Paul O’Shea and Imerald Van’t Voorhof won the $120,000 Lugano Diamonds Grand Prix CSI3*. Photo © Andrew Ryback Photography.
Press release from World Equestrian Center
The WEC Grand Arena sparkled with holiday spirit on Saturday night at World Equestrian Center – Ocala as the $120,000 Lugano Diamonds Grand Prix CSI3* took center stage during the WEC Winter Wonderland, presented by AdventHealth. A packed house of enthusiastic fans cheered on 43 top horse-and-rider combinations from 14 different nations. In a dramatic finale, Paul O’Shea of Ireland, aboard Imerald Van’t Voorhof (Emerald x Bacardi Orange De Muze), stole the show as the last to go and capped off their year with a victory.
Catsy Cruz (MEX), an FEI Level III course designer, crafted the tracks for Saturday night’s class, where 11 combinations managed to find the path to a clear first round. The jump-off became a chase, but at the end of the night, it was a battle between Colombia and Ireland.
Ilan Bluman of Colombia was the first to return for the jump-off, setting a blistering pace aboard Acajou (Casallco x Chico’s Boy), a nine-year-old German Sport Horse mare, with a time of 37.02 seconds.
Molly Ashe Cawley (USA) followed on the 13-year-old Zangersheide mare, Berdien (Bustique x Querlybet Hero), delivering a smooth round in 37.83 seconds, but it wasn’t enough to take the lead. Other competitors came close but couldn’t best Bluman’s or Ashe Cawley’s times—until O’Shea entered the ring.
Paul O’Shea and Imerald Van’t Voorhof accepting their first-place award, presented by Jim Wolf of World Equestrian Center. Melissa Brandes, Emerson Stanka, Tom Ferder, and Sophie Transou represented Lugano Diamonds. Photo © Andrew Ryback Photography.
He entered aboard his veteran partner, Imerald Van’t Voorhof, a 16-year-old Belgian Warmblood gelding. “Imerald has been with me since he was nine, and he’s an incredible horse. He’s still winning at 16. Just this year, he’s won three grands prix. He feels great, as good as ever,” O’Shea shared.
Having watched Bluman’s round, O’Shea made a critical decision in the opening line. “I didn’t think there were seven strides in line one, but after seeing Ilan do it, I knew I had to try. From there, I just kept going forward, and to the last fence, I was surprised how easily Imerald got up there,” he said.
The pair soared over the final Lugano Diamonds oxer, stopping the clock at 36.40 seconds to claim victory and the lion’s share of the prize money. During the course walk, O’Shea, along with Patricia Hurter and Andrea Sinner, met dwarf mini ponies from The Peeps Foundation. Inspired by the encounter, they decided to donate a portion of Saturday night’s winnings to the foundation’s mission of rescuing and rehabilitating dwarf ponies.
O’Shea also credited his team for their role in the win. “I’m so grateful to his owners—Patricia Hurter, Andrea Sinner, and the Tisbo Family—for trusting me with him, and I can’t thank Davide Troncanetti and Paula Moverley enough for taking such great care of him.”
Then