Daniel Deusser triumphs in the longines Speed Challenge
Press Release Longines Masters Hong Kong – Day-Two and the Longines Masters of Hong Kong moved into top gear as the 3-day showjumping spectacular was headlined by the world’s fastest class, the thrilling ‘Longines Speed Challenge’. This is the only speed competition of its kind in the world designed to encourage top show jumpers to improve on their times from one continent to the next over an identical course in Los Angeles, Paris and Hong Kong.
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The crowd was on the edge of its seat in the final round of this nail-biting competition ridden against the clock. In the end, German rider, Daniel Deusser and horse Happiness van T Paradijs triumphed to take the Hong Kong honours, clocking a time of 67.01, just ahead of Pius Schwizer and Bertram Allen. The fastest class in the world was a sublime demonstration of speed, agility, power and precision from both rider and horse, with faults penalized less than in other competitions. Hong Kong victor Daniel Duesser said, “To be honest she gets easily nervous but she is actually a very quick horse. I tried already to ride in the Longines Speed Challenge of Los Angeles and Paris and it didn’t really work out. Today I did a little bit better on the control. In the end, she just had a very good day today. She already won the class this afternoon, she won now, I think that says it all.”
His victory followed Egyptian Nayel Nassar who clocked one of the most prestigious wins of his career aboard Lordan in Los Angeles in October 2016 ahead of Kevin Staut, a Team France gold medalist at last year’s Rio Olympics, and a glorious “home” victory for France’s Kevin Staut in Paris.
Daniel Deusser proved to be the man to beat, as he also kicked things off by dominating the 5* AsiaWorld-Expo Trophy, the first class of the day. In a thrilling battle of skill and precision, Deusser narrowly beat fellow Germans, Christian Ahlmann and Philipp Weishaupt, who finished in second and third place. While the double win was an amazing achievement by Daniel, it was also an impressive performance by horse, Happiness van T Paradijs, whom he rode for all three rounds of the day.
Meanwhile, for the very first time the Longines Masters of Hong Kong gave young local riders a chance to grandstand their talent as selected members of The Hong Kong Jockey Club’s Junior Equestrian Training Squad (JETS) contested the HKJC Junior Challenge. The HKJC Junior Challenge is a style competition and is not against the clock, with a 4-point penalty given for every fence down. A unique feature of this new competition was Edwina Tops-Alexander, one of the best riders in the world and a local judge, commenting and judging the style of the young riders – and awarding points to determine the winner.
Edwina Tops-Alexander, who judged the class said, “I think it’s really good to see The Hong Kong Jockey Club taking initiatives to support the development of young equestrian riders – I’m sure we’ll be seeing some international stars emerging from here before too long.” Ultimately, Melinda Ma won the inaugural trophy aboard Cantor de la Pommes. When asked how she felt about the win, Malinda said, „Winning the competition surprised me a bit but I’m very happy. I want to thank the Jockey Club for adding the newly set up junior competitions, allowing my team and myself to feel the atmosphere of world-class tournaments.“
In another world-class display of horsemanship, legendary “horse whisperer” Santi Serra and his team of performing horses continued to mesmerize the AsiaWorld-Expo audiences with his daily “natural dressage” show, presented by Shanghai Tang. Choreographed especially for Hong Kong, the unique performance highlights the historical links between Chinese culture and horses, combining classic Chinese music with stunning costumes.
At an event renowned for its buzzing after-parties, Saturday’s entertainment was headlined by an electric performance by 22-year-old Belgian singing sensation Alice On The Roof, bringing her acclaimed live act to town after wowing the crowds at the Longines Masters of Paris. Alice on the Roof literally “raised the roof” with a performance including her debut hit “Easy Come, Easy Go” and dance club favourites from her wildly successful first full album “Higher”.
Partying and dancing continued late into the night with internationally renowned DJ Jeremie Charlier bringing his turntable wizardry renowned at many of the world’s most famous nightclubs.
The Longines Masters of Hong Kong reaches its grand finale tomorrow Sunday headlined by the third and final leg of the tri-continental Longines Masters, with the ‘Longines Grand Prix’, an Olympic-level competition between the world’s top showjumping stars.
Source: Press Release Longines Masters Hong Kong
