full results of the day see www.olympiashowjumping.com