“It wasn’t a disadvantage to go first in the jump-off,” said Denis Lynch of his pathfinder position in the Longines FEI Jumping World Cup of Stuttgart on Sunday.
“Quite the contrary. It couldn’t have gone any better for me. The only disadvantage was to have Richie [Vogel] there too.”
Lynch was smiling as he said it, but he had every reason to worry about his win chances with Vogel and United Touch S behind him.
The German duo have won six 1.60m starts this season alone. In the past two months, they’ve claimed team gold at the Longines League of Nations Final and, just two week’s prior, the Longines FEI Jumping World Cup of Verona.
Plus, there’s that mind-bending 86% top 10 finish average at the height to consider (Jumpr stats).
The Irishman and Brooklyn Heights set the time to beat in Christa Jung’s three-horse jump off at 44.37 seconds. In the end, it wasn’t even close.
Vogel and United Touch stopped the clock three seconds faster at 41.39—and made it look all but effortless.
“I feel totally overwhelmed. United makes me speechless,” said Vogel. Ditto, Richie.
The 27-year-old German has now won two of five legs on the Western Europe League to move him into second on the standings on 42 points. Kevin Staut, third in Stuttgart on Dialou Blue PS, leads with 49 points. Gregory Wathelet (BEL) sits in third.
The Western European League next stops in Madrid, November 29–December 1.