CCI5* Pau winners Tim Price and Falco will be checking things out at Pratoni
Some of the world’s best are gathering in Italy for this week’s Eventing World Championship Test Event and FEI Nations Cup at Pratoni Del Vivaro, with an eye on preparations for the FEI World Championships at the same venue later this year
Australian and New Zealand eventers are in the mix with Andrew Hoy riding Bloom des Hauts Crets and Bill Levett riding Sligo Candy Cane as individuals while the Kiwis are fielding a team with World Number 5 Jonelle Price riding Faerie Magnifico, World Number 6 Tim Price riding Falco, their Tokyo teammate Jesse Campbell aboard Diachello and Amanda Pottinger with Good Timing competing at the event and Clarke Johnstone attending as an observer.
The nine-year-old Faerie Magnifico has been with Jonelle since 2019 when it first competed internationally. Last year she was second in the CCI3*-L at Millstreet and fourth in the CCI4*-S at Lignieres.
Tim’s mount Falco burst onto the top scene when the now 13-year-old won the CCI5*-L at Pau on debut, having previously won the CCI4*-L at Millstreet and placed sixth in the CCIO4*-S at Aachen.
Twelve-year-old Diachello is also German bred, by Diarado - he and Jesse were just out of the top 10 at Kentucky in their only 5* start while Amanda’s Good Timing will be having his first international start since leaving New Zealand. It will be the first 4*-S start for the 11-year-old thoroughbred who was a very consistent performer in competition in New Zealand
ESNZ high performance manager Jock Paget says the Patroni event is all about team and learning. “We have some strong combinations who are capable of winning while there but the priority from a team perspective is to gather information, learn about what we need to do for the championship and help prepare the team in the wider sense” he says.
Pratoni del Vivaro, in Rocca di Papa, just 35 kilometres from Rome, played host to the 1998 World Championships which were hugely successful for New Zealand. The eventing team – comprising Blyth Tait aboard Ready Teddy, Sir Mark Todd on Broadcast News, Vaughn Jefferis with Bounce, and Sally Clark on Squirrel Hill – won gold, with Blyth taking individual gold, and Mark the silver medal.
For Australia, Andrew Hoy, who is coming here from a good weekend in Marbach with Vassily De Lassos, will be riding the 11-year-old French bred Bloom Des Hauts Crets. She was also Andrew’s partner at the Tokyo 2020 Test Event and finished her season well last year, with a 3*-L second place at this very venue.
Bill Levett has just finished a week of ‘mixed emotions’ at Badminton, having a great run cross country on Lassban Diamond Lift but withdrawing before the final phase. He will be riding Sligo Candy Cane, a 16.3hh, nine-year-old chestnut gelding owned by Elisabeth Murdoch, previously competed by Sarah Ennis, and finished runner-up in the CCI3*-L with Bill at Millstreet last year
The eventing Test Event is also the first leg of the 2022 FEI Nations Cup, a series of eight team competitions held in Europe and North America, and will also the 2022 Italian Championships.
Nine nations are sending enough riders to form teams, including the host nation, Italy, which has a strong showing of 14 combinations, including Evelina Bertoli, Susanna Bordone, Marco Cappai, Giulio Guglielmi, Emiliano Portale, the current Italian champion, and Pietro Sandei
Fifty-seven riders will compete in the CCIO4*-NC-S and team officials will be hoping that this short-format competition will provide a few clues as to what cross-country course-designer Giuseppe della Chiesa (ITA) has in store for the 'real thing' at 4* long format in September.
Join us for daily updates from Italy where Libby Law will have her lenses trained on some of the best in the business (and maybe a few Italian gourmet delicacies!)
Thursday May 12th: part one of Dressage at 9.30 am
Friday May 13th: part 2 of Dressage at 9.30 am
Saturday May 14th: Cross Country at 10.30 am
Sunday May 15th: Show Jumping and prizegiving at 10.30 am
