Rolex FEI World Cup Jumping: 24-27 January, Amsterdam (NED)

Mikael Forsten went into the record books today when clinching Finland's first-ever Rolex FEI World Cup™ Jumping victory in the De Telegraaf-sponsored leg of the 2007/2008 series in Amsterdam, The Netherlands where there was no shortage of surprises.

With 15 through to the jump-off it was always going to take a brave effort to clinch maximum points here, but the 38 year old rider and his 12 year old chestnut gelding really put it up to the rest of them when third to go against the clock and not even some of the quickest horses and best riders in the sport could match their pace.

"Isaac gave me everything" Forsten said afterwards, "and I'm so very happy - this has been a special day for us - I'm really delighted!".

However there was another show-stealer who created a bubble of excitement earlier in the competition.

As the first round was drawing to a close Dutch star Gerco Schroder was working his way around the arena with Eurocommerce Monaco when an animal rights protester, clad only in his underwear, streaked across the ring in an attempt to disrupt proceedings. Spectators watched with a mixture of amazement and amusement as the gentleman in question was chased at full speed by officials who eventually apprehended him and led him away, but while he had his moment in the limelight the impact of his interruption was short-lived as the unflappable Dutch partnership simply went back to work and comfortably joined the second-round line-up.

Pathfinder against the clock was Gerco's brother Wim riding Eurocommerce New Jersey who returned with four faults in 39.14 seconds, and then Italy's Omar Bonomelli followed with a slow clear from Quintero in 44.80 seconds to set the early pace. That was immediately dismissed by Forsten however who shaved almost seven full seconds off the target when storming home in 38.08 seconds.

"Because I was going early I didn't see anyone else, but I could feel Isaac was flying - he is French-bred and has all the scope, but his rideability can be a bit questionable sometimes although he always tries to clear the fences. Today though he was unbelievably fast....." the Finnish rider said afterwards.

Mikko, as Forsten is known to his friends, was not convinced that he had been quick enough to win and watched from the sidelines with his partner, fellow-Finnish rider Noora Pentti, who had two fences down in the first round.

Italy's Jonella Ligresti was next to go with Nanta, but their chances were dashed when the mare crumpled on landing over a fence and decanted her rider, and when Belgium's Angelique Hoorn collected four faults with Blauwendraad's O'Brien in 40.99 seconds there was still no sign of a strong challenge to his lead. Max Kuhner, a real "find" for Germany during this indoor season, kept a cool head to leave the course intact but in the slow time of 44.91 seconds while Ireland's Billy Twomey was more competitive when lowering just one fence with Tinka's Serenade who broke the beam in 40.12.

Germany's Heinrich-Herman Engemann had a good shot at Forsten's target when crossing the line with Aboyeur in 38.39 seconds and Harrie Smolders and Exquis Oliver Q beat the time but left one on the floor in 38.02 so when Belgium's Patrick McEntee and Ever Mury Marais Z were clear but slow the Finn was still out in front with five left to go.

The 2006 Rolex FEI World Cup™ Jumping champion Marcus Ehning from Germany opted for a degree of caution when bringing Sandro Boy home in 38.46 seconds and when Holland's Piet Raijmakers Snr riding Van Schijndel's Curtis put two on the floor and Frenchwoman Eugenie Angot was clear with Ilostra Dark in 39.05 seconds only two riders stood in the way of show jumping history. But what a pair they were. The Netherlands had six riders through to the closing stages and second-last to go was the irrepressible partnership of Albert Zoer and Oki Doki who have blazed a trail through the sport over the last year while last in was Gerco Schroder. A single error in 38.43 seconds saw Zoer having to settle for tenth place while Schroder just couldn't match that leading time - the clock showing 38.25 seconds as he crossed the line to take runner-up spot ahead of Engemann.

"To be honest I expected Ehning, Albert and Gerco would be faster than me and I was just hoping that the rest would have to go wild to try to catch my time!" Forsten explained afterwards. "I'm absolutely delighted - this is my first World Cup win of course - I have won some Grand Prix's but at 3-Star and 2-Star level but nothing like this and I believe I am the first Finnish rider to win a World Cup competition, the best we have ever placed before was third I think" he added.

Today's success has broadened his horizons considerably and he is planning to take in the next qualifying leg in Bordeaux next weekend and then Vigo in Spain the following week - "I'm going to try to qualify for the final in Gothenburg - that is my aim now!" he said determinedly.

