Jess Rice-Ward and Ward CP Southern Cross, Amanda Madigan and Diamond B Vivienne, and Jess Trip and Diamond B Verona.
© Roger Fitzhardinge
By Equestrian Life
Jumping @ Willinga has kicked off for a second year at the beautiful Willinga Park on the NSW South Coast — and with it, the first event of the new Australian Jumping Teams League.
It was an exciting first leg of this new teams competition — which is based on the international Global Champions League — and the winning team was none other than Emcee Apparel!
Jess Rice-Ward and Ward CP Southern Cross, Amanda Madigan and Diamond B Vivienne, and Jess Trip and Diamond B Verona produced the best combined performance across two rounds of competition after all three combinations went clear — not once, but twice! That all-important combined team score of 0 penalties was enough to see them secure the win.
Each leg of the Australian Jumping Teams League sees the winning team take home $40k — so not a bad day at the office at all for Team Emcee Apparel! The team will also take home the 20 points for winning, and are now at the top of the overall ranking heading into round two at Sale.
What is the Australian Jumping Teams League?
In case you missed it, the Australian Jumping Teams League (AJTL) is based on the internationally renowned Global Champions League, and is like nothing ever seen in Australia. In fact, it will be the richest series in the history of jumping in this country!
The AJTL is a three-leg competition, with Willinga Park being the first leg. The event then continues on to Sale on the 24th of November, and concludes on the 8th of December at SIEC with the Sydney Summer Classic. Each leg is worth $40k to the winning team… not bad!
There are ten teams named for this year’s event:
Chatham Park
Emcee Apparel – Willinga Park winners!
Equine International Airfrieght
Horsepower Feeds and Supplements
Keirnan Haulage
Martin Collins Australia
Oaks Sport Horses
Takapoto Estate Showjumping
Willinga Park
Yandoo Park
The teams consist of four riders, one of which must be under 25 years of age. At a single event, three riders must be nominated to compete; if there is no under-25 rider nominated, then the team receives a 6-penalty handicap.
Each event will consist of two rounds. After round one, each team’s penalties are calculated and only the top eight ranked teams proceed to round two. The second round is run in reverse order of team rankings, and penalties incurred here are added to the penalties from round one to determine the winning team. If penalties are equal, course completion times come into play.
If any rider is eliminated or retires during either round, they are allocated the highest number of penalties incurred by any other rider in that round, plus 20 penalties. If a further combination from any team is eliminated or retires, then the whole team is eliminated.
Each of the three events (Jumping @ Willinga, Sale and the Sydney Summer Classic) form a competition in their own right, with points earned over the three events counting towards the 2019 Championship Title. The winners of each event will be awarded 20 points, 17 for second, 15 for third, continuing down to three points for finishing tenth.
The AJTL at Willinga has certainly been a hit, and we can’t wait to watch the following legs at Sale and SIEC in the coming months!
Other key results today at Jumping @ Willinga included Sally Simmonds and Oaks Chifley taking out round one of the Junior Championship, and Billy Raymont and YPH Capulet winning round one of the Futurity. Competition continues this afternoon.
Keep up with results as they become available via Willinga Park’s results page.
Yesterday’s results
The first day of the event saw some familiar faces atop the podium. In the 1.15m Welcome Stakes, it was Sally Simmonds and Oakes Chifley who took first place. In the 1.25m Welcome Stakes, Shane Rose and eventer Easy Turn won; the mare is a talented showjumper and Shane’s ‘back up’ horse for Virgil as he heads towards the Tokyo Olympics. Speaking of Virgil, he finished in third place! Finally, the 1.35m Welcomes Stakes saw non other than Billy Raymont and the ever-consistent Anton score another win, with Billy also taking second place on YPH Capulet.
Ring two saw classes held for children, Thoroughbreds and young horses. Full results from these classes can be found on Willinga Park’s results page.
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