Donald Whitaker and Millfield Colette, winners of the CSI3* 1.50m CHG Grand Prix at the Spring MET III 2024 in Oliva Nova, Spain. Photo © Hervé Bonnaud/1clicphoto.com.
Press release from Mediterranean Equestrian Tour
The third and final week of Spring MET III 2024 at Centro Ecuestre Oliva Nova, Spain, concluded on Sunday with the CSI3* 1.50m Grand Prix presented by CHG – Construcciones Hispano Germanas S.A.
A total of 44 horse-and-rider combinations were at start in Sunday’s Grand Prix and ten pairs cleared the first-round track set by Christian Wiegand (GER).
With a time of 39.67 seconds in the jump-off, Donald Whitaker and Millfield Colette (Cornet Obolensky x Clearway) took the win ahead of the British rider’s compatriot – and cousin – Joseph Clayton and Commissaire S (Comme Il Faut 5 x Polydor) in second in 40.04.
“It was a good, testing course,” Whitaker said about the course. “It was a fast jump-off, and my cousin Joe Clayton – who came second – was the first to go, so he set the pace. My horse is naturally very fast – a little bit too fast actually at times – so I was just trying to half nurse her around a little bit and then let her go to the last. I did one less there and I think I won it there actually; she has such a big stride.”
“I’ve had her for a year-and-a-half, and she is really, really special,” Whitaker said about the 11-year-old mare Millfield Collette. “It took quite a while to figure her out. She has such a big heart, she is so brave and so sharp. She has sort of been knocking on the door for something for a while now. She had two big wins here, maybe a bit overdue, but I am so happy.”
Donald Whitaker and Millfield Colette. Photo © Hervé Bonnaud/1clicphoto.com.
“We come here all the time, and bring quite a lot of horses with us – it is fantastic here,” Whitaker said about the venue in Oliva Nova. “It is very convenient when you bring a large number of horses; when everything is so close, it is easy for the staff. It works brilliant for us. Team HD had an unbelievable show here, I think the three of us – myself, Nicola and Graham – won six world ranking classes – so we are absolutely delighted.”
Belgium’s Andres Vereecke and Noyelle Vd Begijnakker (Kannan x Palestro Vd Begijnakker) placed third in 42.93, while Brazil’s Stephan de Freitas Barcha and Chevaux Primavera Imperio Egipcio (Calvaro F.C. x Paroli) finished fourth in 46.04. Sweden’s Erika Lickhammer-Van Helmond and I. Comme Tessa VHL (Comme Il Faut 5 x Casall) completed the top five after clocking a time of 47.22 in the jump-off.
Then