The British team competing in the Children’s Nations Cup, under the title sponsor of Team NAF, dominated their Nations Cup competition in Wierden this afternoon at the Dutch Youngster Festival.
Leading from the start, they were the only nation to finish on zero penalties at the end of the first round. Germany, The Netherlands and Switzerland all sat in joint 2nd place behind them meaning that Great Britain had two fences in hand.
Tabitha Kyle, aged 11, from Loughborough, Leicestershire with Grennanstown Sarco Luxhill, a 9 year-old bay gelding owned by Holly Smith took the role of pathfinder for the team and made a superb job of it by posting a clear in each of the two rounds.
Amelie Gachoud, aged 14, from Cobham, Surrey with Evito, a 10 year-old bay gelding owned by Miranda Gachoud were next to go. In what looked set to be a solid round by the big jumping gelding, they were unlucky to then falter at the water tray when he lost his stride taking a look at it. Then, having unsettled himself there the first time round they had the misfortune of having two stops and an elimination at it in the second.
Phoebe Farman, aged 13, from Cranleigh, Surrey with Calle, a 19 year-old bay gelding owned by Tracy Priest and Penelope Priest put in two extremely good performances when she jumped double clear in both rounds within the time allowed.
It was then all down to Aimee Jane Jones, aged 14, from Shrewsbury, Shropshire with Zoverla, a 15 year-old chestnut mare owned by Alison Sargeant to bring home the win. The Netherlands had put in good second rounds to finish on their first round tally of 8 penalties meaning that Aimee had to jump for less than 8 penalties if she was to secure the win for the team. Showing a calm and maturity beyond her years she rode a superb round on a forward pace and it was a mix of emotions when a light touch of the last pole saw it fall for her to pick up 4 penalties in what was otherwise a faultless round. However, it was also a jubilant finish for her and the rest of the team as it meant she had done enough to secure the win with one jump in hand above the Netherlands.
Results:
1. Great Britain (4)
2. The Netherlands (8)
3. Sweden (12)
4. Switzerland (13)
5. Denmark (26)
6. Germany (32)
For further information on the show and full results once the show is underway, visit www.dutchyoungsterfestival.com and for results of the Nations Cup visit https://results.scgvisual.com/2019/dyf/.
British Showjumping would like to thank NAF, title sponsors of the Senior Nations Cup Teams along with the Children, Junior, Young Rider and Veteran teams.
NAF’s premium range of Five Star brands include Superflex, Superflex Senior, PROFEET, Optimum, Magic, Oestress and Respirator Boost with quality at the heart of everything they do. They are a UFAS (Universal Feed Assurance Scheme), GMP+ (International Feed Assurance Scheme) and BETA NOPS (Naturally Occuring Prohibited Substances) accredited company and this enables them to guarantee full traceability on all the natural ingredients they utilise in their formulations, which are also selected in compliance with the FEI guidelines for Clean Sport. For further information, visit www.naf-equine.eu/uk/index.jsp.
The GBR showjumping teams are supported by the British Equestrian Federation’s World Class Programme, funded by UK Sport through the National Lottery. The Programme focuses on identifying talent, developing potential and maximising medal-winning performances on the world stage.
Image Credit: Lewis Harding Photography (L-R: Aimee Jane Jones, Amelie Gachoud, Phoebe Farman, Tabitha Kyle, Chef D’Equipe Clare Whitaker)
