Great Britain’s Ben Maher and his beautiful chestnut gelding Aristo Z (Andiamo x Flamenco de Semilly) stole the first win of the weekend at the spectacular Miami Beach. Ben galloped away from the rest of the field in the CSI5* 1.45m class, winning by over a second ahead of young Belgian star Jos Verlooy and Farfelu de la Pomme (Vigo d'Arsouilles x Darco). Third place went to Qatar's Bassem Hassan Mohammed and Argelith Squid (Salito x Gibraltar), who finished just tenths away from Jos with a time of 27.01s. 

Sunbathers and spectators lined the arena, just a stones throw from the water’s edge, to watch the world’s top horses and riders in action at the opening round of CSI5* competition. The Longines Global Champions Tour Grand Prix riders took to the stunning sand arena for the first time, with home riders Ali Wolff (USA), Beezie Maddon (USA), Laura Kraut (USA) and Quentin Judge (USA) all finishing high on the scoreboard much to the delight of the watching crowd. Course designer Uliano Vezzani set a welcoming course for the first round of CSI5* competition, with a total tally of 25 riders jumping double clear. 

Source: Press release from the LGCT // Picture © LGCT/Stefano Grasso