THE 2016 Longines Global Champions Tour season kicked off at a stunning beachside location in Miami last weekend, while the much talked-about Global Champions League also got underway, with a win for Ireland’s Bertram Allen.

Set against the breathtaking backdrop of the surf and the turquoise waters of the Atlantic beachfront, spectators and international guests watched 12 teams go into combat.

All teams are named after cities on the championship circuit and fans who had never witnessed show jumping before were immediately identifying with their home team.

Each team is made up of five riders with two riders picked to compete at each round of the series. The Valkenswaard United team comprised Bertram Allen, John Whitaker, Eduardo Menezes, Alberto Zorzi and Emily Moffitt, with Allen and Whitaker picked for the first event in Miami.

Eight of the 12 teams made it through to the second round, based on time and penalties. Home team Miami Glory, owned by Georgina Bloomberg (USA), were joint leaders after Bloomberg riding Caleno 3 and team mate Kent Farrington (Creedance), both jumped clear in the first round.

ANGLO-IRISH

The only other pairing on a zero score at that stage was Valkenswaard United’s Whitaker riding Lord Of Arabia and Allen aboard Quiet Easy 4.

The second round saw Whitaker jump clear again with the 12-year-old gelding Lord Of Arabia. Allen and Quiet Easy 4 lowered a single rail but their typically quick pace saw them finish faster than runners-up, Antwerp Diamonds (Harrie Smolders and Audrey Coulter), who also came home on a four fault total, while Miami Glory took the third spot on the podium.

Speaking after the Anglo-Irish duo stormed to a superb win worth €60,000, Bertram Allen said: “It’s great, and to be with John (Whitaker) is fantastic. It’s an honour to be on the team with him and it was nice for us to get a win so I’m delighted. Our strategy was fairly straightforward. We didn’t get into too much detail. We knew what we had to do and time flew today. It paid off.”

Frank McCourt, co-founder of the Global Champions League said: “I think that it’s been terrific. I know how hard Jan (Tops) and everybody else has worked to get us to this point and to have the first event under our belt is a great moment. We’ll look back at this moment as the start of something very special.”

Jan Tops added: “Ten years ago, we started to be different in this sport. We started the Global Champions League and as you’ve seen in the last years, we’ve been successful in changing the sport in general. With this new concept I think we’re going to see a new era which is good for the sport, for the fans we attract - it’s fun. It’s very exciting when you see today what a great job the course builder did, with the last rider carrying momentum. It was easy to follow and I think was a great first edition.”

GRAND PRIX

Last Saturday’s Longines Global Champions Tour Grand Prix in Miami saw Australia’s Edwina Tops-Alexander and her 13-year-old bay mare Lintea Tequila ride a stunning three rounds to claim the top spot.

They took the winners prize of $165,000 after a six horse jump-off, with McLain Ward finishing second aboard HH Azur and Christian Ahlmann third with Epleaser van’t Heike.

Irish riders were out of luck on this occasion, with Bertram Allen (Hector Van d’Abdijhoeve) and Conor Swail (Martha Louise) both coming home with eight faults in the first round, while Denis Lynch and Ho Go Van De Padenborre retired on course.

Allen had earlier scored a podium finish in last Friday’s 1.55m speed class where he piloted Quiet Easy 4 to third place behind Italian winner Emanuele Gaudaino with Casper. Allen later added an eighth place finish in a 1.50m speed class aboard Hector Van D’Abdjihoeve, while Offaly’s Darragh Kenny finished third in a two-star 1.45m class at the same venue with Chanel.

The Longines Global Champions Tour and Champions League now move to Mexico for the second round of action this coming weekend, with Bertram Allen, Denis Lynch and Conor Swail lining out for Ireland.