Text © World of Showjumping

After Wednesday and Thursday's qualifiers, as well as two final rounds on Saturday, Jos Verlooy was crowned Belgian Champion for 2021 at Zangersheide. Verlooy took the title for the third time in a row, and again with Varoune (Verdi TN x Cordalme). 20-year-old Thibeau Spits on Classic Touch DH (Casall x Corrado I) jumped home the silver medal, while 23-year-old Gilles Thomas on Konak (Nabab de Reve x Cash) took the bronze.

"I think this will be remembered for a long time," the happy winner said afterwards. "I am delighted with my horse, he was incredible. I think what happened today is unique in Belgium, to win three times in a row, but also to do it on the same horse. I was disappointed after the first round, I thought I would lose the gold because of that. But in the end, it turned out my way, so I can't complain. I am young, but I must say that I feel old between Thibeau and Gilles – they are so young. I was jumping big shows when they were still competing in children's classes. I really take my hat off to how they coped with the pressure today, and I think we will see a lot of them in the future."