AOIFE Clark battled to an excellent runner-up finish at the CCI*** event at Ravenna in Italy last weekend, coming home just over half a point behind the winner. Dublin-born Clark was riding the John Forde and Cressida Legge-owned Irish Sport Horse Wasting Light and held 12th position after a dressage score of 50.50 on the opening day. Clark and Wasting Light – who is just an eight-year-old, shot up the leaderboard after producing the best cross country round of the competition, adding just six penalties when 15 seconds over the tight optimum time.

Italy’s Vittoria Panizzon with Borough Penny Z, held the tightest of margins over Clark heading into the final show jumping phase. The Irish rider pilled on the pressure with a superb clear jumping round to leave her on a final total of 56.50 with Wasting Light, however Panizzon kept her composure to also return with a clear round on the winning score of 55.80.

Wasting light is by the stallion Ghareeb out of a Furistos Diamond dam and was bred by Patrick Jones.

Third place at Ravenna went to Switzerland’s Felix Vogg with Onfire, who finished just over a point behind Clark.

At Le Pouget in France, meanwhile, Ireland’s Padraig McCarthy and Bernadette Utopia improved from overnight sixth place to finish in fourth in the CCI** competition. McCarthy produced a dressage score of 47.1 before going clear in the cross country.

He lowered one fence in the final jumping phase where French winner Stanislaus De Zuchowicz with Sobbys des Champs, were the only combination from the top eight to go clear in the final phase of the two-star event.