Nicola Philippaerts made sure to get his 23rd birthday celebrations off to a good start, when he won Saturday's Prix du Conseil Régional de Bretagne in Dinard. 

The crowds had to wait quite some time for the first clear in this CSI5* 1.50 speed competition, and half way into the class it was the Belgian rider that took over the lead after a fast round aboard H&M Quenzo de la Roque (Kannan x Jasmin). One rider later Austria's Max Kühner did his best to catch Philippaerts, but as he crossed the finish line 0.33 seconds behind he had to settle into runner-up position with Electric Touch (Untouchable Z x Voltaire). 

Home hero Simon Delestre took a popular third place with the tiny yet super-scopey 8-year-old Utah d'Aiguilly (Kashmir van Schuttershof x Quick Star) while Laura Renwick again was in the ribbons to finish fourth and Gert-Jan Bruggink fifth.

Text and picture © World of Showjumping