THE Irish tour at Rotterdam ended on a high note with Derry’s Daniel Coyle becoming the first Irish rider in 58 years to win the Longines Grand Prix of Rotterdam. Riding the Ariel Grange-owned Oak Grove’s Carlyle, he was fastest of seven double clears in what was a nail-biting class.

From a total of 45 starters, 14 booked their place against the clock. Last to go against the clock, Coyle put in a great display of horsemanship as he delivered a clear in a time of 36.69 seconds. Kevin Jochems (NED) with Cornetboy took second place in 37.20, while Frenchman Julien Epaillard took third place with Caracole de la Roque (37.49).

Asked about his win, Coyle said he could not quite believe what had happened yet. “To be honest, we weren’t the most hopeful heading into the competition. With this horse, you don’t really know beforehand what you’re going to get. But last Thursday he did very well and so I decided to also ride him in the Grand Prix and he did his very best for me today.”

Valuable help

While a Dutchman may not have won on home turf, the winning combination still had some connection to The Netherlands. Dutch rider Jeroen Dubbeldam used to be Oak Grove’s Carlyle’s rider before Daniel Coyle took over the reins.

“Jeroen helps me with him, and I’m very happy with that. He has taught me to assess the horse more. Jeroen has won every medal there is in our sport, so his help is very valuable to me. We have both figured out a way that works best when riding this horse,” said Coyle.