Neretnieks takes top honours in show jumping
al ain — Latvian rider Kristaps Neretnieks — on ‘Moon Ray’ — took home the trophy in the final Grand Prix competition of the Al Ain International Show Jumping Championship World Cup Qualifier, a press release said.
Neretnieks won with jumps of 145 and 160 cm — the highest in terms of international competition standards. The championship — which had a prize of 300,000 dirhams — included 28 riders, who qualified during the second day of the championship (Friday), eight of which moved to the second round with a clean score and no penalties, and two riders were able to complete the course with a clear round.
Neretnieks was able to finish the second round in 46.63 seconds; while Saudi rider Khaled Abdulrahman Almobty — on ‘Dona Evita’ — completed the round in 47.85 seconds and won the second place. He also registered the highest score among Arab riders in the qualifying round for the Show Jumping World Cup in 2019.
The third place went to French rider David Frederic — on ‘Equador Van’t Roosakker’ — who finished in 52.20 seconds with one penalty point for exceeding the time limit, while Emirati rider Sheikha Latifa Al Maktoum came in fourth on ‘Cobalt’.
The Accumulator competition with 130 cm jumps attracted 77 riders, seven of which were able to score a full 65 points during the allotted time. The first place went to Syrian rider Hisham Ghrayb — ‘K.abrax’ — who finished the round in 50.07 seconds. The competition concluded with the Grand Prix Qualifier — one round with a jump-off round and 140 cm obstacles. As many as 44 riders participated but only 17 of them were able to finish without faults – out of these, only five riders completed the jump-off with a clear round.
The first place went to Saudi rider Salman Alajamy and his horse ‘Wait N See’ finished in 36.58 seconds, while the UAE’s Abdullah Mohd Al Marri and his horse ‘Larga Van’t Zorgvliet’ finished in second place with 36.71 seconds.
Meanwhile, Russian rider Vladimir Toganov won the Mini Grand Prix of the Al Ain International Show Jumping Championship World Cup Qualifier. The competition included one jump-off round with jumps that were 145 cm high. Overall, 47 riders participated, nine of which were able to move to the jump-off round, with Vladimir being one of the top four riders.