The Falsterbo, Sweden Nations Cup ended in a jump-off between Switzerland and Belgium after they tied on zero penalties following two rounds, while the U.S. claimed third place on a total of 8 penalties for two rounds.
The Swiss did so well in the first round that anchor rider Marcus Fuchs didn’t have to compete on Lorde, but needed to jump in to save the day in the second round, when teammate Gaetan Joliet on Just Special VK was eliminated.
Then Martin was chosen to ride in the tiebreaker, earning 3 time penalties with his careful trip. But the Belgian representative, Pieter Devos, had a runout, a knockdown and time penalties with Primo DV to wind up with 13 penalties, giving the top prize to Switzerland.
The Icon Global U.S. Jumping Team finished four penalties ahead of fourth-place France, but the Americans had mixed fortunes.
World Number One Kent Farrington was fault-free in the first round with Descartes SR, then dropped a rail in the second round. Natalie Dean also was clear in the first round, then was eliminated in the second with Fornett d’Emeraude. While Mimi Gochman (Iron Maiden) and Charlotte Jacobs (Playboy JT Z) had 4 faults each in the first round, they both were clear in the second.
Coach Robert Ridland was pleased, expalining, “This is one of our youngest teams across the board we’ve fielded at this level. We had several of our younger athletes and horses really step up to the plate today.
“The course was substantially harder (in) the second round for a lot of combinations, which made it a very interesting competition. Our guys really took on the challenge and it’s impressive to have all four riders jump a clear at some point across the two rounds – with two clears in the first round and the other two in the second. It felt like a real team effort against some very strong teams. Falsterbo always has a significant Nations Cup, so a great place for us to enjoy a podium finish.”
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