Daniel Deusser Provides Last Minute Excitement to Win the $339,500 GNP Seguros Grand Prix CSI 5* at Otomí Club Hípico

By Jumper News on 2024-10-15

San Miguel de Allende, Mexico – October 12, 2024 – The Mexico Fall Tour soared to new heights at the Otomí Club Hípico & Otomí Residencial Hipico last Saturday with the running of the $339,500 GNP Seguro Grand Prix CSI 5*.

The likes of world number one Henrik von Eckermann (SWE), Daniel Deusser (GER), Shane Sweetnam (IRL), Sergio Álvarez Moya (ESP), Christian Ahlmann (GER), Eduardo Menezes (BRA), Richard Howley (IRL), Janika Sprunger (SUI) and other all-stars of the noble sport were amongst the 35 combinations who competed in the first round course of the 1.60m jump-off challenge designed by Olaf Petersen Jr. (GER).

As the eighth to go in the first round and to the delight of the Mexican fans, the host nation got off to a great start when Carlos Hank Guerreiro (MEX) and H5 Origi Horta showed the way to the rest of the field, registering the first clean performance. Honoring his status as the best rider in the world, Henrik von Eckermann (SWE) didn’t want to be outdone with Minute Man, producing a flawless round too, thus guaranteeing a jump-off.

Daniel Deusser (GER) and Gangster van het Noddeveld added more flavor to the mix: the battle now included two of the best riders in the world, Henrik (SWE), the current number one and the Deusser (GER), a former leader himself.

Emanuele Camili (ITA) made the trip all the way from Europe worthwhile, joining the other 3 pairs in the tiebreaker after an impecable round with Odense Odeveld,

Jump-off

Guerreiro stepped up onto the main stage first, galloping right from the start, taking tight turns while attacking the course. Unfortunately, the young man, a star on the rise in the sport, was a bit unlucky at the fourth obstacle with the 10-year-old chestnut Belgian Warmblood gelding (Kasanova de La Pomme x Vigo d’Arsouilles) knocking down one of the two top poles of the oxer down, being timed in 43.02 seconds. In the end, they would go on to finish fourth.

Only their second show together, Eckermann (SWE) chose for a more conservative approach aboard Minute Man. If they could go clean, the worst they could get would be bronze honors. Despite being much slower (53.09 seconds), the duo left all the poles up to take over the lead temporarily.

It was time for Camili (ITA) to pursue the biggest paycheck of his life, and he put up a great fight on the 10-year-old bay Belgian Warmblood gelding (Diamant Semilly), bumping von Eckermann (SWE) to second with a foot-perfect run in 46.96 seconds.

As many times before, the pressure was on the shoulders and reins of Daniel Deusser (GER), the perfect opportunity for him to steal the spotlight with the 13-year-old bay Dutch Warmblood gelding (Eldorado vd Zeshoek). And he did just that, lowering the leading mark by over three seconds to claim the lion’s share of the $339,000-dollar purse.