30 October '23
Otterongo Alpha Z shines in Riyadh
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Studbook
© Longines Global Champions Tour
The Longines Global Champions Tour reached her season final round last weekend and these took place in Riyadh for the second year in a row nog. Christian Ahlmann also traveled to the oil state and had another fantastic weekend with our 9-year-old chestnut stallion Otterongo Alpha Z, a son of Darco and Hedjaz who was bred by Jozef Poets.
Ahlmann and Otterongo Alpha Z already won a 1.55m class during the Longines Global Champions Tour of Paris in June and also managed to add a victory to their list of honors last weekend. During the opening day on Thursday, they became the winners of the 1.45m high opening class. As the very last combination at the start, they managed to keep it clear during both the 1st and 2nd phase and with a finishing time of 24.24 seconds they managed to outclass the competition.
But Ahlmann and Otterongo Alpha Z also managed to achieve a strong result during the first round of the Global Champions League on Friday. During this 1.55m class against the clock, they once again delivered a clear round and this performance earned them 5th place in the individual rankings.
Dexter Fontenis Z
The highlight of the weekend in Riyadh was of course the LGCT Grand Prix on Saturday evening and once again a leading role was reserved for the French rider Simon Delestre and his 10-year-old black gelding Dexter Fontenis Z, a son of Diarado and Voltaire who was bred by S.C.R.I S.Ky Horses and with whom Delestre won the CSI5* GP and became 2nd in the World Cup during the Oslo International Horse Show 2 weeks ago.
In Riyadh, Delestre and Dexter Fontenis Z were one of the 8 combinations that remained clear in the basic round and so managed to qualify for the jump-off. They again kept all the poles in the cups and this performance earned them a 3rd place in the rankings, just like during the LGCT Grand Prix of Doha and St. Tropez.
Furthermore, the Dutch rider Maikel van der Vleuten also managed to qualify again for the jump-off with his 13-year-old gelding Beauville Z N.O.P. (Bustique x Jumpy des Fontaines – B: Pascal Habets). However, in that jump-off they incurred 4 penalties after a fault on the first fence of the double combination, which ultimately forced them to settle for a 7th place in the rankings.
Before the start of the LGCT Grand Prix, a 1.50m high speed class was also on the program yesterday and in that class the Belgian rider Gilles Thomas jumped into the picture with the 11-year-old stallion Feromas van Beek Z (Fantomas de Muze x Tangelo van de Zuuthoeve – B: Guido Herrijgers). After a flawless round they secured a 4th place in the rankings.