Estoril’s organizer Duarte Nobre Geddes has been with the Global Champions Tour since its inception, and he’s helped the Portuguese competition become one of the most rider-friendly on the tour. The Estoril arena is legendary for the springy excellence of its grass surface, an especially durable tropical strain planted specifically for grand prix competitions.

Geddes also decided to run the show over two days and offer an initial schooling day in the main arena to replace the opening warm-up class.

“I think most people recognize that the first class is always used as a warm-up, and therefore it’s sometimes quite boring for the spectators and disappointing for the sponsors who wish to see top-class sport,” he said. “So I thought it was better to dispense with the first day and put the prize money toward the other classes to make more exciting sport.”

Because of this, the grand prix has become Europe’s richest, with a hefty $193,345 in prize money to the winner.