Wilm Vermeir just made history by becoming the first Belgian in 11 years to win the World Cup. After Gregory Wathelet won the World Cup in 2011, the Mechelen audience had to wait a very long time for another Belgian winner. But it came today! Vermeir was the last to start in the jump-off on IQ Steentje (by Toulon) and turned the Nekkerhal completely upside down by jumping a clear round in 34.45 seconds to take the win.
"What was going through my mind as I rode to the last hurdle? Mainly that I had to keep coming what it was a long distance. Obviously I was also hoping that 'the curse of the last hurdle' was going to let me out of its grip and so it did," he laughed.
"I still can't quite believe what happened myself," he continued. "The first round was definitely a challenging round. I was already happy that the time allowed was not too tight as this can be a stumbling block for me. I am super happy with the way my horse jumped, he really gave everything for me in the arena."
"IQ is a real family horse. He will never be sold. My brother rode him as a 6-year-old and even then he was not the easiest. IQ is very sensitive when it comes to sounds so I am extremely proud of the performance he put up here today," he concluded.