Gorla: Last Chance for Tomorrow’s Grand Prix

Out of respect for the funeral of Pope Francis, only the CSIO3* 150 FEI – Kep Italia class was held today at Gorla Minore.

At Gorla, the Equieffe Equestrian Centre hosted the final competition offering riders a chance to qualify for the highest-level event of the weekend.

The First Round of the CSIO3*

At 3 p.m., the sole event on Saturday, April 26 at Gorla saw 56 horse-and-rider combinations enter the ring in pursuit of qualification — for those who hadn’t already secured their spot in previous days.
The top 10 finishers would earn a ticket to tomorrow’s Grand Prix. In cases where riders had already qualified, the next in the ranking would be promoted.

While the first pairs were entering the ring, we asked police officer Francesca Ciriesi (who impressed yesterday during the Longines EEF Series Nations Cup, completing the first round with a clear) to describe the course:

“I should start by saying that I haven’t walked the course, so these are just my impressions from the sidelines. It’s a very challenging track, starting right from the oxer at fence 2. Then there’s a bending line with two options, and it’s up to the rider to choose which one to take.
The central part of the course is fairly straightforward, but fence 7 — a wide oxer with a big distance between elements — raises the difficulty again. After the double combination, there’s a fast five-stride line.
It’s a tough course, designed by Andrea Colombo.”

Her prediction was spot on: the first clear round within the time allowed didn’t come until the 21st combination, Italy’s Martina Ferrari riding Alonso Hero Z.
She was soon joined by:

– Nichlaus Rutschi with Amar des Brimbelles Z (SUI)
– Yves Vanderhasselt with Denzelnoor Z (BEL)
– Filippo Bassan with Pallieter VD N.Ranch (ITA)
– Elisa Chimirri with Calandro Z (ITA)
– Gaetan Jolat with Just Special Vik (SUI)
– Riccardo Pisani with Chacco’s Lawito PS (ITA)
– Massimo Grossato with El Grande ZL (ITA)

The final act

The jump-off, consisting of seven obstacles and eight jumps, saw Switzerland’s Nichlaus Rutschi and Amar des Brimbelles Z (Amadeus Z’Brinbelle x Russel) deliver a flawless round, finishing in 41.60 seconds.

Another Swiss rider, Gaetan Jolat with Just Special Vik (Falaise de Muze x Toulon), took second place with a time of 42.27.

The podium was completed by Belgian Yves Vanderhasselt aboard Denzelnoor Z (Meulehof x Querlybet Hero) with a time of 43.58.

The best-placed Italian was Filippo Bassan, who finished fourth with Pallieter VD N.Ranch (Cornet Obolensky x Toulon). Although his round was clear, his time of 45.22 seconds kept him just off the podium.

The final standings saw:

– Fifth place: Martina Ferrari with Alonso Hero Z (0 faults – 48.92 sec)
– Sixth: Elisa Chimirri with Calandro Z (4 faults – 46.12 sec)
– Seventh: Riccardo Pisani with Chacco’s Lawito PS (8 faults – 45.20 sec)
– Eighth: Massimo Grossato with El Grande ZL (16 faults – 59.29 sec), rounding out the jump-off standings.

**HSJ**
**Photo: Sasso**
Full results available at: [www.longinestiming.com](http://www.longinestiming.com)

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