The World Cup leg in Mechelen just reached its climax. The course designed by Bart Vonck was like a well-balanced menu: it had everything needed. Rideability, control, and scope all had to come together to produce a clear round in the first phase. In the end, only four of the forty combinations managed to do so. They went head-to-head in a blisteringly fast jump-off for the top honors. In front of his home crowd, Gilles Thomas jumped to victory in a jump-off where no one managed to stay clear. “FINALLY it worked! Emotionally, this is the highlight of my year!”
The Mechelen World Cup proved to be a real tour de force. Only five combinations jumped clear in the first round. Course designer Bart Vonck had built a demanding 1.60m track, with faults spread throughout the course.
Reactions from the riders made it clear that this was a course with a sharp time allowed, leaving no room for chance.
Gilles Thomas crowned the performance with Qalista DN (Emerald van ’t Ruytershof). The pair produced a faultless first round in 69.05 seconds and remained tight and competitive in the jump-off, although one rail did fall. With four penalties in 41.30 seconds, Thomas still came out on top of the final standings and secured the victory.
Marcus Westergren followed in second place with Airco de L’Esprit Z. He too qualified with a clear first round, in 67.65 seconds, and then picked up four penalties in the jump-off in 42.34 seconds, leaving him just behind the winner.
Third place went to Patrick Stühlmeyer with Baloutaire PS (Balou du Rouet). After a clear first round in 70.00 seconds, he also incurred four penalties in the jump-off, where he stopped the clock at 44.05 seconds. Daniel Deusser has already won the Mechelen World Cup twice, in 2013 and 2019. Riding Otello de Guldenboom (Tobago Z), the German knew what to expect: speed above all else. In the end, a rail fell in the turn-around.
Daniel Deusser guided Otello de Guldenboom to fourth place after a clear first round in 69.99 seconds and four penalties in 44.44 seconds in the jump-off. “I was the last to go and simply needed to jump clear,” said Daniel Deusser. “My horse jumped well, but I made a few small rider errors. I went a bit too deep into the turn. I shouldn’t have taken unnecessary risks. That’s the sport — it’s obviously disappointing, but it is what it is. I should have played it safe and just ridden around… but for Mechelen, there couldn’t have been a better winner,” Deusser concluded.
Willem Greve completed the top five with Grandorado TN N.O.P. He was clear in the first round in 69.94 seconds and then finished with four penalties in 45.63 seconds in the jump-off.
Gilles Thomas wins!
“This is truly unbelievable,” Gilles Thomas said afterwards. “This was a very emotional class. Initially, I was a bit angry with myself after that mistake. I thought, why did I take that risk? In the end, it put enough pressure on the rest.”
“Last year I was second, and now it finally worked,” the Belgian continued with a smile. “Qalista is a really explosive and agile mare. I got a lot of questions about why Ermitage wasn’t here, but secretly I really thought I had a better chance with Qalista DN. Thankfully, that turned out to be true…”
Marcus Westergren joined him on the podium. Riding Airco de L’Esprit Z (Air Jordan Alpha Z), the Swede finished ahead of Patrick Stühlmeyer and Baloutaire PS (Balou du Rouet).
Daniel Deusser ultimately took fourth place. Aboard Otello de Guldenboom (Tobago Z), he relegated Willem Greve with Grandorado TN N.O.P. (Eldorado vd Zeshoek) to fifth.
