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Bosty Bursts the Belgian Bubble with Brilliant Victory at Mechelen

Roger Yves Bost and Sydney Une Prince. (Dirk Caremans/FEI)

Mechelen (BEL), 30 December 2016 – That enigmatic Frenchman, Roger Yves Bost, did what he does best when storming to victory in spectacular style at the ninth leg of the Longines FEI World Cup™ Jumping 2016/2017 Western European League in Mechelen, Belgium. Riding the 10-year-old mare Sydney Une Prince who carried him to team gold at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, the 51-year-old rider snatched pole position from 21-year-old Belgian hero Jos Verlooy with a daredevil run that brought the spectators to their feet.

Germany’s Holger Wulschner set a tough target with BSC Skipper in the 12-horse jump-off when clear in 40.08 seconds, but that would only prove good enough for third place at the end of an afternoon that included plenty of thrills, spills and drama. Last year’s winner at the Belgian fixture was current world no. 1 Christian Ahlmann, but the German maestro was eliminated in the first round when Aragon Z was in uncooperative mood.

Verlooy was first to challenge Wulschner’s time, going well into the lead when breaking the beam in 39.71 seconds when sixth to go against the clock with the 11-year-old Caracas. “I really tried. I didn’t think I could go any faster!” said the young man who finished fifth with Domino at the Longines Final in Las Vegas in 2015. It seemed the target was still vulnerable, however, when Verlooy’s good friend and rival, 21-year-old Irish sensation Bertram Allen, broke the beam even sooner, although he left the opening vertical on the floor for four faults in 39.43 with his very promising eight-year-old Izzy by Picobello. 

Fourth-last into the ring, Italy’s Lorenzo de Luca and Armitages Boy looked set to go out in front until they missed their stride to the very last fence. And the crowd gasped in even greater disbelief when French star Kevin Staut, who leads the Western European League rankings and is more than qualified for the Longines Final in Omaha, Nebraska (USA) at the end of March, then parted company with Ayade de Septon when they got into a muddle earlier on the track. Last man in, however, Bost would make no mistake, storming home in 38.86 seconds to put the result beyond doubt.

“Sydney is very fast. I didn’t take the maximum risk but at the last two jumps I tried a little more,” said the man whose unorthodox riding style sets him apart from the rest and whose personal popularity is universal. The Belgian crowd applauded the Frenchman as if he was one of their own, and the result has settled Bost’s resolve. “I only need about 10 more points to qualify so I’m going to try some more shows now because I really want to go to America for the Final!” he said. 

Full result here

Quotes:

Roger Yves Bost FRA (1st), talking about his mare, Sydney Une Prince: “After Rio she jumped in Barcelona and then had a break. Then I took her to Stuttgart, Paris and Geneva before coming here.”

Holger Wulschner GER (3rd): “The course designer did a super job – every big class this week we had 12 clears so everyone in jump off had money. This show always has a lovely audience – they are a very happy crowd!”

John Roche, FEI Jumping Director: “I’d like to congratulate the owner of winning horse, Monsieur Francois Badel, and also the course designer Lucien Somers for producing excellent sport this afternoon. On behalf of the FEI I’d like to thank Lucien for all his wonderful work. As this is his last show I’d like to thank him very sincerely for his enormous contribution to the sport over the years.”

Full standings here

Don’t miss a hoofbeat! Watch it all LIVE on www.feitv.org.

Social media: #FEIWorldCupWEL #RidetoOmaha #FEIWorldCupFinals #TwoHearts #Longines @LonginesEq

Rider biographies: view online and download from http://www.fei.org/bios.

By Louise Parkes

Media Contacts:

At Mechelen:

Press Officer
Edith de Reys
edith.dereys@skynet.be
+44 1753 847 900

At FEI:

Ruth Grundy
Manager Press Relations
Email: ruth.grundy@fei.org
Tel: +41 787 506 145

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