International competition at Week 3 of the 2019 Winter Equestrian Festival (WEF) kicked off with over 50 horse-and-rider combinations vying for the blue ribbon in the $36,000 Douglas Elliman Real Estate 1.45m Jumpers. After the lead changed hands eight times, Darragh Kenny (IRL) displayed the same talent he did during Week 2 to once again come out on top. The third week of WEF continues through Sunday, January 27.

After a flawless performance by junior competitor Brian Moggre (USA) with MTM Vivre Le Reve, Kenny knew the pressure was on if he wanted to get ahead. Moggre and Major Wager LLC’s 10-year-old Westphalian gelding (Ustinov x Chellana) overtook the lead from Brazil’s Francisco Jose Mesquita Musa only a handful of rides before. Doing what he does best, Kenny executed a careful and lightning fast round to cut just under Moggre’s time of 31.163 seconds with a time of 31.135 seconds.

Unlike his up-and-coming partner, Billy Dorito, that helped secure the win for Kenny in last week’s Douglas Elliman 1.45m class, Victoria Vargas D’Agostino’s 14-year-old Belgian Warmblood gelding Extra Van Essene (Diamant De Semilly x Sari Van Essene) is no stranger to the International Arena. “This is a very experienced horse, so he knows his job very well,” Kenny said. “I jumped around the first phase to see how he felt and he seemed great so then I went quick in the second phase and he was right on it the entire time.”

On his effort to overtake the lead, Kenny stated that it’s all about the little things. “I honestly hadn’t seen Brian’s round, but I knew that the class was very fast,” he explained. “When you only have six jumps in the second phase, every little detail counts. I’m very lucky this horse has experience and turns well, which is how we made up a lot of time.”