A super start'

The German team triumphs over Ireland in a thrilling battle to kick off the new-look League of Nations

- JENNIFER DONALD

GERMANY made history at the start of a new era of team showjumping as the first winners of the brand new Longines League of Nations, with the new format making for compelling viewing.

In a contest that was fierce to the end, with team fortunes oscillating dramatically, the Germans snatched victory at the 11th hour, relegating long-time leaders Ireland into second, with Sweden staying strong for third.

“It’s a super start in the Olympic season, and I’m very happy and proud of my four riders,” said German chef d’equipe Otto Becker.

Spaniard Santiago Varela is such a well-respected course- designer, but really excels at these team competitions. Even his first, seemingly innocuous, fence caused problems, with huge questions coming at a double of 1.60m verticals after the open water, while the treble combination to a dog-leg final line also proved trappy.

The excitement started building in the traditional four-riders-per-team format in round one and Ireland proved why they came into this series as the world’s top-ranked nation, topping the leaderboard thanks to clears from Richard Howley (Equine America Consulent Du Prelet Z), Michael Pender (HHS Calais) and Mark McAuley (GRS Lady Amaro). Denis Lynch’s four-fault round on new ride Cordial was discarded.

Sweden and Germany were hot on their heels, but only three fences separated the top eight teams who qualified for round two from the 11 starters.