Ben Maher and Point Break, winners of $62,500 Hermès CSI5* 1.50m. Photo © Sportfot.
Press release from Wellington International
Five-star competition rounded out on Sunday with the $62,500 Hermès CSI5* 1.50m Classic. The Hermès 1.50m series returned for a fifth week in the International Arena, this time with fifty-two riders challenging the track designed by Gregory Bodo (FRA).
Keeping it in the family, Hermès sponsored rider and FEI world no. 2, Ben Maher (GBR), and Point Break, owned by Maher, Pamela Wright, and Charlotte Rossetter, took home the win. The pair beat out 10 other competitors in the jump-off, achieving a winning time of 38.12 seconds.
“Point Break is ten now. We got him when he was six years old,” said Maher of the stallion. “His first time here was when he was seven in the young jumpers. We’ve developed him the last few years, he’s jumped a couple of five-star grand prixs at the end of last year and then we gave him a break. He just arrived here a few weeks ago and we’re getting him going for the season.”
Ben Maher and Point Break are presented as winners of $62,500 Hermès CSI5* 1.50m by Leah Rogers Meierfeld, Client Development Manager, Equestrian for Hermès. Photo © Sportfot.
As one of the final three to go in the jump-off, Maher had a time to catch of 38.26 seconds, set by the second place winner, Shane Sweetnam (IRL) and Irandole Du Flot, owned by Seabrook LLC.
“He has an unbelievable technique to be able to bend around the jump. So, I think that was where I was very quick,” said Maher. “There wasn't a lot else to do in the jump-off to be honest; it was a course where everybody did the same thing, but naturally he was just quicker today.”
Maher’s win was a star aligning moment for the hosting sponsor as Hermès and the British rider have been partnered for over a year now. “I've been with the family now for a year and it’s been an unbelievable experience,” stated Maher. “Most importantly, for the horses, the saddles and the equipment are really coming together, and they've really helped me to progress over the past year.”
Closing out the podium was Nicola Philippaerts (BEL) and his own Pandora Van De Kruishoeve. The pair jumped a clear 39.03 seconds.
The 2024 Hermès 1.50m Championship Jumper Series will take place weekly throughout WEF, culminating during Week 11’s Saturday Night Lights with $150,000 in prize money. Riders who consistently compete in the series will accumulate points towards the series’ title, a $10,000 Hermès store credit and a bespoke Hermès horse rug.
Jumper action will continue with week six of the Winter Equestrian Festival (WEF) beginning Wednesday, February 13, on the grass derby field at Equestrian Village.
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