Bromont, Quebec—Aug. 5  

It was a day of firsts for Canadian Isabelle Lapierre, as the 38-year-old rode her own Cescha M to her first World Cup qualifier victory at the opening leg of the 2017 /2018 season of the Longines FEI World Cup™ Jumping North American League at Bromont (Quebec).

In front of a hometown crowd, the Quebec native topped a six-horse jump off for the title. Fellow Canadians Jennifer Serek and Wicked took runner-up honors, and U.S. rider Heather Caristo-Williams and Qui Vive des Songes Z were third.

“She had a very good year, and she’s always trying to win,” Lapierre said. “We built her up, and she’s just improving every year.”

Isabelle Lapierre on Cescha M. Photo by FEI/Tom van Kapherr

Lapierre has shown Cescha M in FEI classes at the HITS Ocala Winter Circuit (Fla.), where they won the $50,000 HITS Grand Prix on February 14, and in Lexington, Ky., and Tryon, N.C. “The whole year, we planned the shows where we wanted to be ready for here to see what she would do. Now, we have to think differently, because we know she can do that next step. Now, the plan will be built around doing the next step,” Lapierre said.

This was the first World Cup qualifier class for Cescha M, a 10-year-old Dutch Warmblood mare that Lapierre has been riding since 2012. In 2015, Lapierre and Cescha M won the Jump Canada National Talent Squad Series Championship at the Royal Winter Fair (Ontario). Lapierre said that she hadn’t made the 2018 Longines FEI World Cup Final in Paris a goal, but after this win she might rethink her schedule to prioritize getting more World Cup points.

Third to return over the shortened track designed by Belgium’s Luc Musette, Lapierre took over the lead that was briefly set by Serek, crossing the timers in 43.39 seconds, and held through to the end, as neither Ali Ramsay nor Charlie Jacobs, riding his 2017 Longines FEI World Cup™ Jumping Final partner Cassinja S, could jump cleanly or catch her time.

“Every time I jump here, I feel the crowd is jumping with me,” she added. “I think that’s why I went faster than Jen. The crowd was pushing me. I had an advantage.”

The first World Cup qualifier of the 2017/2018 season in Bromont kicked off the East Coast subleague of the North American League. The West Coast subleague begins at Langley on Aug. 27.

See full results of the Longines FEI Bromont World Cup Qualifier.