Most of the riders treated the EEM Trophy as a warm-up ride, an occasion for them and their horses to take in the atmosphere of the competition and the public. But others decided to play it all, and let themselves be driven by the warm welcome of the first visitors of the day.

Coriana van Klapscheut (Darco x Heartbreaker), winner of this first class, has made quite a come-back. Once ridden by Canada's Eric Lamaze, with whom she participated in the Pan Americans Games and a World Cup Final, the mare arrived in Pilar Lucrecia Cordon’s stables in 2012. After a successful European Championship in 2013, the chestnut mare experienced a break for two years due to a severe injury. Her rider even thought about retiring her: “We had to put a screw in her left hind hock, and it had been a year she hadn’t jumped, because of the operation. I had so many problems with her that I thought about retiring her, but step by step, she came back. True this victory was quite easy, but it feels so good. She knows the job so well, she was exceptional, I’m really happy.”

The Hermès rider can fully enjoy her win, especially as she wins with a one second lead over another great champion, France Roger-Yves Bost. Teasing a little bit in the warm-up, “Did I scare you? But I slowed down in the last line to let you win!” he joked, the Team Olympic champion had, before that, succeeded in lowering the time of Longines Ambassador of elegance, Jane Richard Philips. Only three women have enlisted in the Longines Masters of Hong Kong 2017’s competitions, and they have started their weekend off in the best way possible.

Source: Press release from R&B Presse // Picture © Power Sport Images