Three in a row for Atchoum de la Roque Z at Valencia

Starting three times and beating the competition three times in the process... It was all up to the speedy Luxembourger Victor Bettendorf with the 10-year-old gelding Atchoum de la Roque Z last weekend. The pair competed during the fourth week of the Moura Tours in Valencia and thus managed to provide a perfect report.

Bettendorf and Atchoum de la Roque Z, a son of Armitages Boy and Bentley van de Heffinck who was bred in France by Top Stallions Company, immediately enjoyed a fantastic start to their competition on Thursday during the opening day. During the 1.40m class, they immediately showed their class by taking victory after a whirlwind round. In both the^1st and^2nd phases they could not be caught out on a fault and with a finishing time of 37.70 seconds they were just under one and a half seconds ahead of the competition. But this was only an omen for the rest of the weekend, as they also managed to outclass the competition in the other two classes in which they started. In both the 1.40m class on Friday and the one on Saturday, they came out strongest and managed to claim the top prize!

However, in addition to his victory in the 1.40m class on Thursday, Bettendorf also managed to win the 1.45m Longines Ranking class. For this he could rely on the 14-year-old mare Cancun Torel Z, a daughter of Cosinhus and Grannus who was born and raised in France at the home of Francois-Xavier Guyard. In a class against the clock, Bettendorf and Cancun Torel Z crossed the finish line in 68.76 seconds, adding some more to their record.

There was also blue and yellow success in the 1.45m Longines Ranking class on Friday, with no fewer than two Z-horses jumping to a place on the podium. The best performance in this came from French rider Hugo Breul with the 9-year-old stallion Camelot by Picobello Z, a son of Casall ASK and Arezzo VDL from the breeding farm of the Ruant family of Picobello Horses. In a jump-off for which six combinations managed to qualify, Breul and Camelot by Picobello Z provided a flawless round and their finishing time of 40.93 seconds earned them^2nd place in the standings.

The other podium place in this Longines Ranking Test was taken by Colombian Marco Antonio Peixoto Ferreira Filho with the 13-year-old chestnut gelding Everest V'T Hof V Eversem Z, a son of our chestnut stallion Epleaser van 't Heike Z and Concreto who was bred by Ronny Maes and who could previously be seen under the saddle of Swiss riders Bryan Balsiger and Pius Schwizer. Peixoto Ferreira Filho and Everest V'T Hof V Eversem Z also managed to ensure a clear jump-off, but they needed 41.42 seconds to complete their rounds.

Finally, on Friday, there was also a podium place for French rider Mathieu Billot with the 13-year-old gelding Villas Z, a breeding product of Freek Hoogenbom who combined the blood of Vigo d'Arsouilles with that of Caretano Z. In the 1.40m class, they crossed the finish line in 61.63 seconds and with that performance they followed just behind Bettendorf and Atchoum de la Roque Z in^2nd place.