Tops-Alexander hails “pretty amazing” rookie horse after World Cup win in Spain

That was show jumper Edwina Tops-Alexander describing the faultless performance of her horse Vinchester this weekend after the duo won the Longines FEI World Cup Jumping qualifier in La Coruña, Spain, the 7th of 13 such events in Western Europe in advance of next year’s World Cup Final. And for the Australian rider – who claimed the top prize money of €108,900 for their first place result – it was a second straight victory at the Spanish competition after her triumph there last year on California.

“She is brave as a lioness… nothing seems to phase her,” said a television commentator of Tops-Alexander as she and her mount raced around the CSI5*-W jump-off course at the Casas Novas Equestrian Centre. And the same could be said about Vinchester, who, as FEI News pointed out, “was jumping the biggest track of his entire career.”

“He’s a horse with a lot of blood and a great mind,” said three-time Olympian Tops-Alexander, ranked 37th in the world in her sport. “He wants to do everything for me and he’s very sure of himself – he’s great!”

Ten horse-and-rider combinations made it into the tie-breaking jump-off round in the €330,000 class, with six leaving the obstacles untouched. The results were thus decided by their respective times, with the winners stopping the clock in 42.26 seconds, followed by Italy’s Emanuele Gaudiano and Chalou (43.01), and German Ludger Beerbaum with Cool Feeling (43.26), a gelding previously ridden by Canada’s Ben Asselin.

The top British and Irish finishers were Laura Renwick with Bintang II in 15th, and Denis Lynch with The Sinner in 16th. The full results for the CSI5*-W class in Spain’s Galicia region are here, and see here for the entire weekend.

In any case, Vinchester was not the only one on a fast track with the victory this weekend. By defending her title in La Coruña and earning 20 points, Tops-Alexander jumped into fifth place in the Western European league qualifying standings for the next World Cup Final in Gothenburg, Sweden. The Australian rider competes in Europe as she is a resident there, and is now well on the way (with 35 points) to earning a spot in the Final as an ‘extra’ qualifier from the league – as the top-ranked 18 Europeans will also be given a spot. Beerbaum, a veteran of 21 Finals, is now in 15th place overall.

Next stop on the continental CSI5*-W circuit is at Olympia – The London International Horse Show from December 17–23. Edwina Tops-Alexander and Vinchester are among the many athletes expected in the British capital for the annual equestrian sports event.