Aaron Vale and Carissimo 25 put another major win on their growing list of victories Sunday, topping an eight-horse jump-off to win the $582,280 Rolex Grand Prix Ville de Dinard CSI5* (France).

From a field of 38 who tackled designer Jean-François Morand’s first round track, it was an international group who returned, including Vale as well the class’s 2023 winner Max Kühner (Austria), Nina Mallevaey and Marc Dilasser representing the host country, Ignacio Maurin (Argentina), World No. 3 Henrik von Eckermann (Sweden), Harrie Smolders (the Netherlands), and José Antonio Chedraui Prom (Mexico).

In the jump-off, Dilasser set the tone with a double clear in 41.54 seconds, putting the pressure on the remaining contenders. Chedraui Prom also went double clear, though slower in 43.49 seconds.

Then came a moment of brilliance from Mallevaey and Dynastie De Beaufour, who rode a tight, aggressive track—despite losing a stirrup near the end—to stop the clock in 40.64 seconds and take the lead.

Von Eckermann delivered a stylish round in 41.78 seconds, slotting just behind Marc Dilasser. But it was Smolders and Mr. Tac who really upped the tempo, taking the lead with 40.51 seconds.

And then … the final pair: Vale was all power and precision with Carissimo 25, a 12-year-old Holsteiner gelding (Cascadello—T-Clintissima, Clinton) owned by the Carissimo Group. They blazed through the course with a fearless ride that had the commentator likening Carissimo 25 to “a gazelle,” and took the win in a blazing 38.77 seconds to crown Vale the new king of Dinard.

Watch their winning jump-off round, courtesy of ClipMyHorse.tv:

“You never know until the last round,” Vale said. “I watched Nina—she’s fast and wins everything. Then Harrie took the lead, but I felt I had a shot. I just had to stay clear and go full throttle. And it worked.”

Vale entered Dinard after returning to Europe from a trip home and said he didn’t expect the fairytale ending.

“There wasn’t any special preparation,” he said. “I competed in America, on footing very similar to Dinard’s, which helped a lot. I hadn’t shown Carissimo 25 for a few weeks, but our groom did an incredible job keeping him in top shape.”

See complete results here.