30 October 2022

Lyon 2022: Boyd Exell wins sensational drive off

The World Cup in Lyon was won by Boyd Exell, but he did not receive it as a gift. In the exciting race to the finish, it went from fast, to faster to fastest. IJsbrand Chardon became 2nd in a beautiful way.

In the first round, all drivers drove in full to secure a place in the top 3. Dries Degrieck took revenge for his disappointing drive yesterday by finishing in a great time of 148.05. Unfortunately he tapped a ball in the last part of the course, but with his 152.05 he remained a contender for the drive-off for a long time. Chester Weber was the first to drive a clear round but did not come close to the fast times of the competition. Koos de Ronde also drove clear and clocked 150.38. IJsbrand Chardon took it up a notch and drove a ver short line to the second marathon obstacle. He was the first to stay under 150 seconds. Boyd Exell made it extra exciting by driving a ball off a skittle gate early in the course. However, he was so fast that he beat IJsbrand anyway.


IJsbrand Chardon (photo FB team Chardon, Joost Rouwhorst)

Sensational drive-off

Boyd Exell, IJsbrand Chardon and Koos de Ronde thus qualified for the drive off. They started with a clean slate. Koos de Ronde drove great again and finished clear in 150.07. But since Chardon and Exell were both under 150 seconds in the first round, it looked like it could be faster. IJsbrand Chardon proved that in a beautiful round, where the grooms had to work hard to prevent gates from being grazed. A clear round in 145.79 was the result.

It seems that Boyd Exell only gets better when the pressure is high. He took off at lightning speed, as if you were watching a fast-paced movie. He kept up with IJsbrand for a long time, but when finishing the second marathon obstacle he took a shorter route to the next gate and it paid off. In 140.82 he crossed the finish line without errors and won the competition. The full box of World Cup points is for IJsbrand Chardon, because Boyd Exell drove with a wild card.

“I was very happy to be invited here to Lyon on a wild card,” Boyd Exell said afterwards. “We now have three competitions in a row and although the horses are fit, it is the competitions that also make them ‘competition fit’.

Result 1st FEI worldcup competition in Lyon:

  1. Boyd Exell (AUS) 140,82
  2. IJsbrand Chardon (NED) 145,79
  3. Koos de Ronde (NED) 150,08
  4. Dries Degrieck (BEL) 152,05
  5. Jérôme Voutaz (SUI) 156,41
  6. Chester Weber (USA) 157,74
  7. Benjamin Aillaud (FRA) 171,28

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