The U25 Grand Prix at the Longines CSIO St. Gallen produced an exciting jump-off, with six combinations advancing to the decisive round. In the end, it was American rider Djuna Lauder who emerged victorious aboard Paladin 116, producing the fastest double-clear performance of the competition.
Djuna Lauder claimed top honours in the 1.45m MartyDesignHaus U25 Grand Prix aboard the nine-year-old Paladin 116 (Plot Blue). After a faultless first round in 73.91 seconds, the American rider returned to deliver another clear effort in the jump-off, stopping the clock in 41.33 seconds to secure victory.
Ireland’s Leah Stack followed closely behind in second place with Idocus (Carambole). Riding the experienced 13-year-old gelding, Stack maintained a clear score throughout both rounds and crossed the finish line in 41.80 seconds in the jump-off, less than half a second behind the winning combination.
Third place went to Switzerland’s Sira Accola aboard Koriano van Klapscheut (Lord Z). The pair added another faultless jump-off performance to their clear opening round and finished in 43.29 seconds to complete the podium.
Just outside the top three, Joana Schildknecht and Quonchita van de Nachtegaele (Vannan) looked set to challenge for victory after recording the fastest jump-off time of 41.09 seconds. However, four penalties relegated the Swiss combination to fourth place. Ukraine’s Anastasia Bondarieva completed the top five in the saddle of Capri’s Hope. They also incurred four faults in the jump-off and finished on a time of 44.82 seconds.
