Text © World of Showjumping

Bertram Allen (IRL) has been a regular winner at Sweden International Horse Show over the years and has in total won seven cars in the Swedish capital. On Saturday evening, Allen took his first win at this year’s edition of the show – riding Empoli de Champloue (Arko x Diamant de Semilly) to the top in the CSI4* 1.45m Table A presented by Hööks.

“Empoli de Champloue is only eight years old, so I have to see a bit how he is going to go. I just tried to be smooth and have the round as nice as I could, and everything came up nicely for me. I’m delighted and it is great to win here in Stockholm,” Allens said after his victory.  

“We have had him since he was a five-year-old,” Allen said of Empoli de Champloue. “We sent him back to our farm in Ireland and he was there for two years with our rider Daren Hopkins, and then he came back to us as a seven-year-old. He has been very, very good the whole way; very careful and with a fantastic brain. You don’t have to worry that he will knock one from not trying, so you get great confidence riding him.”

Allen, last to go, pushed the time down to 58.96 seconds – dropping Marlon Modolo Zanotelli (BRA) and Heureuse Nouvelle WH (Cardento 933 x Indoctro) to the runner-up position with their time of 59.01. This was Modolo Zanotelli’s third time as runner-up – out of four classes he has jumped in – this weekend. 

The third place went to home rider Henrik von Eckermann (SWE) and Dzara Dorchival (Qlassic Bois Margot x Raphael) in 59.12 seconds. Jerome Guery (BEL) and Uniquo finished fourth with a time of 61.07 seconds, while the fifth place went to John Whitaker (GBR) and Sharid (Toulon x Vancouleurs) with 61.10 seconds.