Belgium's Francois Mathy Jr marked his debut appearance at the Bolesworth CSI **** International with an impressive victory on Saturday. Riding the stallion Diddo van sint Maarden, Mathy took the Young Horse Handicap Final for six and seven-year-old horses, sponsored by Whitley Neill Gin, in stylish fashion. Their jump-off time of 31.42 seconds thwarted the Czech Republic's Emma Augier de Moussac's bid for a third Bolesworth victory in 48 hours on Brighton Bay, as she finished second, with Italy's Luca Maria Moneta third aboard Ambramarie Del Beiro. Mathy said: "It is my first time at Bolesworth International, and I was delighted with the horse. "He is a stallion that we bought as a foal. He is owned by Team Harmony, and as a seven-year-old is still a young horse, but has a great brain, is very attentive and always listens. "He coped well with a tight turn from fences one to two, and when I asked him again at the double, he was sharp and quick. The plan is to develop him slowly in young horse classes and let him progress steadily without pushing him. “We based him at the Newmarket stables from a three to six-year-old, and he was well educated, so had a good start. "The Bolesworth International team has worked incredibly hard here, and I can’t credit them enough for the effort they have put in. The arena and set-up is just fantastic.” Mischa Irving made the long journey from Lanarkshire in Scotland worthwile when she won Saturday's International Arena opener - the Am-B accumulator, sponsored by Alexanders Horseboxes. The class ssees riders collect points for fences jumped , with a maximum score of 65, with competitors on that score then separated by time. And it was Irving who dominated the field, clocking a time of 51.49 seconds with eight-year-old Casaretta to triumph by a clear margin from Jule Slade and the ultra-consistent Billy Gogo, with Saudi Arabia's Sheikh Samir Mirdad third on Mirdad's Maaa Shaaa Allah. "It was an excellent to the day - I wasn't expecting that," Irving said. "I've had the horse since a four-year-old and produced her ourselves. She was placed in the amateur class here last year, so we decided to bring her back. "She was placed on the first two days, and won today, so she is very consistent."
