Guery gallops to win in thrilling speed class at LGCT Doha
DOHA, March 7, 2020 - Belgian Jerome Guery and his mount Eras Ste Hermelle pulled off an incredible 71.59s to take the overall win in the third CSI5* class at the stunning Longines Arena at Al Shaqab in Doha on Friday.
Friday's events were attended by HE Sheikh Joaan bin Hamad Al Thani, the President of Qatar Olympic Committee (QOC).
The 1.50m speed class had 34 starters, and riders really had to keep their foot to the floor and ensure pinpoint accuracy to make their mark in this competitive class, testing their speed ahead of Saturday’s LGCT Grand Prix of Doha and GCL Doha final.
There were only 7 clear rounds over Frank Rothenberger’s 1.50m course featuring a testing double of tall uprights. Johan Sebastian Gulliksen (NOR) was first into the ring with the experienced Gin Chin van het Lindenhof, and the combination were looking to build on their win in Thursday's two-phase class and set the tone on Friday. However, it wasn’t to be for the pair today finishing with a total of 5 faults.
Next to tackle the testing course was Maikel Van Der Vleuten (NED) with Edinburgh, a horse new to the LGCT circuit. They achieved a great clear round in a time of 78.18s, which proved to be a time that could be caught.
Shortly after, as Guery (BEL) entered the arena, all eyes were on him and his mount. Jerome cut all the corners to pull off an incredible fast clear round.
Two riders after Jerome, Pius Schwizer (SWI) took to this twisty speed class, and gave it his all with Quatro Robin, but couldn’t quite catch Jerome’s time, taking fourth spot in 73.23s. Henrik von Eckermann (SWE) entered the ring on Best Boy with it all to do if he was to beat Jerome’s time. He was the first rider to attempt a difficult inside turn, and while it paid off, he finished agonisingly close to Jerome in second, only 0.04s behind.
Denis Lynch (IRL) looked to be on flying form with his bold bay Cristello but midway round he got a little too deep into a wide oxer dropping him right down the order. Jane Richard Philips (SWI) and Kenia van ' T Laerhof produced the fastest round of the day on the clock but an unlucky pole at fence 10 put them out of contention.
The Flying Frenchman Roger Yves Bost (FRA) had a sensational run and was covering the ground rapidly on Castleforbes Talitha. They took third place overall in a time of 71.79 seconds.
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