In the day’s other top tussle, the CDI3* FEI Grand Prix sponsored by Mission Control, female athletes filled the top five slots. The British anthem rang out during the prize-giving ceremony for Susan Pape’s victory after she rode the 14-year-old Jazz x Flemmingh mare Harmony’s Giulilanta to a new combination high score of 71.304%.

(Photo Information:  Susan Pape & Harmony’s Giulilanta. Photo credit: ©susanjstickle.com)

German rider Evelyn Eger continued her streak of good form during her first AGDF season, picking up second place on the youngest horse in the class, Hof Kasselmann’s Dancing Darkness 4. The 11-year-old mare by Dancier x Sandro Hit scored 70.609%, with two judges placing her first on her CDI debut.

Callie O’Connell (USA) posted a new combination best on Ruling Cortes LLC’s Eaton H to take third on 69.283%. The 16-year-old Eaton H is another horse formerly campaigned by Koschel until O’Connell took the reins and began under-25 CDIs with the Wynton x San Remo gelding in 2023.

Harmony’s Giulilanta picked up a smattering of eights across her test, including for piaffe, passage, and canter pirouettes. This was just the mare’s third big tour CDI, as her career was put on hold due to injury when she was 11.

(Susan Pape and Harmony’s Giulilanta are presented as winners of the CDI3 FEI Grand Prix sponsored by Mission Control. Photo ©susanjstickle.com)

“I’m over the moon because it’s been such a long journey with Giulilanta,” enthused Pape. “She was ready to go grand prix and then she had a pretty severe injury at home which meant she was out for two years. I’m so happy she’s back and doing so well. She was much more relaxed than in her first AGDF CDI last week.

“She doesn’t have very much mileage in the grand prix, but I’m very confident that if she relaxes even more then I can ride her more out,” continued Pape. “She has so much elegance in the collected work. Maybe she’s a little weak in her changes because she doesn’t have the biggest canter, but she doesn’t make mistakes. You’ll see other horses that are more powerful, but her elegance makes her special.”

Giulilanta will contest the CDI3* Grand Prix Special on Saturday afternoon, before flying back to Europe the following week for a break.

“I never plan far ahead with the horses—I just go month by month,” added Pape, who is a regular on the AGDF circuit with her Harmony Sporthorses team. “People say, ‘Oh, she’s a chestnut mare!’ But she’s actually the sweetest horse. Giulilanta isn’t pushy, and she’s relaxed in the barn; she sleeps and eats anywhere. She knows what she’s doing, so now it’s about getting her mind relaxed. She’s really taught me how to ride and be very patient and calm because that’s what suits her.”

Click here for full results from the CDI3* FEI Grand Prix, sponsored by Mission Control.