Gerco Schroder (GCT Press Office)
Without her top-mount Cedric, Laura had her doubts about whether she would be able to retain the No1 spot on the ranking, but after a strong first round, Laura qualified through to the second round aboard her lovely mare Jubilee d'Ouilly, who fought her way through to ensure Laura had a fighting chance. As we head to the magnificent Al Shaqab in Doha, Laura Kraut leads a tight Top 10 with 187 points.
"It is kind of a miracle. I did not expect to be sitting here tonight. It will all be down to Qatar, which is exciting for the sport and for the Global Champions Tour,” said Laura Kraut in the Vienna Press Conference.
The Top 10 of the Longines Global Champions Tour season rankings has certainly become that much more interesting. Laura Kraut and Christian Ahlmann have remained in the top two positions, but two-time season winner Edwina Tops-Alexander now climbs into third position and is only four points behind Christian Ahlmann and only six points behind Laura Kraut. Luciana Diniz stands strong in fourth position, while last year's runner up Rolf-Goran Bengtsson jumps into fifth position to make the standings incredibly competitive for a thrilling final leg.
“Any of the top ten still has a chance to win the final. It’s very exciting this year, we are now on the eleventh leg and no one has won two times. Our sport is very open, you can see many combinations who can win and that is very nice to see,” said Longines Global Champions Tour President Jan Tops today in Vienna.
Olympic double silver medalist Gerco Schroder won tonight's Longines Global Champions Tour Grand Prix of Vienna in a four-strong horse-and-rider jump-off amidst the grand architecture of Vienna's city center. Set in front of the famous City Hall of Vienna, Rathaus, Gerco Schroder and his outstanding Olympic mount London delivered three world class clear rounds to win this season's eleventh Grand Prix title in the spotlight in front of a packed out stadium full of passionate Austrian spectators.
Beating fellow countryman Harrie Smolders and Jackson Hole, Portugal's Luciana Diniz on Winningmood and last season's Championship runner up Rolf-Goran Bengtsson and Casall Ask, Gerco earned a much-deserved win tonight in the Austrian capital. Despite the rainy conditions, riders fought hard for this evening's big title but it was the Netherlands that reigned supreme with an outstanding win for Schroder.
The first round saw forty-nine international combinations line up for the Grand Prix of Vienna title. Johannes Ehning and Salvador V were first in and despite many concerns about the conditions, Johannes earned the first clear of the evening. It was true that Germany's Frank Rothenberger set a simpler and kinder course due to the conditions and Marcus Ehning's younger brother, Johannes, took advantage, joining a moderate collection of eleven riders with a clear score for Round two.
Denmark's Soren Pedersen joined Johannes aboard Tailormade Esperanza de Rebel while Kamal Bahamdan and Canada’s Tiffany Foster jumped strong clears but picked up frustrating time-faults for finishing outside the time allowed. Taizo Sugitani joined the exclusive collection of eighteen riders in the second round for Japan while Andreas Schou and Allerdings, previously ridden by Hendrik von Eckermann, did the same for Denmark. Two riders for Denmark in the second round, in fact. We saw a strong but varied collection of rider's in the second round, which supported the growing feelings that this Longines Global Champions Tour season is enjoying plenty of exciting variety on the podium.
The second round saw eighteen exciting combinations, of which eleven were clear in the first round and four riders held a single time fault. Of those, riders such as Maikel van der Vleuten, Marc Houtzager, Rolf-Goran Bengtsson, Gerco Schroder, Luciana Diniz, Harrie Smolders, Pius Schwizer and Ludger Beerbaum held a zero score that would prove vital in the second round.
The second round certainly did not increase in technicality, but offered enough challenges for the riders. First in was Japan's Taizo Sugitani aboard Avenzio, but the first double clear did not come until last year's runner-up Rolf-Goran Bengtsson aboard his long-time partner Casall Ask. A truly textbook round delivered by the previous World number one ranking rider, Rolf and Casall made it look easy. We saw an unlucky last fence for the young Dutchman Maikel van der Vleuten aboard VDL Groep Sapphire B while Edwina Tops-Alexander, two-time season winner, finished with only two time penalties between both rounds aboard the incredibly scopey Ego van Orti. This performance however, would bring the competitive Australian lady-rider up to third position in the Longines Global Champions Tour Rankings.
Two-time Olympic Silver medal winning combination Gerco Schroder and London joined the Swedish pair with a double clear round just before fellow Dutchman Harrie Smolders and Jackson Hole jumped an additional double clear for the Netherlands. It was an incredible result for Harrie and his young mount, Jackson Hole, who is only 9 years old.
“He is nine years old, I have had him three or four months. I found him in Denmark. We went there to try him and bought him. He belongs to Axel Verlooy. He has experience at 1.50m levels. I jumped him in Chantilly for the first time in the Grand Prix and he was double clear with a time fault. He is a really nice character and has a really good attitude and he has great potential. Next year I will probably take him to Birmingham. He is already one of my top horses. You don’t find many Grand Prix horses at this level and we will see what happens with him,” said Harrie Smolders after the Grand Prix of Vienna Press Conference.
Leading lady Lucaina Diniz and her stunning grey stallion Winningmood would complete the last double clear score, ensuring the top-ranking Portuguese rider would come back with the boys in the jump off.
The jump off would certainly be fast with the likes of Gerco Schroder, Rolf-Goran Bengtsson and Luciana Diniz hungry for a win. It was clear even before the jump off began that the winner would need to take every risk possible without going too fast, due to the footing. Rolf-Goran Bengtsson and Casall Ask were the first in the jump off. The Swedish team finished with four faults and a time of 37.13 seconds. Gerco Schroder and London were next up and this combination would be sure to go for the win. Stopping the clock at 36.65 seconds, Gerco and London looked hot for the win.
Due to his mount's age, Harrie Smolders elected for a more reserved approach to the jump off. Finishing with a time of 44.30 seconds, Harrie and Jackson Hole looked as though they may have to settle for third position but eight faults from Luciana Diniz and Winningmood meant that in fact, Harrie Smolders would blaze through to second place and his fellow countryman, Gerco Schroder, would win the 2013 Longines Global Champions Tour Grand Prix of Vienna in a wonderfully entertaining event for the 11th leg of the season.
With so much excitement ringside, Gerco Schroder and London enjoyed four laps of honor as the Vienna crowd cheered loudly with praise. Every person surrounding the arena stood to cheer on Gerco and London as they galloped circles below the towering expanse of the Vienna City Hall. A truly incredible atmosphere this evening left an amazing energy and a longing for the final leg of this year's amazing season, in Doha, Qatar, in only eight weeks time.