Matthew Sampson & Ebolensky Soar to the Top in €97,880 Horseware Grand Prix CSI 4*

By Jumper News on 12 12America/Sao_Paulo February 12America/Sao_Paulo 2023

Vejer de La Frontera – February 12, 2023 – Top British rider, Matthew Sampson (GBR) had a superb win today with the lovely grey mare, Ebolensky in the €97,880 Horseware Grand Prix CSI 4*. The first one of this XXIX Andalucía Sunshine Tour. ‘Ebolensky’ is a 14-year-old grey Royal Dutch Sport Horse / Dutch Warmblood mare (Clinton xHeartbreaker) who has been a long term partner of Matt’s. Together they rode a very smart, fast clear round over the demanding 4* course, stopping the clock in 39.68 seconds and setting the bar just that bit too high for the riders to come.

“Matt had a very successful end of the 2022 season with ‘Ebolensky’. In his interview after this super win today he told us: She’s an amazing horse, we’ve had her since she was 7 years old and I brought her here when she was 8 and, she has been here most years since. She won the Grand Prix in London, and this is the next Big Grand Prix since then. She’s just an incredible horse, she loves the facilities here and the grass rings. I’m very lucky to have her”

Matt told us: “I thought it was a really good course it wasn’t massively huge but it was difficult and technical. I think the course builder did a great job’. The course builder was Italian designer, Uliano Vezzani (ITA). ‘Luckily, the jump off went to plan for me, so, a good day!”

Matt has been based here through the winter season with his partner Kara Chad: ’We came here in September and Armando and Teresa and all the team here have just been so welcoming, and made us feel really at home. It has been incredible to be able to use the facilities throughout the winter it has just been brilliant, so to have a win after the time that we have spent here is just fantastic. I’m really grateful to all my team with all of us working together, I just couldn’t be more happy’.

Second place was claimed by German rider, Kendra Claricia Brinkop (GER) with In Time (‘Biscayo’ x ‘Tangelo Van de Zuuthoeve’) who jumped a really neat round and was in the lead until Matt stepped up the pace. Indeed these two combinations were the only ones to jump clear in the jump-off with Brinkop completing her second peformance in 40.94 seconds.

Best of the four faulters was Swiss, Martin Fuchs (SUI) with Commissar Pezi (‘Commissario’ x ‘Böckmann’s Lord Pezi), and they came in third, tallying a total of four penalty-points in 38.67 seconds.

In fourth was Belgian rider, Gilles Thomas with ‘Elfra Van Beek Z’ (‘El Salvador’ x ‘Vagabond de la Pomme’) and in fifth was French rider, Emeric George with ‘Diesel GP Du Bois Madame’ (‘Cassius’ x ‘Hearbreaker’).