15 February '25
Michael Viehweg stays ahead of trio of Belgians in Longines Ranking Test
© Sportfot
The fourth day of 'The Zangersheide International' once again had a lot to offer both breeders and sports fans. The highlight for breeders was undoubtedly the denouement of the Zangersheide stallion selection, where the final selection took place and the new generation of approved stallions was announced. At the same time, of course, there was once again competition in the various international classes, with excitement and sport at the highest level.
As in the past two days, a 1.50m Longines Ranking Test was again on the programme today. It took place tonight before the start of the Zangersheide Stallion Auction and was also the final qualification for tomorrow's CSI4* Grand Prix. British track builder Rafael Suarez and his team had mapped out a course consisting of 13 obstacles including three double jumps for this final jumping class of the day. Of the 52 combinations at the start, 12 managed to get through this basic round without any faults, thus qualifying for the jump-off. In it, it was German Michael Viehweg who came out strongest and took the first prize. As the very last combinations to start, he sent his 12-year-old stallion Contario (Contendro I x Caridor Z) to the finish in 35.72 seconds, outclassing the competition.
Viehweg was joined on the podium by two Belgian combinations with Sacha Beghuin in2nd place and the 13-year-old stallion Elcup Van Beek II Z, a son of Elvis Ter Putte and Armitage bred by Guido Herrijgers. Beghuin and Elcup Van Beek II Z also came on strong last night with a 4th place at the Open Sires of the World and were thus once again on the rendezvous in this Longines Ranking Test. They also managed a flawless performance in the jump-off, but needed 35.94 seconds to complete their run. His compatriot Jeroen Appelen and the 15-year-old gelding Quincy 230 (Quintender 2 x Lando) followed in 3rd place. They crossed the finish line in 36.19 seconds, thus also securing a podium place.
Stühlmeyer wins convincingly
Earlier in the day, a 1.40m class also took place for the CSI4* competition and here too we saw German riders at the top of the leaderboard. Namely, it was Patrick Stühlmeyer who managed to claim victory here with the 8-year-old stallion Chaloubino PS (Chaccoon Blue x Centadel). In that2nd phase, Stühlmeyer and Chaloubino PS sped to the finishing line in 24.73 seconds, putting him almost 1.5 seconds ahead of the rest of the field of competitors.
First in line of competition was Canadian rider Lea Rucker and the 9-year-old gelding Firefly 66 (For Pleasure x Colman). They too managed to keep it neatly clear in both the1st and2nd stages, but with a finishing time of 26.12 seconds, they were still well short of knocking Stühlmeyer off the throne. 3rd place went to Belgium thanks to Maurice van Roosbroeck and the 10-year-old mare Jess de La Croix Renard Z (Jenson van 't Meulenhof Z x Cabrio Z) from the Vanvinckenroye Societe Agricole breeding farm. They managed to put a time of 26.89 seconds on the scoreboard after a double clear round.
Netherlands in the lead
Before CSI4* classes began, however, two CSI1* classes also took place this morning and in the 1.30m class, victory once again went to the Netherlands. Justin Zwartjens took care of that with the 7-year-old mare Gin Lady Tivoli Z (Gaillard de la Pomme x Gino-H - B: Zwartjens). In both the1st and2nd phases they could not be caught out on a fault and with a chrono time of 23.54 seconds they had a comfortable lead over the competition.
The other podium places were both taken by riders, with2nd place shared by Swedish Liv Dagertun and Frenchwoman Charlotte Strypsteen. Both Dagertun with the 11-year-old gelding Biba Butzemann (Balou du Rouet x Goldfever) and Strypsteen with In Flow du Niro (Toulon x Jarnac) managed to stop the clock in 25.21 seconds in the2nd phase, eventually winning them both silver.