LONDON, Jan. 28 (Xinhua) -- Swedish newcomer Stephanie Holmen claimed the title in the eleventh leg of the Longines FEI World Cup Jumping 2017-2018 Western European League in Zurich, Switzerland on Sunday.
The 27-year-old, partnering with Flip's Little Sparrow, managed a super-fast target-time in the 14-horse jump-off against the clock that had spectators gripping their seats to the very end.
Switzerland's Pius Schwizer, 55, finished second with About a Dream ahead of Frenchman Kevin Staut in third with Silver Deux de Virton.
Holmen, who has been based with individual Olympic silver and European gold medallist Peder Fredricson at his Grevlunda Stables in the south of Sweden for the last four years, was hooked up with the 12-year-old mare last June and, in only the second World Cup qualifier of her career, she put herself firmly on the sporting map with the ride of her life. Her boss was on hand to give her some instructions, and she made good use of them.
"Peder told me to go outside my comfort zone, to be faster than I'm used to, and to take the turns tighter, especially the inside turn after the white vertical.
"I watched him competing her for many years and I never thought she'd jump with me like she did with him, but he believed in us. This was like the perfect jump-off round, and I think it was Sparrow's gift to me because it was my birthday yesterday," Holmen said.
Having set the pace when second to go, she then had an agonising wait as the sport's best took on her target-time of 38.79 seconds.
"At first I thought for sure they are going to beat me, and the longer it went on it was harder and harder, this was the worst part of my day," she remarked.
With just two qualifiers remaining ahead of the 2018 Final in Paris in April, the Western European League now moves on to Bordeaux, France, next week with Staut still holding court at the head of the leaderboard with a massive 77 points.
