The first day of the Longines Versilia Horse Show, presented by Giorgio Armani, in Lido di Camaiore, was met with great excitement by both the public and the riders.
The first competition of the CSI5* was won by the youngest competitor, 16-year-old Andrea Pisani, who was also competing in an event of this level for the first time.
Following in his parents’ footsteps — his father is the Italian national show jumping rider Riccardo, and his mother is the rider Silvia Bazzani — the teenage Andrea won the LONGINES WELCOME STAKES, a two-phase category with 53 pairs at the start.
Riding the experienced grey Charlemagne JT Z, Pisani was both accurate and fast. With a clear round in 24.24 seconds, he beat Jérôme Guery of Belgium on Qartouche de la Pomme d’Or (0; 24.49) and Giacomo Bassi of Italy on Cape Cod (0; 24.73). Another of the most eagerly awaited riders in the competition, Swiss champion Martin Fuchs, also broke the 24-second barrier with Falcon du Toultia Z (0; 24.78). Meanwhile, the Italian rider Aurora Guaragno, also a youngster at 22, made it into the top five with Contento 23 (0; 25.22).
“I couldn’t have asked for a better debut than this,” said an excited Andrea Pisani, who is competing alongside his father, Riccardo, at the CSI5* in Lido di Camaiore. “I have to thank my family for supporting me in this sport, and of course my extraordinary horse, who was fantastic again today. It feels like a dream, but I must stay focused because it’s only the first day of this fantastic event.”
The winners of today’s other CSI2* categories were Italy’s Viola Chiorrini with Vespera in the speed class; Belgium’s Kristen Vanderveen with Bull Run’s Lioness in the two-phase class, presented by TESI GROUP; and Brazil’s Yuri Mansur with Blitz van de Molenbrug Z in the speed class, presented by GENERAL COUNSEL.
Tomorrow’s programme – At 11:00 am, the authorities will attend a ribbon-cutting ceremony.
There are five competitions scheduled for tomorrow, Friday 8 May, the second day of the Longines Versilia Horse Show presented by Giorgio Armani.
Two are part of the CSI2* programme: a jump-off class (115 cm), presented by the MUNICIPALITY OF CAMAIORE; and a two-phase special class (140 cm), presented by ALIS.
Two are part of the CSI5* programme: a Winning Round class (150 cm) LONGINES STAKES; and a speed class (155 cm), presented by INTERMODALTRASPORTI.
The fifth competition is the Italian Champions Tour in the SPORT circuit (145 cm).
Click HERE for the full LVHSGA programme
Click HERE for starting list and results
ph. Andrea Pisani and Charlemagne JT Z – ph. LVHSGA / S.Grasso