We are thrilled to be back in the Middle East to kick off the 2022 season with Germaine W, Highland President and Toyger making the flight over for some top-class showjumping.
Our first two shows were held at the incredible Abu Dhabi Equestrian Club and Riding School, which has fantastic facilities to host a 4* show and then the 5* Nations Cup show. Our three horses have been on top form, and have already brought home some wins along with top 10 placings!
During the 4* show, each horse stepped up to the challenge of jumping in the heat over technical courses. 10-year-old Toyger picked up a 7th placing in the 4* 1.40 class on the Saturday, whilst Highland President put on an exhibition in the 4* Grand Prix to come 13th on the Sunday. The highlight of the show was the ever- impressive Germaine W, who landed on the podium in silver position in the 4* Ranking Class.
On to the much anticipated 5* Nations Cup show, where both homebred Highland President and Germaine W stepped up to make their 5* debuts. Toyger also moved up a level, jumping his first Ranking Class for 9th place on the Thursday along with Germaine W finding the 5* level easy, coming home with an 8th place in the 5* 1.50.
On Saturday, Toyger jumped his first ever Grand Prix during the 2* section of the show – and what a debut he made! Jumping one of only two double clears, the 10-year-old by Catwalk proved to be best in the class, speeding through the timers to first place position. What an incredible performance by this fantastic gelding – it might be his first Grand Prix win, but certainly won’t be his last!
Sunday was the day the day everyone was waiting for – the first 5* Nations Cup of the year. Trevor was on Michael Blake’s team beside older brother Shane Breen, David Simpson and Jack Ryan. Shane rode Team Z7’s Z7 Ipswich for an unlucky foot in the water in the first round and then a spectacular clear round during the second whilst team-mate Jack Ryan and Irish bred BBS McGregor jumping an incredible double clear . David and Foudre F copied Jack’s result, giving another crucial double-0 score for the Irish team. Trevor was the anchor rider and produced a flawless first-round clear on Heather Black’s Highland President to help Ireland to finish on a score of 0 and take home the win- qualifying for the Nations Cup final in Barcelona! A nail-biting Nations Cup, with top class competitors making up some hard to beat teams – we couldn’t be more thrilled with this result. What a way to start the Nations Cup season- starting as we mean to go on!
What an incredible couple of shows we have already had during our stay with Team Z7, with some unforgettable moments and wins we will never forget. We would like to thank Sheika Maitha once again for her hospitality, making weekends like these possible. Another huge thanks to our owners, sponsors and team who we couldn’t do any of this without – and also make the top results like these even better!
An enormous thank you must also go to our team at home – Tabitha Williams and Isabelle McClelland – working tirelessly to keep the wheels turning and the horses fit and well. They have just started jumping again after a winter break and are already looking on great form ready to take to the beautiful grass arenas at Sunshine Tour in a few weeks time.
