Qatar- Global Chions Tour: Stage set for epic final at Al Shaqab

11/7/2015 1:05:46 AM

(MENAFN- The Peninsula) Great Britain’s Scott Brash in action on his horse Hello Sanctos on the final day of the Longines Global Champions Tour season at the Al Shaqab Arena in Doha in this November 2014 file picture.

Doha: The world class line up of horse power for the high stakes Longines Global Champions Tour final in Doha next week can be revealed.

World No1 Tour reigning champion and current ranking leader Scott Brash is aiming to make history with an extraordinary third consecutive title in next Saturday’s Grand Prix at the stunning Al Shaqab venue in Qatar.

Scott will be bringing his Olympic champion horse Hello Sanctos to the 15th and final event of the 2015 season. Scott has a two-point advantage over Luciana Diniz who will arrive in Doha with her Grand Prix-winning horses Winningmood and Fit For Fun as the championship race comes down to the wire after one of the most sensational seasons in the Tour’s 10-year history.

With the battle for the overall crown on a knife edge Rolf-Göran Bengtsson is the only other rider who can take the title in Doha where he will be riding the extraordinary Casall ASK. Rolf will be looking to keep up the momentum of his recent emphatic Grand Prix wins in London and Rome in what promises to be a nail-biting finale.

The stars of showjumping will come together for a three-day feast of top-level sport at the spectacular state-of-the-art Al Shaqab equestrian facility from the November 12 to 14.

As excitement mounts the prized equine athletes will be leaving Europe this weekend on specially commissioned flights with comfortable stalls before heading to the high quality stabling at Al Shaqab a member of Qatar Foundation.

There will be fascinating battles up and down the ranking leaderboard and especially among the other riders who have made it into the Top 10 overall this season. With a Grand Prix prize fund of €450000 and a bonus Championship prize fund of €1 million to be shared among the top 18 finishers in this year’s series the competition on Grand Prix day will be fierce as riders jostle for final positions.

Fourth to eighth place riders Simon Delestre Christian Ahlmann Sheikh Ali Bin Khalid Al Thani John Whitaker and Pénélope Leprevost will all be in the mix and fired up to achieve their final positioning - all of which could upset the balance of the top three and the final result.

With Qlassic Bois Margot Taloubet Z First Devision and Flora de Mariposa just some of the horses who will be in action next weekend it’s set to be an exciting three days of high calibre competition. Other leading riders confirmed for the event include Ludger Beerbaum Lauren Hough Daniel Deusser Edwina Tops-Alexander Kevin Staut (FRA) Maikel van der Vleuten Athina Onassis de Miranda Pius Schwizer Michael Whitaker Meredith Michaels-Beerbaum Ben Maher and Harrie Smolders.

Home riders Sheikh Ali Bin Khalid Al Thani and Bassem Hassan Mohammed will be looking to continue their strong form this year and will no doubt be boosted by the support of local fans.

The Peninsula

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