TIPPERARY’S Tom Wachman finished on the podium in the five-star 1.50m Prix Cheval TV speed class at Fontainebleau, France on Friday, when riding the 11-year-old mare Obora’s Laura. The pair jumped clear in 58.99, which was good enough for third place in the class of 47. It was very close at the head of affairs, with Max Kuhner (AUT) riding Kurt D Z into first place, less than half a second ahead of Wachman, in a time of 58.52. Sweden’s Petronella Andersson and Odina Van Klapscheut slotted into second place in a time of 58.68.

Five-star show jumping was held at the annual ‘Le Printemps des Sports Equestres’ (the Spring Equestrian Sports Festival) at Fontainebleau over the weekend, with classes running from Wednesday until Sunday.

In Wednesday’s Young Horse one-star seven-year-old 1.30m class, there were three Irish among the joint winners, namely Mark McAuley on Javelot D’Elle, Cian O’Connor on Cool Jumper HB and Eoin McMahon on Just Diams B.

McAuley and McMahon were also among the joint winners in the day’s eight-year-old 1.35m class, riding Illico Des Rondets and Ada Race respectively.

Top 10s

McMahon and Ada Race then secured a top-10 placing in Friday’s eight-year-old 1.40m speed class, when they finished 10th in a time of 71.74. The class was won by Germany’s Kendra Claricia Brinkop on Sniper Des Lils Blancs in 67.48.

Wexford’s Bertram Allen claimed a top-five placing in Friday’s 61-strong five-star 1.55m Prix Normandie Drainage speed class, when he rode the 10-year-old gelding Qonquest De Rigo into fifth place, jumping clear and stopping the clock in 71.66. Austria’s Max Kuhner claimed the top spot with Elektric Blue P with a clear round in 69.12.

Wachman finished in the top 10 in Sunday’s five-star 1.60m Grand Prix GL Events, when he secured eighth place with Tabasco De Toxandria Z. From a start list of 50, just six combinations jumped clear in the first round to proceed to the jump-off, where Belgium’s Thibeau Spits was the only one to keep the fences in place to take a well-deserved win with Impress-K Van’T Kattenheye Z in a time of 41.27. Wachman and his mount were among three pairings to pick up a single time fault first time out, which precluded them from jumping a second time. The Irish man finished in eighth place.

Meanwhile, in the day’s two-star Big Tour 1.45m Grand Prix Laiterie De Montaigu, McMahon and Disney Z finished as runners-up. From the 54 starters, 10 jumped clear to make it through to the timed decider, where just three managed to repeat that success to claim their podium places. France’s Jeremy Le Roy and Falkira De Mormoulins won the class in a time of 38.93, a mere 0.23 seconds ahead of McMahon (39.16) with another French man, Michel Robert, riding Futuro D’Avril into third place in a time of 42.12.