IRISH riders had a number of super placings at the Longines Global Champions Tour fixture in New York last weekend, with podium places for Michael Duffy and Declan Egan and a two-star win for Daniel Kerins.

At five-star level, Galway’s Michael Duffy finished as runner-up in Friday’s 1.60m GCL second competition riding the nine-year-old gelding Be Sky Hawk clear in 69.33. The undoubted winner was Scott Brash (GBR) on Hello Chadora Lady, whose time of 65.73 proved unbeatable, while Gregory Wathelet (BEL) on Ace of Hearts slotted into third, just a hair’s breadth behind Duffy in 69.34.

In the ribbons

The Longines Global Champions Tour in New York ran from Friday, September 19th until Sunday, September 21st and saw Irish riders making their mark. In Friday’s opener, the two-star 1.25m speed class, Egan placed eighth riding the nine-year-old gelding Goliath de L Eldorado to a clear round in 64.56 seconds. Canada’s Carly Campbell-Cooper won the class with Farenheit de Beaufour in a speedy 52.35.

The following two-star 1.40m speed class was won by Daniel Kerins on board the 10-year-old mare Diacette when they jumped clear in a time of 53.61. It was a very close finish, as runner-up Heather Caristo-Williams (USA) on Mazzy Star stopped the clock in 53.75, only a fraction ahead of third-placed Rodrigo Pessoa (BRA) on Giorgio d’Ellipse in 53.77.

Egan and Goliath de L Eldorado finished on the podium when third in Saturday’s two-star 1.40m speed class (57.10), behind winner Tom Monaghan (GBR) on Luttoria in 56.05.

The five-star 1.45m two-phase class saw Trevor Breen place seventh on board Konrad Obolensky with a double clear round in a second phase time of 22.00. Class winner Koen Vereecke (BEL) on Oilily de Muze set the winning time of 21.04, finishing just a whisker ahead of Oliver Fletcher (GBR) on Hello William (21.05).

Breen and Konrad Obolensky scored another top-10 finish in Sunday’s five-star 1.45m speed class, when a clear round in 55.60 was enough for ninth place, in a class won again by the on-form Belgian Koen Vereecke on Oilily de Muze in 50.50.

Irish riders didn’t feature in the 1.60m Longines Global Champions Tour Grand Prix of New York, won by Gilles Thomas (BEL) on Qalista DN, but Denis Lynch remains the highest-placed Irish man in 10th place in the overall standings following leg 12 in New York.

The concluding two-star 1.45m Grand Prix saw two Irish riders in the top 10, with Kerins placing seventh with Diacette and Egan eighth on Goliath de L Eldorado. Both were among the eight to get through to the jump-off, in which only four combinations stayed clear for a second time. Campbell-Cooper (CAN) won the class with Qornet vd Bisschop.