He has certainly boosted his chances of getting there as today's result has raised him to eleventh place on the leaderboard and, with 34 points now to his credit, he needs just one more good placing to make the cut. But the final three qualifying legs will see some razor-sharp competition and he will have to stay on the very top of his game.....

RESULT: 1, Isaac du Jonquet (Mikael Forsten) Fin 0/0 38.08; 2, Eurocommerce Monaco (Gerco Schroder) Ned 0/0 38.25; 3, Aboyeur W (Heinrich-Hermann Engemann) Ger 0/0 38.39; 4, Sandro Boy (Marcus Ehning) Ger 0/0 38.48; 5, Ilostra Dark (Eugenie Angot) Fra 0/0 39.15; 6, Ever Mury Marais Z (Patrick McEntee) Bel 0/0 43.01; 7, Quintero (Omar Bonomelli) Ita 0/0 44.60; 8, Acantus GK (Max Kuhner) Ger 0/0 44.91; 9, Exquis Oliver Q (Harris Smolders) Ned 0/4 38.02; 10, Okidoki (Albert Zoer) Ned 0/4 38.43; 11, Eurocommerce New Jersey (Wim Schroder) Ned 0/4 39.14; 12, Tinka's Serenade (Billy Twomey) Irl 0/4 40.12; 13, Blauwendraad's O'Brien (Angelique Hoorn) Ned 0/4 40.09; 14, Van Schijndel's Curtis (Piet Raijmakers) Ned 0/8 42.93; 15, Nanta (Jonella Ligresti) Ita 0/Elim; 16, Son of Marco (Luciana Diniz) 1/79.69; 17, Pristanna (Daniel Deusser) 1/79.85; 18, Tymoon Caloo Meerchen (Dirk Demeersman) Bel 4/75.11; 19, Wisconsin (Sergio Alvarez Moya) Esp 4/75.13; 20, Lord Luis (Alois Pollmann-Schweckhorst) Ger 4/76.88; 22, Conan (Helena Lundback) Swe 4/77.17; 23, Audi's Parmala Douche (Maikel Van der Vleuten) Ned 5/79.27; 24, Van Schijndel's Rascin (Piet Raijmakers Jnr) 8/74.89; 25, Lantinus (Denis Lynch) Irl 8/75.29; 26, SIEC Royal Star (Cameron Hanley) Irl 8/75.51; 27, Evli Cagliostro (Noora Pennti) Fin 8/76.45; 28, Nairobi (Leon Thijssen) Ned 8/78.31; 29, Coulthard Z (Christian Annfinsen Oien) Nor 9/79.12; 30, V de Pomme (Jenni Martin-McAllister) USA 9/79.81; 31, Horizon du Roc (Fabio Crotta) Sui 11/87.87; 32, Bessemeind's Casino (Morten Djupvik) Nor 12/76.58; 33, Sefana (Mark Armstrong) GBR 12/77.73; 34, Castella (Mathijs Van Asten) Ned 12/78.16; 35, Isaac (Royne Zetterman) Swe 12/78.18; 36, Leasing (Marco Kutscher) Ger 13/79.69; 37, Tagerups Agenda (Andreas Schou) Den 13/80.44; 38, Okometa Z (Jurgen Stenfert) Ned 15/7762; 39, Opium VS (Marc Houtzager) Ned 17/81.70; 40, P-Pilot (Wout-Jan Van der Schans) Ned Retired.

ROLEX FEI WORLD CUP™ JUMPING 2007/2008 - WESTERN EUROPEAN LEADERBOARD AFTER ROUND 9 IN AMSTERDAM:

1. Jessica Kuerten - 79

2. Rutherford Latham - 48

3. Rolf-Goran Bengtsson - 47

4. Meredith Michaels-Beerbaum - 46

5. Albert Zoer - 45

6. Ludger Beerbaum - 44

7. Helena Lundback - 41

8. William Whitaker - 39

9. Heinrich Hermann Engemann - 38

10. Marcus Ehning - 37

11. Mikael Forsten - 34

12. Judy-Ann Melchior 33

Max Kuhner - 33

14. Steve Guerdat - 31

15. Harrie Smolders - 30

Nick Skelton - 30

Omar Bonomelli - 30

18. Patrick McEntee - 29

19. Eugenie Angot - 28

Luciana Diniz - 28

Malin Baryard-Johnsson - 28

PHOTO CATALOGUE - Photographs of the winning riders in high and low resolution can be downloaded from the FEI online catalogue. To access it, please visit www.fei.org>Media>Photo Catalogue. There is no reproduction fee, but please credit photographer (photographer's name will appear under each photo)/FEI. Usage is strictly for editorial purposes.

