Jeremy Whale & Kingslea Centrose winning the Ultramox 6 Year Old Championship – Photo Copyright KAMPIC/Kerry Marshall
Jeremy Whale’s Bayleys National Young Horse Championship Show was all he dreamt of and some, with the Hampton Downs horseman riding off with the UltraMox Six-Year-Old Championship (co-sponsored by Diamond Lodge) crown and the leading rider of the show, the Trevor Gregory Cup, after earlier winning the NZPH Four-Year-Old Championship title.
“This is the win I really wanted,” he said of the six-year-old title he won aboard Tarak Yousef and Haidee St John’s Kingslea Centrose (by Euro Sport Centavos, out of Littrose, who is by Littorio). “She is at the top of the series and we just wanted to put a stamp on it. She is a wicked jumper who is very sure of herself and while she is a bit spoilt we put up with it because she is so talented.”
The New Zealand Hanoverian mare joined Diamond Lodge at the end of winter, having previously only done a single five-year-old series start last season. “We did a fair bit of training over the winter and I think she is really an exciting one for the future,” said Jeremy. “She is a big powerhouse of a horse and everything is so easy for her.”
He said he felt quietly confident coming into the Young Horse Champs, having placed second at the North Islands with her. “Haidee really wanted a rug, so she will be rapt and I am just so happy for them. The horse is her pet.”
He’ll continue to campaign her over the season and while not chasing the series, says they are good classes for the mare and the bonus was that she was doing well in them.
He had plenty of praise for Greg Best’s courses at the Champs, saying he had built the confidence of combinations over the three days.
The six-year-old was the largest of the age group championship classes, and a very competitive one to win.
For full results, head to https://www.evoevents.co.nz/resultClass/2135885011
The Jumping Team – 15 December 2022