July 21, 2024 
Thibeau Spits has added his name to the LGCT Super Cup start list.
The 23-year-old Belgian and Impress-K van ‘t Kattenheye Z beat veteran combination Marcus Ehning and Coolio 42 to the finish line in the Longines Global Champions Tour (LGCT) Grand Prix of Riesenbeck on Sunday—by nearly two seconds (41.93 to 43.57). LGCT Grand Prix of Doha 2024 winners Abdel Saïd and Bonne Amie settled for third with four faults in a speedy 41.04 seconds.
It’s Spits best finish to date and first five-star Grand Prix title.
“To win a Longines Global Champions Tour Grand Prix is for sure the biggest achievement of my career. Both my grandfathers were here and my sister, as it is close to home in Belgium, so it is nice to have my family here to support, it makes it more special,” said the U25 rider.
Also special is his relationship with the aptly named Impress K van ‘t Kattenheye Z (Indoktro K Van’t Kattenheye x Vagabond de la Pomme).
The 9-year-old Zangersheide has been under Spits saddle since age three and the pair had contested just six 1.60m rounds before Sunday’s win, jumping clear at a 50% clip and averaging just 1.6 faults (Jumpr Stats).
“He’s only 9 but I have ridden him for six years so we know each other inside and out,” said Spits
“I have always loved this horse, not everyone saw it, but the feeling he gave over every single jump. What he has done is amazing today, but I have the feeling it is only the beginning and he really will be the horse of my career.”
Spits joins a growing roster of young talent to qualify for the 2024 LGCT Super Cup in Riyadh this fall. He’s the ninth rider under 30 to add his name to the start list and third U25 rider.
Related reading: The 2024 LGCT Super Cup Is a Young Riders Game
He’s also the fifth rider to win their first five star title on the LGCT this season, following in the hoofsteps of Michael Duffy (LGCT Miami Beach), Gilles Thomas (LGCT Shanghai), Jeanne Sadran (LGCT Paris) and Ines Joly (LGCT Monaco).
If that sounds like a changing of the guard at top sport, Ehning feels it too.
“I just told Thibeau that us people who are older than 50 years old should get to start with minus two seconds on the clock, as these young guns need a handicap,” smiled the German maestro.
With stage 11 on the books and four to come, Max Kühner continues to lead the LGCT Championship race on 208 points followed by Andreas Schou on 192 points and Maikel van der Vleuten on 183 points.
The LGCT next heads to the Royal Hospital Chelsea, London, August 16–18.
