Press release from Equestrian Sport Productions

The ESP Pre-Charity CSI3* show came to a close on Sunday after a week of international show jumping competition. The $137,000 Noltrex®Vet Grand Prix CSI3* took place in the International Arena with an international field of riders fighting for the top spot, which was ultimately claimed by Ireland’s Darragh Kerins and Lissino, owned by Eve Jobs, as the most efficient jump-off challengers.

“I’ve been riding him on and off for the last two years. He actually had a small injury around this time last year and pretty much missed the whole year. We started bringing him back to jumping at the end of August. He has come back feeling better than ever; he feels unbelievable,” Kerins shared of the 11-year-old Holsteiner stallion by Guardus Limbus x Lagumera B. Kerins continued, “He jumped great in the qualifier the other day with a fast jump-off, and I was really excited to do the grand prix with him today. I didn’t know what to expect after watching everyone else go in the first round, but he gave me everything today. He’s an unbelievable horse.”

Thirty-three qualified combinations elected to contest Andy Christiansen’s (ECU) challenging grand prix track, but representatives from most of the 15 nations struggled to find a successful path around every obstacle. After all of the riders had tested the opening round, only Peter Lutz (USA) had been able to navigate clearly through the course within the time allowed, and Kerins and Lissino eventually forced a jump-off with their fault-free round as the last pair to test the opening track.

On Christiansen’s opening track, Kerins remarked, “When I walked the course today, it definitely walked hard but I didn’t think it was going to turn out that difficult. The time allowed was a big issue and in the combination line you could either do a seven or an eight, so there were options everywhere.”

Lutz and Hollerno, owned by Lutz/Manfredi Show Jumping & LMW Sporthorses, was the first to take on the short course, which had been trimmed to eight fences. The pair once again served as the pathfinders with a clear trip in 47.91 seconds, but Kerins and Lissino sliced nearly a full second off their time with a clear result in 47.02 seconds to win the class. Sayre Happy (USA) rounded out the podium on Devon Macneil’s Vinci De Beaufour with a clear first-round time of 81.17 seconds and two time faults.

“I think the footing here is great and the new stabling looks fantastic. I’m really excited about this upcoming winter season,” Kerins commented. “Hopefully, I can rack up enough points to get into some of the five-star classes with him. I really feel like this is going to be his season.”