French rider Simon Delestre dominated the Longines Global Champions Tour Madrid Grand Prix

Riding “Gatsby du Tillard,” Simon Delestre claimed victory in the Madrid Grand Prix, a qualifying event for the Longines Global Champions Tour. The French rider was the only competitor to complete both the initial round and the jump-off without faults.

The Longines Global Champions Tour Grand Prix of Madrid brought the 115 CSI Madrid to a close after three days that gathered the elite of world show jumping in the Spanish capital. It concluded with the high technical standard expected from a competition of this level, contested over an extremely demanding course designed and built by Spanish course designer Santiago Varela Ullastres.

Only four of the 40 participants managed to complete the course without penalties. A fifth pair, Mexico’s Fernando Martínez Sommer and “Joep,” finished without knocking down any fences but incurred 2 penalty points for exceeding the time allowed, placing fifth overall.

In the jump-off, only Simon Delestre and “Gatsby du Tillard,” who entered the arena third, managed to deliver another faultless round, securing victory in the competition and giving the French rider the provisional lead in the Longines Global Champions Tour standings after the Madrid leg.

Second place went to Brazil’s Stephan de Freitas, who came close to victory aboard “Chevaux Primavera Imperio Egipcio,” but lost his chance after knocking down the final obstacle despite posting a highly competitive time.

A rail down also ended the hopes of French rider Antoine Ermann and “Floyd des Pres,” who finished third based on time, while young Belgian rider Thibeau Spits took fourth place after his horse “Impress-K van’t Kattenheye Z” refused at the Longines double combination.

The prize-giving ceremony marked the conclusion of both the Madrid Grand Prix and the 115th edition of the LGCT CSI Madrid, ending with the traditional podium presentation. At the top stood French rider Simon Delestre, currently number 19 in the Longines FEI world rankings, who received the trophy from Madrid’s mayor, José Luis Martínez-Almeida.

Porsche Trophy won by Spain

The first class of the afternoon session on the closing day of the LGCT 115 CSI Madrid was the Porsche Trophy, contested over 1.45-meter fences, where the speed of the rounds thrilled the packed grandstands at the Real Club de Campo Villa de Madrid. The highlight came from Álvaro González de Zárate and the mare “Casa Diva PS,” who claimed victory in the class.

The young rider from Álava, undoubtedly one of the most promising rising talents in Spanish show jumping, had already competed in the King’s Cup jump-off the previous afternoon with the daughter of “Casallco,” and today he entered the arena determined to win. That determination, combined with precision, led them to victory with a lightning-fast round in 65.11 seconds.

It was an extremely close win, as Italian speed specialist Emanuele Gaudiano aboard “Chabrello PS” finished just four hundredths of a second behind in second place, while Egypt’s Ismail Osama El Borai and “Lablue” completed the podium in third.

In honor of the Spanish rider, the national anthem was played before Tomás Villén, CEO of Porsche Ibérica, presented him with the trophy.