The highlight of Saturday’s competition, the CSI4*-W 1.50m – Prix Fête de l’Unité, a Longines Ranking class contested with a jump-off.

On the course designed by Gregory Bodo, the 30 combinations had to contend with a particularly tight time allowed. Only three of them managed to produce a clear round and secure their place in the jump-off.

Yuri Mansur and Incanto VDL(Kannan GFE x Indoctro)  ultimately came out on top. The Brazilian completed his jump-off in 38.17 seconds, edging Simon Delestre and Oh Sissi (38.30 seconds) by just thirteen hundredths of a second. The French pair had already claimed victory the previous day in the Grand Prix qualifier. Roberto Previtali, riding Conthargo-Blue, completed the podium.

Yuri Mansur: “As soon as I saw Simon’s jump-off, I really focused on sticking to the plan I had in mind because he had been very fast. Simon is always dangerous in a jump-off, so you have to be careful. I’ve had Incanto for a year now. He has always had a lot of quality, but he was a little cold and had learned to jump in a certain way, which made him a bit slow. But he is an incredibly intelligent horse.”

Niamh McEvoy continues her strong form in the Prix Maroc Vert

Already third in Friday’s Prix des Forces Armées Royales with Jargon DN, Niamh McEvoy did not have to wait long to climb two steps higher on the podium, this time with Sevilla van de Berghoeve Z.

Niamh McEvoy: “This is my first time competing at the Morocco Royal Tour. The horses are really happy here, the facilities are incredible and I love the arena. I have four horses with me and they are all in great form. Sevilla is a really special mare and I’m very happy with her. Today, the main goal was simply to produce a nice round, so I couldn’t have hoped for a better result.”

Virginie Thonon, riding Salerno van de Looise Heide, finished second, while Alix Ragot and Gueule d’Amours completed the podium.