WELLINGTON, Fla.--World ranked one Henrik Von Eckermann of Sweden on Glamour Girl won the $62,500, CSI4* WEF Challenge Cup Round 3 on Thursday, Jan. 23 during Week 3 of the Winter Equestrian Festival.
Henrik von Eckermann on Glamour Girl (Photo by Sportfot)It was a tight battle between three Olympians, with von Eckermann beating Worlf ranked four Kent Farrington on Myla by five-hundredths of a second, and Nayal Nasser of Egypt on ESI Ali third, eight-tenths of second further back.
This was von Eckermann's second Challenge Cup win as he had won the second edition of the class on the grass derby field last week.
“She enjoys Florida,” Von Eckermann said of the 14-year-old Dutch Warmblood mare. “Two starts, two wins. When she’s in a mood like this she’s very hard to beat. She's a quick horse naturally."
Just like their most recent win, Von Eckermann had the advantage of going last, but this time it was a result of having the top performance in the first round over Peter Grant’s course.
The class was run in a winning round format, with the top 12 returning for the jump-off.
Among other Olympians including Farrington, Ireland’s Darragh Kenny and Nassar, Von Eckermann had the fastest clear round, earning him the advantage of jumping off last.
“THERE WAS a bit of competition today; Kent was fast and Nayel too, so I had a good draw from the fastest time in the first round,” said von Eckermann. “I could go in last and knew again what I had to do. They’re definitely making me work for it. You had to be really quick today.”
Kent Farrington on Myla (Photo by Sportfot)By a nose, Von Eckermann stopped the clock in the jump-off in 36.13 seconds to beat Farrington’s leading time of 36.18 seconds on Myla, and Nassar was third in 36.92 seconds on ESI Ali.
The Swedish World Champion watched the entire jump-off so he could identify places to be quick.
“All of them didn’t get a really good shot to the last fence,” he said. “They all had to wait a little to the last, and I knew when I walked it I could go for that last one and hopefully that would be enough.”
“She’s 14 years old, and she's so experienced,” he said. “You feel that experience. She knows exactly when the bell goes and we get going. I trust her, she trusts me, and she is a little winner.”
Owner Robin Parsky was on the sidelines very happy with the performance on Thursday.
“I’m very happy because Robin is the one who makes it possible for me to be here in Florida,” Von Eckermann said. “It’s something I couldn’t do alone. I’m glad to give something back.”
As the cold and wet weather moves out of Florida, Von Eckermann’s wife and son will come visit and enjoy a break from the cold in Europe.
“Glamour Girl will not jump the grand prix; she will hopefully jump the Sunday 1.50m class, and King Edward will jump the Grand Prix,” he said. “King Edward feels great, I have to say. He’s a horse that, on a big field like this, feels amazing. He has a big stride and you can use that stride. I'm looking forward to Saturday. He jumped very well in the 1.45m the other day; he’s fresh and feels well so I hope for a good night.”
In her first FEI start, Alannah Wagstaff on Great Thing won the CSI2* 1.45m later in the afternoon on Thursday with a time of 65.06 seconds in the speed class.
Conor O'Regan of Ireland on Carmen de Bonnieres was second, and Rachel Proudleyof Great Britain was third on Petitfour VD Wareslage.
Hunter stakes ended in the Green Hunters Thursday as well, with Kaiden, ridden by John French winning the 3’6” & 3’9” Green Hunter Stake with a score of 87.
Starboy, ridden by Lainie Wimberly won the 3’3” Green Hunter Stake with a score of 86, and Replica, ridden by Geoffrey Hesslink, won the 3’ Green Hunter Stake with a score of 90.
