In front of a sold-out crowd lining the iconic Port Hercule, Delestre threw caution to the wind, blazing to a jump-off time of 32.06 seconds - a full 1.84 seconds faster than his closest rival Harry Charles with Sherlock.

In a Longines Global Champions Tour Grand Prix defined by razor-thin margins and split-second decisions. Kim Emmen delivered an exceptional round aboard Imagine N.O.P., claiming a well-earned third in the podium celebration.

Held under the patronage of HSH Prince Albert II of Monaco as he watched on from hospitality, the eighth Longines Global Champions Tour Grand Prix of the 2025 championship drew a star-studded guest list blending the worlds of motorsport and equestrian excellence. Spectators lined the edges of the compact arena, creating an atmosphere that was nothing short of electric - Monaco style.

“What can I say about this horse, he is truly amazing, he’s a legend and it’s amazing for me to ride a horse like him… I have no more words to say how good he is.”... an ecstatic Simon Delestre tried to put into words what this win meant for him to GCTV. He went on to add, “winning here is a dream, it was my objective for this season - we tried to plan but to make it makes all the difference.”

Speaking after his second place, Harry Charles said of Maikel van der Vleuten. “I asked him ‘if the four was on’, as I think only him and Simon did it, so looking back I would've done five… I wasn't even in the ring when I took off - but Sherlock had a big enough step and he trusted me so thanks to him it paid off.”

As for third place Kim Emmen? Her eyes were on the clock and she couldn’t be happier with her third place finish. “Imagine jumped great, and also in the jump off he was just 2 seconds off the time of Simon so I was so happy. It was a very tough class with a lot of clears, but really it rode super and it was challenging enough.”

As for the Championship? A shakeup is on our hands. Led by unshakable young gun Gilles Thomas but the jump-off contenders in Monaco cement themselves inside the top 5.

1st Gilles Thomas - 183 pts
2nd Simon Delestre 158.2 pts
3rd Andreas Schou - 126 pts
4th Denis Lynch - 112.2 pts
5th Pieter Devos - 105 pts

full result