El Jadida's first five-star. Sixteen efforts indoors
Sunday 18 October was the first CSI5*-W Grand Prix in Morocco Royal Tour history. Uliano Vezzani (ITA) set 13 fences and 16 efforts at 1.60 m indoors at El Jadida. Forty-four combinations from 16 nations. Four first-round clears. Chloe Aston and Akito Von Rocherath Z took second for Britain.
The class was the His Majesty King Mohammed VI World Cup Grand Prix, two rounds. World of Showjumping has the result. Jérôme Guéry and Kiliman Sitte went last in 46.45 seconds. Aston was double-clear in 47.79. Simon Delestre finished third with four faults from round one and 41.28 in round two on Golden Boy DK.
How Vezzani used the indoor
Before the show Vezzani said he does not treat five-star as a licence to pile on difficulty. He builds with more precision. Distances, the fence after a turn, a line with two options, and the time allowed. Indoors that is most of the work. Space is short. Riders decide quickly. The course still has to flow.
Minutes before the Grand Prix he said a CSI4 and a CSI5 differ in time allowed, technical difficulty, distances and the choice of obstacles. El Jadida had earned the upgrade. The line from 9 to 10, along the VIP grandstand, was the test that sorted the field.
Aston called it a tough, technical, quick-thinking track. The horse had to keep jumping and stay on time at every stride. Eleven came back under the 25% rule. The four clears plus the seven fastest four-faulters.
Four clears from 44
Guéry was tenth in and first clear. Aston, Roberto Previtali on Quirinus 27 and Christian Marini on Chalasanga PS joined him. Seven more on four faults. Eleven from 44 is a tight first round without emptying the collecting ring.
Round two started at 15:30 with Crown Prince Moulay El Hassan in the stand. Delestre, carrying four, set 41.28. Aston was the only woman among the eleven and stayed clear. Guéry had watched both. After Delestre's round he saw no point chasing the clock and taking extra risk. He needed to beat 47.79. 46.45 was enough. British Showjumping has it as 1.34 seconds in hand.
Guéry had three months on Kiliman Sitte. He had wondered how the stallion would jump indoors. First five-star win for the partnership, and the first five-star Grand Prix in Tour history. Eight Moroccan riders were in the 44.
What a UK hall can take
A UK club hall is not El Jadida, and 1.60 m stays there. The useful bit is how Vezzani used the long side and the clock.
If you build in a 20 × 60 indoor, put one line along the long side the way 9 to 10 sat on the VIP wall. Number so the collecting ring still works (numbering). Wheel the track and write the time allowed on the plan before the first horse. Two rounds at 90 cm or 1.00 m can do the same work Sunday did. The second round can ask for more accuracy without going up a hole.
Oslo opened the Western European indoor World Cup a week earlier. Washington's CSI5*-W runs 20 to 24 October. The North American League's next stop is 24 October.
Open the designer. Set a real indoor. Thirteen numbers, one line on the long side, a time allowed you would defend to the judge. Then watch Washington on Saturday and count fences and efforts the way Vezzani published them.
