Press release from Agria Royal International Horse Show, edited by World of Showjumping

Robert Whitaker and Vermento (Argento x Skippy 12), the winners of the CSIO5* 1.60m Al Shira’aa King George V Gold Cup in 2023, reclaimed the trophy on a thrilling final day of action at the Agria Royal International Horse Show at Hickstead, Great Britain.

His victory gave his family a third successive victory in this Grand Prix, with Robert’s cousin Donald having won last year’s class. It also made Robert the fourth rider in history to win Hickstead’s Al Shira’aa Derby and the King George V Gold Cup in the same year. “It’s surreal,” said Robert. “To win both is very, very special.”

Robert was one of just four of the 46 starters to jump clear on Kelvin Bywater and Ben Townley’s challenging track, which caught out many of the sport’s leading names. Ireland’s Jordan Coyle was the first of the quartet to jump round the shortened course in the second round. Riding the 14-year-old Chaccolino (Chacco-Blue x Heartbreaker), he finished in a time of 40.17, leaving his rivals very little breathing space.

Donald Whitaker (GBR) was next into the International Arena. Last year he’d won the title on the grey mare Millfield Colette, but this year she was not at the show after being part of the silver medal-winning British team at last week’s FEI European Championships in Spain. This year, Donald was riding the eye-catching stallion Di Caprio (Diarado x Cassini I), and in the jump-off Donald looked to be in with a good chance of retaining the title – only for a stumble in the middle of the double to ruin their chances.

Next in was Robert, once again riding Caroline and Stephen Blatchford’s 12-year-old black stallion Vermento, a son of Argento. They set off in determined fashion, crossing the finish in a time of 38.88 to go into the lead. Only one rider could stop him from winning, and that was the 22-year-old United Arab Emirates rider Omar Al Marzooqi, making his first appearance at Hickstead’s five-star event.

In the end it went right to the wire, with the smallest of slips from the 10-year-old Enjoy de La Mure (Vigo Cece x Sable Rose) meaning the pair finished less than a second in arrears, in a time of 39.74, to give Robert the win.

Robert is now chasing his father John’s total of three King George V Gold Cup victories. “My Dad gets quite emotional – he bred the horse as well, so the whole story is very special,” said Robert, who hails from Huddersfield but now lives in West Sussex. “It’s just been an amazing year for me and my owners – but the year is not over, and we’ve got to keep going!”

Robert and Vermento had originally been selected for the British squad in Friday’s Agria Nations Cup of Great Britain, but Robert opted not to compete for the team and just focus on the Grand Prix. “I jumped at Aachen [last month], and it’s quite hard on the horses to jump both the Nations Cup and the Grand Prix. I was thinking of my horse a little bit – it’s good to have the horse to jump the five-star Grands Prix, and he’s the only one I’ve got for those big classes,” he explained. “He's had two days off since the qualifier, so he was very fresh, and jumped incredibly.” 

Hickstead Director Edward Bunn thanked Al Shira’aa, who now sponsor two of Hickstead’s biggest classes. “We cannot thank Al Shira’aa enough for what they’ve done for Hickstead. With Omar on the podium today and two UAE horses in the top six, it just shows they’re becoming a serious force to be reckoned with, so congratulations to them, and thank you for their support of this world-class event,” he said.