Hopes are high the good form of New Zealand’s showjumpers will continue at this week’s FEI Nations’ Cup event at the CSIO5* in Gijon.
Samantha McIntosh aboard 16-year-old stallion Check In 2, Bruce Goodin on 11-year-old Dutch-bred gelding Backatorps Danny V, Richard Gardner aboard his 11-year-old bay gelding Calisto 5 and Tom Tarver on the nine-year-old grey Popeye have been named as the team to wear the silver fern at the high-ranking event in Spain.
Daniel Meech will compete as an individual aboard Cinca, Faith 13 and Dominick; Samantha also has individual entries with James S and Alaid de Chez Nous; Bruce has Copain VDB while Richard will compete aboard Cromwell 32.
Chef d’equipe and trainer Helena Stormanns says she and the five are looking forward to the top-flight competition. “It will be good to get in the Nations Cup and give our riders a chance to get their Certificate of Capability for Tokyo,” she says.
There are opportunities in both the Nations’ Cup and Grand Prix for riders to gain their Olympic Certificate of Capability. The two round Nations’ Cup competition has Euro73,500 in the prize purse. Just the best three rounds from each nation’s four combinations over the Avelino Rodriguez Miravalles-designed course, will count towards the final tally to decide the placings.
Competition starts on Wednesday with the Nations Cup competition taking place on Friday.
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The horse details:
Backatorps Danny V – owned by Backatorp Ryder AB
Check In 2 – owned by Takapoto Equestrian
Calisto 5 – owned by GestGestut Jennissen, Gut Nechen Agrar GmbH
Popeye – owned by Tom Tarver and Lucia Voss
Cinca – owned by Johnson Horses GmbH
Copain VDB Z – owned by Lina Wiman
James S – owned by Xavier Tirant
Alaid de Chez Nous – owned by Takapoto Equestrian
Cromwell 32 – owned by Gestut Jennissen, Gut Nechen Agrar GmbH
Faith 13 – owned by Johnson Horses GmbH
Dominick – owned by Johnson Horses GmbH
By Diana Dobson – HP Media Liaison