Showjumping Junior and young rider European Championships, Great Yorkshire Show and more
Harry Charles takes double gold in a medal shower for Britain and Ireland
IT was a successful week for Britain’s and Ireland’s elite youth, as the two countries picked up medals by the handful across all age categories over Grégory Bodo’s big, undulating courses.
In the young riders, it was double gold for Britain, with
Harry Charles crowned European champion on the day of his 19th birthday on Vivaldi Du Dom, a 13-year-old Casall gelding owned by father Peter Charles.
“It’s the best birthday present ever,” Harry exclaimed as soon as he had clinched gold. “This amazing horse has done three Europeans and got six medals — every time he’s been, he’s won an individual medal.
“We’ve been silver twice, so to finally win gold is a dream come true,” he continued. “Both of [Sunday’s] rounds were really big and tough, but the horse gave his all — I tried to give him the best chance I could.”
In his first year in the category, Harry had already helped Britain earn team gold on Friday afternoon, together with pathfinder Graham Babes on Boucheron, William Fletcher on Persimmon and Amy Inglis on Wishes.
Reigning champions Britain had dominated the competition from the start, and Harry entered the arena for the final team round with nine penalties in hand — one mistake at the vertical and one time-fault did not matter.
“The course was perfect, there could be mistakes everywhere, which was very interesting,” explained Tony Newbery, Britain’s chef d’equipe.
The time allowed was also decisive, with over twenty riders penalised for exceeding it.
“The team have top professionals behind them, some of their parents are exinternational riders, Harry’s got an Olympic gold medallist as a father, so the back-up that they have is unbelievable; but they still have to come up with the clear rounds,” Tony enthused. “It’s been a great championships, and a tough one. I’ve been chef d’equipe since Arezzo and for me this has been the toughest yet.”
Seasoned competitor Amy Inglis was second best-placed
Brit in Sunday’s individual final, commencing the final round
in bronze medal position but dropping to fifth after a mistake.
“I was a bit disappointed as I was in third, but she’s jumped so well all week that I can’t not be happy,” she said of the home-bred “typical chestnut mare”, who could “jump another three days, and not tire”.
JUNIORS SHINE
THERE were medals also for the British juniors, who took team and individual silver.
The team riders were provisionally leading on Thursday night, narrowly followed by Belgium, but it was the latter that won gold after an unfortunate refusal in the final team round for Robert Murphy and Chablis, a pole down for Jack Whitaker and Arlo de Blondel, and two for Sienna Charles and Chaitanya. Oliver Fletcher and Disckoboy DN, who jumped clear on Friday, also took silver in Sunday’s individual final, finishing the championships on 6.2 penalties.
“I’ve never felt so good,” he exclaimed, quick to thank owners Lady Kirkham and Lady Harris for entrusting the horse to him a year and a half ago.
“I am really grateful to them for giving me the ride on this amazing horse, as it’s such a great opportunity early on in my riding career.
“Today there were two very testing rounds and to jump two clears is more than I expected,” he continued. “I can’t thank everyone enough: my parents, grooms, my brother, my sponsors. The whole championships has been amazing. We all loved everything about it, from the ring to the facilities, and to win two medals exceeds our expectations.”
But it was Ireland that came out on top in the juniors. Jason Foley added individual gold to his team bronze, riding Ger O’Neill and Martin Egan’s eight-yearold Cassino gelding Castlefield Vegas; he went into the last day on a converted penalty score of 1.59 pen, ahead of Russia’s Egor Shchibrik, whose mistakes in the final round dropped him out of contention. Jason had a pole down at fence seven, but with a jump in hand he finished first on a total of 5.59 penalties.
“We were in the top 10 from the first day, which was our aim. We jumped another two clear rounds for the team, getting a bronze medal, which I was delighted with, and then we said we’d keep it all together, try to get a gold medal at the end of the week and it came through,” Jason commented.
“The tracks rode a lot more difficult than they walked. The hills played a big part in the tracks throughout the week,” he said, referring to the undulating ground. “It’s very hard to judge; we were here in April for the
Nations Cup and we adapted to the course.”
The Kilkenny-based rider thanked owners Ger O’Neill and Martin Egan.
“Ger has been very good to me; I’ve been working with him for seven or eight months and he’s done everything he could for me,” said Jason. “Martin’s been there all along and plays a big part in the background.”
Irish chef d’equipe James Kernan beamed: “I’m over the moon. Two individual gold medals, a team silver and a team bronze, for Ireland! We’re a small nation, we don’t have the same money that some of these countries can spend. I’m a very proud chef d’equipe today,” he said, before reiterating how
tough the tracks were.
“The course-builder is very special; when you’ve jumped a clear round over his courses, you’ve really earned it. I give him 10 out of 10.”
Ireland’s Kate Derwin finished just out of the podium placings but impressed on her low-mileage nine-year-old AHG Whiterock Cruise Down.
“I came out here with hopes of a team medal. He’s only nine and he did nothing as a seven- and eight-year-old, so I was coming out here with a very raw horse. We knew an individual medal was chancy, and to finish fourth I’m on top of the world! I didn’t get an individual medal but to me this is just as amazing,” said the 2017 pony medallist.