Bluman Collects Third Hampton Classic Grand Prix Win

Daniel Bluman joined elite company on Sunday afternoon, becoming only the fourth rider to win the Hampton Classic Grand Prix three or more times.

Bluman, and his 15-year-old gelding, Ladriano Z, were the only horse and rider pair out of 40 competitors to go clean in both the first round and jump-off, taking the top prize in the $425,000 Grand Prix, sponsored by Longines.

For the first time since 2009, only two riders kept all the rails up and stayed under the allowed time on the 17-obstacle course designed by Alan Wade. A clean round didn’t come up until American rider Adrienne Sternlicht and her horse, Faquitol-S, left all the rails up. A jump-off was guaranteed five riders later, when Bluman, representing Israel, and Ladriano rode clean as well.

Because Bluman’s clean round was slightly faster than Sternlicht’s, he rode second in the jump-off, giving him an advantage because he would know the time he needed to beat. Sternlicht and Faquitol had one rail down in the jump-off, which took some of the pressure off Bluman, and he and Ladriano delivered.

It was the third win in the Grand Prix for Bluman, who rode Ladriano to victory in the same class in 2017. He won the Grand Prix for a second time aboard his mare, Gemma W, in 2021.

Olympic silver medalist McLain Ward’s record of Grand Prix wins is still not threatened — he’s won it seven times. Aside from Ward and Bluman, Margie Engle is the only other rider in the history of the Hampton Classic Grand Prix — which dates back to 1977 — to have won the big class at least three times. She was in the winner’s circle in 2000, 2001 and 2002.

Winning was not easy on Sunday afternoon, thanks to a challenging track laid out by Wade. Bluman said he was not concerned that no one had ridden clear even after a third of the field had already had their turns.

“I like when there’s not too many clear rounds,” he said. “Because Ladriano is a very big horse and in the jump-off I have to take a lot of risks to try to win, so I’m extra motivated when I see that we’re coming to the end [of the jumping order] and there’s not too many clears.”

Bluman explained that his reason for feeling that way boils down to his faith in Ladriano, his longtime partner.

“I was feeling confident, and I’m very grateful for the horse,” he said. “I won six years ago on him here, and six years later he’s still going strong, and winning. That, for me, is a real testament to what we’re doing with the team.”

Sternlicht was proud of her horse as well, for handling what she described as a challenging course despite the fact that Faquitol has only been competing at the five-star Grand Prix level since April.

“I think [the course] was pretty delicate wherever,” she said. “Alan is such a masterful course builder and the reason is because every single fence comes into play. It rode really tricky and delicate, and it was bug jumping.”

Luis Fernando Larrazabal of Venezuela and his horse, Condara, finished third as the fastest of three horse and rider pairs with four faults.

Irish rider Darragh Kenny finished seventh on his stallion, Chic Chic, but took home a different coveted honor, winning the Longines Rider Challenge as the rider to earn the most points throughout the win in open jumper classes. Over the years, Irish riders have shown a particular affinity for riding with the kind of consistency required to win the award. Defending champion Karl Cook and his mare, Kalinka, won the rider challenge last year — they finished in the middle of the pack this year with 12 faults — and McLain Ward won the title the year before. But prior to that, Irish riders had won the Longines Rider Challenge at the Classic for many years, with Shane Sweetnam and Richie Moloney collecting the title multiple times.

Up next for Bluman and Ladriano will be the American Gold Cup, set for September 13-17, in Traverse City, Michigan, and then they will return to the East Coast for another five-star Grand Prix in October in Greenwich, Connecticut. Bluman is hoping those classes help set him and Ladriano up for their ultimate goal.

“Our goal is to be in Paris next year,” Bluman said, referring to the upcoming Summer Olympics in 2024. “[Ladriano] is going to be 16, so we’re already pushing it on the final stage of his career, but we’ve taken very good care of him and we feel he deserves to be an Olympic horse. Whatever I have to do to get him there is what we’re going to do.”

A Send-Off Fit for a Queen

Prior to the Grand Prix, crowd favorite McLain Ward, a seven-time winner of the Hampton Classic’s main event, brought his legendary 17-year-old Belgian mare HH Azur to the competition ring for the last time. Ward announced “Annie’s” retirement earlier this summer following an eight-year partnership that spanned 25 FEI Grand Prix wins at the four-star and five-star levels. Among her many accolades, Annie helped Ward secure the Team Silver medal at the 2016 Olympic Games, Gold at the 2017 Longines FEI World Cup Finals in Omaha, and Team Silver at the 2017 FEI Nations Cup Final.

“She always had a real regal way about her, which is why I call her the queen,” Ward said. “I’ve been lucky enough to have some great top horses. She’s in the top two or three at the very least; one could even argue that she’s the best. I’m very privileged to have gotten this time with her.”

A blanket of white hand-sewn flowers, created by local florist Lilee Fell Flowers, was draped over Annie, along with a championship cooler commemorating the event. Ward’s young daughter sat astride Annie during the ceremony before they exited the ring.