For further information on the Rolex FEI World Cup™ Jumping qualifier in Amsterdam, The Netherlands, check out WEBSITE www.jumpingamsterdam.nl or contact Press Officer Charlotte Gunnick - Tel (mobile) +33638 325326, Email: media@jumpingamsterdam.nl. The next leg takes place in Bordeaux, France from 1-3 February and you can check full details on WEBSITE www.jumping-bordeaux.com. Show President at the French fixture is Marc Lecoq, Show Director is Francois-Bernard martin, Show Secretary is Sabine Palau and Press Officer is Marie-Sol Fournier - Tel (mobile) +33 55611 9943 or email presse@bordeaux-expo.com.

MEDIA GUIDE - The FEI is pleased to provide you with a Media Guide for the 2007/2008 season. The Guide is filled with useful facts, figures and statistics including the list of winners since the series began in 1978 and contact details to help you access all the information you need. You can download it from the Media Centre on FEI website www.fei.org or order a hard copy from FEI Communications - Email o.robinson@horsesport.org.

2007/2008 ROLEX FEI WORLD CUP™ JUMPING SERIES - CALENDAR OF EVENTS FOR WESTERN EUROPEAN LEAGUE: 1, Oslo (Norway) 12-14 October; 2, Helsinki (Finland) 18-21 October; 3, Verona (Italy) 8-11 November; 4, Stuttgart (Germany) 14-18 November; 5, Geneva (Switzerland) 6-9 December; 6, London-Olympia (Great Britain) 17-22 December; 7, Mechelen (Belgium) 26-30 December; 8, Leipzig (Germany) 17-20 January; 9, Amsterdam (The Netherlands) 24-27 January; 10, Bordeaux (France) 1-3 February; 11, Vigo (Spain) 8-11 February; 12, 's-Hertogenbosch (The Netherlands) 27-30 March; FINAL - Gothenburg (Sweden) 24-27 April.

YOU CAN SEE IT ON TV

2007/2008 ROLEX FEI WORLD CUP™ JUMPING BROADCAST SCHEDULE FOR ROUND 9 IN AMSTERDAM:

Live/Delayed Live

NOS (The Netherlands) - Sunday 27 January - check local listings

Equidia (France) - Sunday 27 January 20.45, Monday 28 January 18.30, Wednesday 30 January 10.00

SVT (Sweden) - Sunday 27 January 18.15

RAI (Italy) - Check local listings

Highlights

CBC Country (Canada) - Saturday 2 February 14.00

CNBC Asia - Check local listings

CNBC Europe - Check local listings

ESPN Brazil - Check local listings

ESPN Star (Pan Asia) - Wednesday 13 February 20.00, Friday 15 February 01.00, Saturday 16 February 06.30, Sunday 17 February 03.30, Monday 18 February 07.30,

Wednesday 20 February 18.00, Friday 22 February 14.0, 18.00, Saturday 23 February 01.00, 09.00, Tuesday 26 February 18.00,

Wednesday 27 February 07.00

Eurosport - Wednesday 30 January 22.05

Finnish Sport TV - Check local listings

Fox Australia - Check local listings

Fox Middle East - Monday 18 February 16.00

M-Net (Pan Africa) - Thursday 14 February 18.00, Friday 15 February 09.00, Sunday 17 February 11.00, Monday 18 February 13.00, Tuesday 19 February 16.00,

Wednesday 20 February 23.00

Sport TV (Portugal) - Check local listings

Sport Plus (France) - Friday 1 February 13.00

WCSN (USA) - Wednesday 2 April 20.00

YOU CAN DOWNLOAD THE RULES FOR FEI WORLD CUP™ JUMPING RIDERS FROM FEI WEBSITE www.feiworldcup.org

FEI World Cup™ Jumping has entered its 30th season. The series, created in 1978, today comprises 14 leagues on all continents. The best riders from 132 preliminary competitions will qualify for the final in Gothenburg, Sweden which takes place from 24-27 April 2008. The title-holder is Switzerland's Beat Mandli.