A few days before the World Cup Finals, our team at Equnews France interviewed Irish rider and World no.10 Bertram Allen. The World Cup Finals in Las Vegas ended yesterday and Allen finished in third place with the mare Molly Malone V. It’s only been a year since you competed in your first 5* Grand Prix with Molly Malone, did you think you would have so much success with her so quickly ? And can you describe her ? No not really, to be honest it surprised me. Molly got to this new level so well and a lot happened really quickly. She has quite a strong character and she know what she wants, we get along really well, we know each other and understand how each other works. I've known her since she was very young so we have a good partnership. She is a lovely mare, she knows what her job is. Romanov is also having amazing results, can you tell us about him ? To be honest I can't really explain it, he is seventeen and he feels super fresh, as young as ever. At the moment he is in super form so we are just trying to make the most of it while he is in such good shape. He really is a relaxed horse, at home I don't ride him, my brother rode him all week before coming here ( Saut Hermes in Paris). He knows the sport and we just have to keep him happy and his mind fresh and he makes my life easy. He always tries his best, he really is a nice horse. Your are only nineteen and already in the top ten, was it something you aimed for ? It was always a dream to be in the top ten, but I didn't aim to do it. The results that I had during the last year dropped me there but I never thought it would happen so fast. I’ll try to get one day the number one spot but it’s not a goal. What are your main goals this year ? The World Cup Final in Vegas and then few Grand Prix's during the summer where I hope to do well and get good results, and the European Championships in Aachen in order to qualify for the Olympic games. A lot of people say that you are a really cold-minded rider, how do you feel about that and when was the last time you really felt pressure going into the arena ? I’ve heard lots of people say that, it’s true but I think it’s good, I've never felt like it’s been too much pressure so for sure it helps me. I’ve never felt stressed going into the arena. You work with Marcus Ehning and Billy Twomey can you explain us those partnership ? I’ve known billy for a long time, I’ve met him when I was fifteen, he lives in England and I’m in Germany so we work less with each other but we still talk a lot, and he gives me advice. And Marcus lives close to where I am so I get a little bit of help from him when I need it. It works really well with the two of them, they are quite relax. I would say I mainly look up to Marcus and Billy because we have a connection, but I think you can learn from everyone, so I really look up to a lot of riders, not one in particular. You left home when you were really young, how did that feel ? I left Ireland to go to Germany and be closer to the sport but I have to admit it was difficult at the beginning being far from home, far from Ireland. But after a while you adapt and after the first year it was fine. Also, to be honest I didn't manage riding and education so well. At the beginning when I went to Germany I would try to do both, but it was not easy at all so when I was seventeen I decided to just ride. You are really young with plenty of success, would you say your team is something that really helps you ? For sure, I have an amazing team around me, Marlene has been my show groom since I moved to Germany. She is great and she knows the job. I have Alex Duffy who is riding with me now and he is a really big part of the team. His groom Nina, is actually here (Paris) with me because Marlene is in Las Vegas. My sister is a lot of the time in Germany also, she really helps me. And there is two other grooms at home and my little brother, Harry, is there at the moment with his ponies, he actually goes to Fontainebleau next week for the nations cup. So I have a big team but they all really help me, they are great. You are also known to be great with young horses, can you talk about those you have right now ? I have few good young horses at home, we just have to wait and be patient. They had good results in Vejer de la Frontera like Cheese W Z who is seven years old and won a lot of class over there. We just have to do everything good to bring them to their best level and then hopefully they will be able to step up and become Grand Prix horses some day. Finally if you could ride any other horse, who would it be ? I would say Quickly de Kreisker, he knows what show jumping is, he is fast, scopey and really talented. He is a great horse and I think he is really special. Photos : ©Equnews [gallery type="slideshow" ids="73337,73338,73339,73340,73341,73342,73343,73344,73345,73346,73347,73151"]
