Howley holds the lead

Irishman Richard Howley claims grand prix honours in the competitive 1.45m finale, while an 11-year-old stallion steps up for Anna Power

- SARAH RADFORD and JENNIFER DONALD

CSI2* Autumn Mediterranean Equestrian Tour (MET), Oliva Nova, Spain

TWO Yorkshire riders claimed the top spots in the MET’s 1.45m finale, with a bold round from Wetherby-based Irishman Richard Howley (Arlo De Blondel) remaining 1.89sec out in front of John Whitaker and Unick Du Francport.

Eighty-three combinations came forward over Bernardo Costa Cabral’s track, with 10 making it through to the deciding phase. Richard and the 10-year-old gelding, bought from Michael Whitaker last year, set an insurmountable target from second draw to take the €7,000 (£6,400) win.

The 28-year-old rider eked out every last millimetre from the track, combining ground speed with brave lines and making some well-judged decisions on where to save time.

“The distance down to fence three was eight strides. A few people did seven, but it pushed them out on the left side. I did an outside eight and rolled back tight on the next vertical,” he said. “I gave my horse a bit more time to jump the double – that was a difficult fence in the jump-off. My horse is super-careful, so I could take a bit of risk on the secondlast vertical and then continued with a nice gallop to the last.”