13 February '25
Lars Kuster wins Grand Prix Qualifier convincingly
© Paardenfotograaf
For many breeders and spectators, today's programme of 'The Zangersheide International' was traditionally dominated by tonight's Zangersheide Stallion Presentation, but this second day of the event naturally had a lot more to offer throughout the day. This morning, the candidate stallions appeared in the ring from 10 a.m. for the presentation in hand and some very interesting international jumping classes took place.
Within that sporting programme, we were particularly looking forward to tonight's Henders & Hazel Prize, a 1.50m class that counted as qualification for Sunday's CSI4* Grand Prix and also counted towards the famous Longines Ranking. It was the Dutch combinations who managed to win this main class of the day to their liking with the overall winner being Lars Kuster and the 13-year-old mare Heaven Of Romance, a daughter of Andiamo Z and Ish Touchdown. Kuster and Heaven Of Romance raced to the finishing line in 59.58 seconds in this class against the clock, making them the only combination to manage to keep the chrono under 60 seconds.
With this strong performance, Kuster relegated his compatriot Lars Kersten to2nd place in the standings. Kersten, with the 12-year-old gelding Barney Blue 3 (Balou du Rouet x Chacco Blue) as second starter, had immediately set the tone with a fast round in 61.72 seconds, but in the end he had to clearly acknowledge his superiority to Kuster. 3rd place was for German Tim Rieskamp - Goedeking, who still managed to win the first Longines Ranking Test of the weekend at the 2024 edition. Rieskamp - Goedeking, who is also a member of the Zangersheide stallion jury, was in the saddle of the 16-year-old gelding Coldplay (Chacco Blue x Pilox) and with a clear round in 61.97 seconds, so he too had a top 3 ranking to grab.
Frédéric Vernaet leads Belgian podium
Earlier in the afternoon, the riders of the CSI4* competition were also in action during a speed class over a height of 1.40m, in which it was once again the Belgian riders who made their mark. The leading role during this first CSI4* class of the day was played by Frédéric Vernaet with the grey mare Olleke Bolleke Jw Vd Moerhoeve (Kannan x Nabab de Rêve). Luc Tilleman's son-in-law crossed the finish line in 54.59 seconds, giving him a lead of more than half a second over the rest of the field of competitors.
But the other podium places in this class were also coloured Belgian with 2nd place for Pieter Kenis and the 15-year-old grey mare Cloe GP Z, a daughter of Corrdino and Takashi van Berkenbroeck from the Heritage Stud breeding farm. Kenis and Cloe GP Z also managed to ensure a clear round, but needed 55.11 seconds to complete their run. Finally, Limburger Jens Vandenberk completed the Belgian podium in 3rd place. He counted on the 9-year-old mare Lanieque WW (Carrera VDL x Hold Up Premier), whom he piloted clear to the finish in 55.44 seconds.
Audrey De Bock at number 1
The morning programme of this second day was dominated by the CSI1* competition classes, with the 1.30m qualifier for the CSI1* GP attracting the most attention. In this, it was Belgian rider Audrey De Bock who claimed victory with the 8-year-old mare Ranja B&V (Tangelo van de Zuuthoeve x Emerald van 't Ruytershof). De Bock rushed to the finishing line in 55.84 seconds in this class against the clock, ensuring another Belgian victory.
2nd place in this qualifying class was also taken by a Belgian rider thanks to Britt Martens and the also 8-year-old mare Vedette van het Langwater Z, a daughter of Vannan and Wiensender from the breeding farm of Patrick Jonkmans. Martens and Vedette also kept it neatly clear, but their finishing time of 56.05 seconds was just not sharp enough to take the top prize. After their2nd place on Wednesday, this time there was a 3rd place for Kyle Cuypers and the 9-year-old gelding Quadro Van 't Buxushof (Elvis Ter Putte x Bentley Vd Heffinck). They crossed the finishing line in 57.06 seconds, thus securing another top ranking and also ensuring a Belgian podium.
Once again the Netherlands above
However, the first class of this second day this morning was a 1.15m class in 2 phase special, in which it was Dutchman Willem Schaap who managed to outclass the competition. Accompanied by the 18-year-old gelding Quantas 15 (Quitero x Laurin), he could not be caught at a fault in both the1st and2nd phases and with a finishing time of 26.43 seconds he managed to leave the other 65 competitors behind.
With his performance, Schaap was exactly half a second ahead of compatriot Jan Schuttert, who managed to secure2nd place in the standings. Schaap had the 14-year-old gelding Good Farming HS (Carrera VDL x Atlantic) under the saddle and thus managed to stop the clock in 26.93 seconds after a clear round. Finally, Estonian rider Maarja Martinson joined the Dutch duo on the podium by claiming 3rd place in the standings. She finished with the 6-year-old gelding I Am Experience LG (In Style N x Corlensky G) in 27.05 seconds.