THE FORMER Olympic team gold medallist Piet Raymakers led a strong Dutch onslaught on the World Cup qualifier at Millstreet on Saturday night, pocketing the keys to his third Volvo car in just over a month after a thrilling victory with Jewels Emerald, the 11 year old German gelding with which he had also triumphed in the Oslo and Helsinki qualifiers last month.
The Dutchman, who is his country's reigning national champion, opted not to make the talented Jewels Emerald available for this summer's Atlanta Olympics. "I just took over the ride from Albert Voorn on January 1st this year and the horse had been off for a year prior to that due to injury, so it was just too soon."
But he now rates the Holsteiner gelding as the best he has ridden since Ratina Z, the mare with which he took team gold and individual silver in Barcelona in 1992. "He tries to give 110 per cent, and if you even think about making a turn on a course, he's already there."
Raymakers (40), who lives in Belgium but wears the colours of the Netherlands, was one of 14 riders, including four from the Dutch camp, to be clear over Frank Rothenberger's first round track. Drawn 10th to go, the Dutch combination stamped their authority on the class with a daring round which saw them survive a nasty moment at the penultimate over when a pole rocked in its cups but stayed put, leaving them out in front on 33.49.
Ireland's Captain John Ledingham had the capacity crowd on the edge of their seats with a stunning performance which saw the dual Hickstead Derby winner Kilbaha gallop home clear in 35.69 for an eventual fourth place, the best the home side could muster in this top class, international company.
But the biggest challenge to Raymakers' supremacy came from his compatriot Roelof Bril, last to go with the mare, Bollvorm's Burggravin. The nine year old, which missed much of this season due to a stifle injury, belied her lack of match practice by turning in a superb clear which brought her rider to within a second of Raymakers' target. France's individual bronze medallist in Atlanta this summer, Alexandra Ledermann, slotted into third with Rochet M.
Ledermann successfully defended her Dairygold Grand Prix title at the Co Cork arena last night, however, Rochet M once again eating up the ground and attacking his fences at seemingly impossible angles.
In a thrilling eight horse jump off against the clock the superbly, well matched French duo galloped through the finish with almost half a second to spare over Britain's Michael Whitaker and the relatively inexperienced Ashley. Their efforts earned the French pair a third successive victory in this £30,000 class, which was previously billed as an Indoor Derby but was run as a Grand Prix last night.
Single errors over the track of 14 fences denied many of the 47 runners access to this jump off, with Ireland's Jessica Chesney and St Ludwigs Diamond Exchange devastatingly unlucky to clip the final fence on the course.
The final fence, a double of Duhallow banks, also proved significant for Marion Hughes, who was clear up to this point in her bid to wrest the Heineken leading show jumper of the year title from five time winner Francis Connors. After a season long campaign encompassing a circuit of 18 Grand Prix events this league eventually came down to a cliffhanging finale in this class.
Hughes knew when she entered the arena with Flo Jo that she had to turn in a score of eight faults or better to end Connors' five year reign. Although her mare rolled poles off the two final fences she was still fast enough to depose Connors.
