Scott Brash and Hello Mr President won the CSI2* 1.45m Grand Prix presented by Dammann Reitplatz- u. Sportplatzbau GmbH in Oliva Nova. Photo © Hervé Bonnaud/1clicphoto.com.
Press release from Mediterranean Equestrian Tour
The 2024-edition of Spring MET kicked off this week in Oliva Nova, Spain, and it was Great Britain’s former world number one and Olympic team champion Scott Brash and Hello Mr President who concluded the first week with a win in Sunday’s CSI2* 1.45m Grand Prix presented by Dammann Reitplatz- u. Sportplatzbau GmbH.
With a time of 37.41 seconds, Brash and Hello Mr President (Comme d’Api vd Hacienda x unknown, bred by Bvba Euro Equitation) were the quickest in a jump-off between ten horse-and-rider-combinations, taking the win ahead of Koen Vereecke (BEL) and Oilily de Muze (Vigo d’Arsouilles x Ramiro Z, bred by Joris de Brabander and Paul Hendrix) in second in 38.33.
“It was a nice class with a well-built course,” Brash said after his victory. “In the jump-off, my plan was just to keep it tight and smooth. Hello Mr President is a very fast horse naturally, so if I can let him run and jump, that suits him well. I am happy with how he's feeling at the moment.”
Scott Brash and Hello Mr President. Photo © Hervé Bonnaud/1clicphoto.com.
“This time of the year for the horses, it's better to be here than in minus five at home,” Brash – a regular face at the MET – said about the venue at Centro Ecuestre Oliva Nova. “It’s nice for the horses to come down here and enjoy the sun. It is a good venue to get the youngsters as well as the older horses going; I think it's good for them to be in the sunshine and go down the beach. Also, you can pick and choose which classes you want to do, depending on their progress and build up. It's also handy with the airports nearby; if you need to get home on Sunday night, that’s easy. I always like coming to Oliva. It just works for us here in Oliva, like it does for many people.”
Eduardo Alvarez Aznar (ESP) and d’Orient Batilly (Numero Uno x Quaprice Boismargot Quincy, bred by Jean-Claude Viollet) placed third with a time of 38.77 in the jump-off, while Adam Grzegorzewski (POL) and Issem (Quality Time TN x Clinton, bred by J.Saaltink) finished fourth in 38.84 and Luciana Diniz (BRA) aboard Clair de Lune 11 (Calido I x Acord II, bred by Ditmar Bayer) fifth in 43.97.
Spring MET 2024 continues next week and runs until January 28, followed by Spring MET II in February, Spring MET III in March and Spring MET IV in April.
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