WELLINGTON, Fla.--Alex Granato of Salt Lake City, Utah rode Carlchen W to score the weekend double, beating two former World Cup champions to win the $208,200 Jumping World Cup class that counts towards qualifying for the World Cup at the Palm Beach Masters Winter Classic CSI4*-W on Feb. 3.
Alex Granato on Carlchen W (Photo by Kathy Russell Photography)Riding Carlchen W, Granato also won the class that qualified riders for the Sunday event, the $71,200 Palm Beach Masters World Cup Qualifier on Friday.
The jump-off read like a who’s-who of international show jumping with Olympic veterans and FEI World Cup champions among the nine who jumped in the second round on the Alan Wade-designed course.
CONOR SWAIL of Ireland was the pathfinder in both rounds and rode the first clear in the jump-off in a time of 44.68 seconds on GK Coco Chanel, which resulted in fourth place.
Granato and Carlchen W shaved off nearly two seconds with a time of 42.70 to take the lead with a slew of stars yet to jump.
Olympic veteran Mario Deslauriers (of Canada, the 1984 FEI World Cup winner, on Bardolina came close with a jump-off clear round time of 43.48 for second place.
Last to go was 2007 FEI World Cup Champion and Olympic veteran Beat Mändli of Switzerland, who raced around the course on Dsarie and was on track to take the win, but missed with 44.16 seconds for third place.
ALSO ON SUNDAY, Katie Dinan rode Ulpi N De Brekka to victory in the $10,000 Gold Championship Grand Prix topping a ten-horse jump-off to win in a time of 34.772 seconds.
Andy Kocher was second on La Luciole going clear in 34.787 and Flo Norris was third on Songe De Toscane going clear in 35.276 seconds.