Delatio Delights

Heath Farm stables land a one-two in the strong grand prix, Sara Gallop pulls off the same feat in the freestyle and the Haylers have a horse to fight over

- Stephanie Bateman

Vale View High Profile, Leics

EMILE FAURIE demonstrated his prowess as a rider when heading the grand prix with the highest score of the show — 74.27% — riding a horse he took the ride on only three months ago.

The Hanoverian breeding stallion Delatio, by De Niro out of a Rubinstein mare, impressed judges with his expressive movement and massive paces to earn a 10 for his two-time changes and nines for his extended trot.

Previously owned by Hof Kasselmann, the 13-year-old was bought by Emile’s long-standing owner Elena Knyaginicheva, who also owns Emile’s 2017 European Championship ride Lollipop 126.

“I did Darmstadt CDI [in Germany] with Delatio in September, which was my first show with him. It wasn’t brilliant because I didn’t know him well enough, but now he’s at home with me and I’ve got to know him, so it went an awful lot better here,” explained Emile.

“He’s a magnificent horse and exquisitely put together — you couldn’t paint him more beautifully — and, for a breeding stallion, he has a great temperament and throws the most stunning foals.”

Emile aims to campaign Delatio in the World Cup series, and this performance was the perfect warm-up for Stuttgart CDI (15-19 November).

“He performed a lovely, mistake-free test with no hiccups and I couldn’t have asked for more. He gave me a really lovely ride,” he added.