Les Trois Rois Schweizer Cup Final

At eight national show jumping competitions, Swiss riders had the opportunity to qualify for the Les Trois Rois Swiss Cup Final, which was held today at the Longines CSIO St. Gallen. The eight most successful riders from the qualification competitions as well as the two best placed Swiss riders from the FEI world ranking list were eligible to compete in the final. The total of ten qualified riders completed the final in two rounds, with the penalty points from both rounds being taken into account and the time from the second round as tie braker. 

Half of the 10 riders were able to finish the first round without penalty points. Steve Guerdat with Easy Star de Talma was the first without points on his account to start the second round. Again he remained without faults and set a strong mark with a time of 48.70 seconds. Anina Züger-Hächler on PB Douglass Chavannais as well as Elian Baumann with Hold Up du Vico P. both recorded a drop at the FC St. Gallen obstacle and thus fell behind in the intermediate ranking. The next to take on Steve Guerdat's best mark was Martin Fuchs on Viper Z, who was set for the final for being the currently highest placed Swiss rider in the FEI world rankings. He remained faultless, but it just didn't work out for the best time. Last to start was Barbara Schnieper with Judy KM and that the defending champion can be fast, she proved the night before with her victory in the Land Rover Speed and Handiness Class. But this time it didn't work out, the bar at the first obstacle fell. This means that Steve Guerdat is the winner of the Les Trois Rois Cup Final for the first time. The second place on the podium was secured by Martin Fuchs followed by Bryan Balsiger with Don Juan 111 Z. The 25-year-old rider from Neuchâtel took four points from the first round, but was able to fight his way onto the podium with a clear round and the fastest time of all riders with penalty points on their account.

There is still one more competition to go before the Longines CSIO St. Gallen is already over. At 14:30 the Longines Grand Prix of Switzerland, with prize money of 152,500 euros, will start. It will be held over two rounds with obstacle heights of up to 160 cm and counts towards qualification for the 2023 European Championships and the 2024 Olympic Games. The entire competition will be broadcast live on SRF Zwei.