Edited press release from London International Horse Show 

Monday's CSI5*-W 1.45m Mistletoe Speed Stakes provided a thrilling finale to London International Horse Show's speed classes. Held over one round, with the fastest clear taking home the spoils, 18 horse-and-rider combinations took on the forward and flowing 11 fence course. First to secure a clear was Franceso Turturiello (ITA) and Quite Balou (Quite Capitol x Baloubet du Rouet) who with an exceptional turn back to third fence crossed the finish in a time of 55.77 seconds.

The stylish Marcus Ehning (GER) took risks throughout the course, but could not quite match the time of the Italian which began to look hard to beat. However, winner of The Christmas Pudding Speed Stakes earlier in the week, Matthew Sampson (GBR), set off meaning business and flew around the course with MGH Candy Girl (Sligo Candy Boy x Cruising) to come home over one second faster than Tuturiello, much to the delight of the home crowd. Several other riders, including former world no.1 Daniel Deusser, produced stylish clears but Sampson’s time kept him at the top of the leaderboard. 

With just four combinations left to go, Martin Fuchs (SUI) and Viper Z (Vigo D Arsouilles Stx x Grannus) produced a smooth but fast round to take the lead in 52.88 seconds. However, next to canter into the International Arena, Jodie Hall McAteer and Kimosa Van Het Kritrahof (Chatman x Eros Platiere), set the British crowd alight with a perfectly judged round to push Fuchs off the top spot as they stopped the clock on 52.45 seconds. With one left to go, fans were promised a British winner, however when the first fence fell for Scott Brash it was the London International Horse Show Ambassador Hall McAteer who secured her very first international win at the venue. 

A delighted Hall McAteer said: “I was able to watch Martin Fuchs, which was an advantage. His horse has a bigger stride than mine, so I had to use my pace a little bit more. Kimosa van het Kritrahof knows her job, she has had lots of experience, but I was really pleased with her and the great result. It’s such a great feeling to win here – the London International Horse Show is one of the best shows in the world. When you attend a show like this, you always want to do your best. It was a class that suited Kimosa van het Kritrahof today and I am over the moon that we got the job done today.”