A family affair in Rotterdam: Mathijs van Asten wins Breeland Prize, brother Leopold is second
Mathijs van Asten (NED) and Hotspot are the winners of Friday's Breeland Prize with a time of 59.88 seconds. His brother Leopold van Asten was second, and Dutch rider Mel Thijssen completed the podium.
41 combinations appeared in the Rotterdam Arena tfor this 5* showjumping competition against the clock with obstacles at 1,50 metres. As many as 17 managed to produce a clear round, but Mathijs van Asten and Hotspot proved the quickest of them all: 59.88 seconds.
Leopold van Asten and VDL Groep Nino du Roton were second best with 60.53 seconds. Mel Thijssen and Chic Fou de la Bastide came in third place with 61.36 seconds.
Mathijs van Asten was thrilled with his win: “You never expect a victory, but Hotspot has been giving me a great feeling for quite some time now. I've been his rider for 10 years now. He's naturally quick and we had a clean ride where I didn't have to take any unnecessary risks and go flat out. I run my own stables and our horses get sold, but it's nice if you're able to keep one horse that's good enough, and it's great to be able to compete at an event like CHIO Rotterdam."