The LeMieux Puissance provided an exhilarating finale to the first day of the 2024 Show. In total, 12 combinations took on the iconic red wall, with notable names including Great Britain’s Jack Whitaker, puissance specialists Geoff Curran and Paul Sims, and 18-year-old Maisy Williams – the daughter of five-time class winner Guy Williams – who was competing in this class for the first time.
Just three combinations remained to contest the fourth round of the competition and it was only 19-year-old Rachel Proudley from North Yorkshire riding Easy Boy de Laubry Z who cleared the remarkable height of 2.12m, with Jack Whitaker and Paul Sims taking the runners-up spots.
Proudley exclaimed: “He felt amazing tonight, I’m so proud of him, everything came together, we had a plan and we stuck to it – it was great. He’s an amazing horse, my dad actually was hunting him on Tuesday, which was a good preparation for him. He’s a very easy horse, straightforward and brave, which really helps. It means so much to be here on home turf, with the crowd behind you. When you go into the ring, it’s an amazing feeling, you can’t even put it into words how it feels.”