03 February '25
H5 Porthos Maestro Wh Z and Tombola Z score silver in Ocala
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Studbook
© Andrew Ryback Photography
On American soil last weekend, the World Cup Qualifier of Thermal undoubtedly received the most attention, but in addition, international showjumping took place at both Wellington International and the Word Equestrian Centre of Ocala. In Ocala, we have already enjoyed two blue and yellow Grand Prix victories in recent weeks and in the past few days many Z-horses managed to jump into the limelight again at this magnificent venue.
One of them was the 11-year-old gelding H5 Porthos Maestro Wh Z, the son of Picasso Z and Ogano Sitte, bred by Frank Fory and Christophe Wouters. H5 Porthos Maestro Wh Z has now formed a strong combination with Mexican rider Carlos Hank Guerreiro for several years and the pair managed to secure top placings twice last weekend. After Hank Guerreiro and H5 Porthos Maestro Wh Z were immediately good for 7th place in the 1.40m class on Wednesday during the opening day, they jumped to a place on the podium during the 1.50m main class on Thursday. In a jump-off for which 18 combinations managed to qualify, they again kept all the bars neatly in the reels and this performance earned them2nd place in the standings.
Belgian rider Zoe Conter experienced a similar scenario in Ocala with her 11-year-old mare Tombola Z, a daughter of Toulon and Dominard, bred by Verschueren, Witters, Stevens and Van de Velde. Conter and Tombola Z started their competition on Wednesday with a 7th place during the 1.45m class and on Friday they also managed to secure a2nd place in the standings during the 1.45m class with winning round.
There were also two placings for Brazilian top rider Rodrigo Pessoa with the also 11-year-old mare Dhalida Z, a daughter of Diamant de Semilly and Calvaro Z from the breeding farm of Robrecht and Patricia Segaert. In both the 1.50m main class on Thursday and the CSI4* Grand Prix on Saturday evening, Pessoa and Dhalida Z secured 5th place in the standings.
Another notable combination was US rider Alessandra Volpi and the 10-year-old mare Candy Luck Z, a breeding product of Dirk Geerinckx who combined the blood of Comme Il Faut with that of Canturo. Volpi and Candy Luck Z made the start on Wednesday with a 6th place in the 1.40m opening class, and both in the 1.50m main class on Thursday and in the CSI4* Grand Prix they were then good for 9th place.
CSI2* competition
In addition to the four-star competition, a two-star competition also took place in Ocala and in it, too, some Z-horses managed to provide great results. The most eye-catching combination was Chilean rider Samuel Parot and his 16-year-old homebred gelding Buga Z, a son of Chester Z combined with the blood of Quality Touch Z. Parot and Buga Z had already finished in 3rd and 7th place respectively during the classes on Thursday and Friday, but had their highlight of the week during the 1.45m class on Saturday. In a jump-off for which only three combinations managed to qualify, they kept all the rails in the reels and with a time of 39.39 seconds they were almost two full seconds ahead of the rest of the field.
But Brazilian rider Eduardo Pereira de Menezes also managed to jump into the prizes three times with the 9-year-old chestnut stallion Agando Butterfly Z, a son of Aganix du Seigneur Z and Spartacus TN bred in the Netherlands by Bergmans Stables. After finishing 7th in both the 1.35m class on Wednesday and the 1.40m class on Thursday, Pereira de Menezes and Agando Butterfly Z managed to secure2nd place in the 1.45m main class on Saturday.
Furthermore, Carlos Hank Guerreiro also managed to finish twice with the 9-year-old mare H5 Kay's Pleasure Hero Z, a daughter of Kassander van 't Roosakker Z and For Pleasure who, as her name suggests, was bred by Luc Henry. On Wednesday they started their competition with a 6th place in the 1.35m class, followed a day later by a 5th place in the 1.45m Longines Ranking class.
Last but not least, we also saw two Z-horses at the top of the rankings during the CSI2* Grand Prix on Sunday afternoon. Thus, 4th place was reserved for British rider Amanda Derbyshire with the 9-year-old mare Sade de Rialfo Z (Stakkato Gold x Kannan - B: Bijloos & P. Janssens J.), while Samuel Parot came 6th here with the 12-year-old gelding Top Gun Z (Scuderia 1918 Tobago Z x Ugano Sitte - B: Guido Bellemans).