Is Scott Brash only at his best with his top team of ‘Hello’ showjumpers? We are about to find out, as the world number one is heading to Beijing at the end of the month to compete on a borrowed horse.
‘Good challenge’
Scott is taking part in the Longines EquestrianBeijingMasters(23-25 October) at the Olympic stadium. The competition sees 22 of China’s bestriders compete against twelve international top riders, who will be lent horses for the competitions.
Never one to be ruffled by a big event – even if it’s not on his title-winning stalwart Hello Sanctos – Scott is looking forward to the competition.
“I think it’s a good challenge for the European and US riders,” he said. “Competing at a show like this on an unknown horse furthers our understanding of the horse and our riding skills. So I am really looking forward to meeting my borrowed horse.”
Superstars
Also heading to Beijing is double European Champion Jeroen Dubbeldam, together with his Dutch teammate Maikel van der Vleuten and France’s Simon Delestre, who won Europeanindividual bronze.
Joining them is Belgium’s Gregory Wathelet, who was the only rider to jump two clears at the Furusiyya FEI Nations Cup final last week, and claim a€200,000 bonus.
Female riders include USA’s Lauren Hough, French superstar Penelope Leprevost and Jane Richard Philips from Switzerland.
BeijingMasters ambassador Ludger Beerbaum will also be there, as will his German counterpart and former student Marco Kutscher. Riding for Sweden are Henrik von Eckermann and Rolf Göran Bengtsson.
Workshops
Now in its fifth year, the BeijingMasters not only offers Chinese riders the chance to compete against the best in the world, they can also look forward to workshops with the international stars.
“The Chinese riders are very interested in the sport and want to learn in all aspects of it,” said Scott. “The program is very beneficial and I’m sure many riders learn a lot at the show.”