ALEX HUA TIAN TAKES HARTPURY CCI3*-L CROWN

Even a pole down in Sunday’s final showjumping phase wasn’t enough to prevent China’s Alex Hua Tian winning the NAF Superflex CCI3*L at Hartpury with Jilsonne Van Bareelhof. The imposing 17hh Belgian warmblood by Nevado Van De Rostal looked to have plenty of experience as the pair moved effortlessly through the phases. A dressage score of 25.4 followed up by an eye-catching cross country round on Saturday placed the pair in a comfortable position as those closest to them faltered. Alex’s other ride Cooley Admiral also jumped a clear round but 9.2 time pens from cross country and a dressage score of 45.6 meant they finished in 25th place.

Ellie Fredericks and Pure Trendsetter moved up to 2nd place after a clear round on Sunday while Emily Young-Jamieson and Obos Nidge, and Alexander Whewall and Wisbeach Cevin Z Pride also moved up to 3rd and 4th respectively after jumping a valuable clear.

CCI2*L

More than half of the 3* competitors jumped clear rounds on Sunday afternoon, but it was a different story for the 2* combinations during the morning session.

Kitty King continued a run of good Hartpury form, winning the NAF M Power CCI2*L with RSH Monbeg Marshall on a score of 29.4. Kitty had finished in 3rd place in the NAF Magic CCI4*S with her galloping grey Vendredi Biats on Saturday.

Jumping proved the name of the game and Sunday’s showjumping phase proved extremely influential in altering a leaderboard that had been largely unchanged after the dressage and cross country. With the top ten so close after the cross country, even a time fault was costing several places.

Jason Wood and Nitor had led after the first two phases but a rail down and 1.2 time pens proved expensive, dropping the pair into 8th place.

Just over a quarter of the 2* riders managed to record a clear around Paul Connor’s track. Clear rounds moved several pairs up the leaderboard including Great Britain’s Millie Toulson-Clarke and Tir Na Nog Shadow who finished 2nd with 30.8, Ireland’s Danielle Mccormack and Billy Orinoco who finished 3rd with 32.3, and Tim Cheffings who finished in 4th and 5th place with Fanad West Callardo and Nadir De Leau respectively.

Course Designer Eric Winter reflected on a successful cross country day for the two levels: “Saturday saw a safe and successful day of cross country at Hartpury, and I’m delighted with how the course rode even in the hot conditions. As was the case with the FEI European Championships for Young Riders/Juniors a few weeks ago, the 2* and 3* tracks were educational and created a good test for the level. Interestingly, penalties around the two courses came from different fences to those in the European Championships.”

Rosie Scott-Ward, Pro-Vice Chancellor of Hartpury University, said: “Congratulations to Alex Hua Tian and Kitty King on their victories in the 3* and 2* competitions. It’s been an outstanding week of world-class eventing action and I’d like to thank the riders, officials, volunteers and sponsors who help to make our events a success. Today is rather bittersweet for us as it’s the last of our major equestrian events for the season. We’ve enjoyed a spectacular summer with the addition of the European Championships and are already looking ahead to 2023.

“The weather presented a host of challenges for our team this week but working with the FEI officials, vets and riders themselves, we managed to create a comfortable environment for horses and humans alike. By starting earlier in the day and implementing a shaded wash-down area with extra volunteers and an abundance of iced water, all horses and riders enjoyed a safe and enjoyable week at Hartpury.”

The Hartpury Organising Committee would like to say a special thank you to all our sponsors, in particular NAF, whose generous title sponsorship helps us to stage our three prestigious equestrian events.