Text © World of Showjumping

This week, the 2025/2026-season of the Longines FEI Jumping World Cup™ Western European League makes its 13th and final stop in Helsinki, Finland, where the five-star action got under way on Friday.

Ireland’s Denis Lynch and the 11-year-old mare Katja (Etoulon x Otangelo) topped the CSI5*-W 1.45m presented by Hööks when stopping the clock on 26.67 in the second phase.

“The course was good and Katja felt really good,” Lynch said in a press release from Helsinki International Horse Show. “She’s very competitive and likes to go at a brisk pace. For the arena, credit to the organizers, everything fits under one roof and is fantastic, very well done. For the rest of the weekend, I’m taking it class by class and try to do as well as possible in each. The big focus is of course on the GP on Saturday and the World Cup on Sunday, we’ll do our best.”

Mans Thijssen (NED and Nero Z (Numero Uno x Lupicor) took the runner-up spot with a time of 28.81 seconds, followed by Kevin Staut (FRA) and Kannonqulan (Kannan x Quantum) in third in 29.12, while Geir Gulliksen (NOR) on Oh La La van Overis (Otangelo x Udarco van Overis) finished fourth in 29.81 and Philipp Schulze Topphoff (GER) aboard Carleyla F. (Carleyle x Chambertin) fifth in 30.40.