An excellent year for Irish show jumper Mikey Pender is continuing right to the end as he was one of four riders who divided Monday night’s Puissance competition at the Liverpool international show where the wall in the fifth and final round was set at a venue record height of 2.21m.
Pender (20) was again on board Paul van den Bosch’s Hearton du Bois Halleux on which he also divided the Puissance at Olympia before Christmas. Earlier in the year, the Kildare native became the youngest rider to win the Hickstead Derby on the same 12-year-old Belgian Warmblood gelding.
Pender is listed as a starter in Wednesday’s four-star Grand Prix at Liverpool after which he flies out to Abu Dhabi where the three horses he is due to compete there, HHS Calais, HHS Fortune and Casanova van Overis Z, had just landed shortly before the Puissance commenced on Monday night.
The other riders who were clear in the fifth round in the M&S Bank Arena were all British - William Whitaker on RMF Charly, Guy Williams with Mr Blue Sky UK and Harry Whall riding Quality Old Joker, an 11-year-old Irish Sport Horse gelding by OBOS Quality 004. Three Irish riders picked up four faults apiece in the final round to share fifth place - Michael Whyte on Amaretto, Nano Healy with KMS Clintland and Captain Geoff Curran on Bishops Quarter.
Back in Derry for Christmas, Canada-based Daniel Coyle had his first international start in Europe this year at Liverpool and got among the winners when landing the early evening competition on Monday with Donjo which he rode for the first time at this four-star show.
Ten riders progressed to the second round of this 1.50m jump-off class but the only double clears were recorded by Coyle, who, last to go, was home in 31.14 with Donjo, an 11-year-old Dutch Warmblood gelding owned by Ariel Grange and Tiffany Foster, and Britain’s William Whitaker who had to settle for second with RMF Echo (33.11). The fastest of those with four faults in the second round was Australia’s Rowan Willis riding Cartouch III (30.60).
The FEI Jumping Ponies Trophy was first introduced to the international calendar in 2017 and following the inaugural successes of Seamus Hughes-Kennedy and that of Katie Power 12 months ago, Rhys Williams brought up a hat-trick for Irish riders in Mechelen, Belgium on Monday. Ireland dominated the final standings with the 15-year-old from Co Clare being joined on the podium by compatriots Alex Finney (second) and John McEntee (third).
Williams went into Monday’s final leg, a 1.35m Grand Prix, just a single point behind the leader, France’s Anna Szarsewski, although the pair were on a zero score. However, while he jumped a slow double clear to finish third in the class on Morgan Sheehy’s K-Little Hero d’18 (70.83), Szarsewski, who was last to jump, picked up eight faults in the second round with Vaughann de Vusit (67.64). This saw the 12-year-old French rider finish sixth in the class and drop down the order to fifth in the final standings, a place behind Denmark’s Josefine Sandgaard Morup.
The latter finished second on Rainbows Mocha (69.57) in Monday’s Grand Prix behind Banbridge’s Finney who was riding her mother Jean’s eight-year-old bay gelding, Still Got Me (65.99). Also from Co Down, and also recording a double clear, McEntee finished fourth in the Grand Prix with Sandra Duffy’s Little Smithe (71.06).
“I’m delighted with the outcome today - Hero was jumping his heart out!” said Williams who, riding CES Cruson, won individual gold and team silver at the 2018 European children on horses’ championships in Fontaintainebleau. “Hero has a horse pedigree but he never grew and he’s all power!”
“Going into the final round I just tried my best to keep my cool,” said the newly-crowned champion who is trained by his father Adrian, at their Parc Stables in Ennis, and former Irish international riders, Marie Burke and Ian Fearon. “I knew that was all I had to do and it’s a dream come true! To come to Mechelen this year and to be at the same show as the five-star riders and share the same arenas is such a great experience. I’ll be back again hopefully!”
