Julien Epaillard and his lightning-fast home-bred gelding Donatello d’Auge stormed to victory in the opening round of the Longines FEI World Cup Jumping Final 2025, topping the 1.60m speed class with trademark flair and pipping Ben Maher and Point Break into second.
Renowned as one of the sport’s most formidable riders against the clock, the Frenchman gave Donatello the space to open up his stride across half the arena before launching into the first fence – and never let up from there. Blending bold lines with blistering pace, the pair set a benchmark of 60.3sec that proved untouchable.
“He’s like family to us, we enjoy living with him every day, he’s very special,” said Julien, who also won at this venue during the World Cup qualifier in January. “The ground here is very nice; [Donatello] goes barefoot so that’s very important for us.
“We’ve had a good start but there’s still a long way to go. I hope he’s not too flat and it’s important to go clear tomorrow and try and stay in the top eight.”
World number four Ben Maher and Point Break (Action-Breaker x Balou du Rouet) – who’s just returned to Europe after a quick trip to Florida where he won the Adequan WEF Challenge Cup – finished a very close second on 60.43secs.
Ben has earmarked the 11-year-old stallion as his next top horse, and he looked every inch the rising star here, delivering his 13th clear from his last 15 rounds. The performance was smooth and composed throughout, with barely a tense moment – until the final fence, which wobbled in its cup but stayed put.
“He was really confident and relaxed today, which is important for him,” explained Ben, who is riding with a broken foot after a non-horse related accident, and had to trek an unforgiving distance from the warm-up to the press conference.
“I‘m lucky I can ride with the stirrups in a different position so it doesn’t affect me too much when I’m riding.”
Ben Maher and the impressive Point Break finish a close second in the Longines FEI Jumping World Cup Final 2025. Credit: FEI/Benjamin Clark
On his plans for the next two rounds, he added: “I’ll just try to keep the jumps up, but I’m sure that’s everyone else’s plan too! But I’m just happy with the start, he’s a sensitive horse and it was always going to be a risky day today. You can’t win it on the first day, but you can lose it.
“But we’re still in the running and if I do my job, I know Point Break jumps clear rounds, so today was a good sign, but it’s very easy in this sport for things to go wrong.”
As Laura Kraut withdrew her two-time Olympic partner Baloutinue before the competition owing to a minor injury, and Kent Farrington and McLain Ward opted not to travel although they had qualified, the USA arrived in Basel without any of their Olympic combinations.
That left rising star – and World Cup Final debutante – Lillie Keenan to lead the charge. Aboard Kick On – a British-bred stallion by Warrior out of a Caretino Glory mare from Brendon Stud – Lillie delivered a superb round, excelling in the tight turns to secure third place.
“You want to have a strong start, the previous six winners have won on the first day,” said the 28-year-old. “Kick On is quite inexperienced so I was expecting to have to improvise but he proved me wrong and stepped up – I couldn’t be happier.
“He’s a horse with every quality you could dream of, he’s quick, careful, incredibly intelligent and has a very strong character – every time I’ve pushed him to take the next step he’s had no problem doing it, and he loves to do it.
“Just to end up here in Basel was a huge accomplishment, so to be in the top three is pretty surreal. I’m going to enjoy this moment, take it day by day and enjoy the ride.”
How the jumping World Cup Finals played out on day one
Warm spring sunshine set the scene at the St. Jakobshalle, where competitors enjoyed a relaxed build-up. Grooms and horses emerged from the tented stables to hand-graze and mooch in the outdoor spaces just across from astroturf pitches, buzzing with local schoolchildren.
But as the sun dipped and the stands began to fill, the serious business got under way.
Marcus Ehning and Coolio 42 were the first to tackle Gérard Lachat’s course and looked on for a smooth clear until they knocked the ninth.
Fourth into the arena, world number one Henrik von Eckermann – who has held the top spot for an impressive 32 months – began his quest to become the first rider since Rodrigo Pessoa to win three consecutive World Cup titles. Without his Olympic and World Championship partner King Edward, with whom he secured the 2023 and 2024 titles, the Swede still showed his class, guiding the talented 12-year-old mare Iliana to the first clear of the evening to go into the lead at that point on 61.26sec.
For a long time, it looked like their time would be unassailable; the double off the corner at fence five – a triple bar to a vertical – proved a particular nuisance.
Robert Whitaker, 11th of the 39-strong field to go and bidding to emulate his father John who won back-to-back titles in 1990 and 1991 with the great Milton, put in a smooth round on Vermento to go clear on 65.66sec; which was good enough for 14th place in the final reckoning.
Edouard Schmitz and Gamin van’t Naastveldhof were the first Swiss combination of the evening, greeted by a sea of waving flags and cheers from the crowds in the steep-banked stands flanking the arena.
They rose to the occasion – a trailing leg at fence nine caused a gasp, but the pole held, and the pair crossed the finish in 63.47sec to the loudest roar of the evening – rivalling the noise drifting over from across the street, where FC Basel were taking on Grasshopper Club Zürich.
Belgian Pieter Devos added another clear, riding Casual DV Z on 62.64sec, but the margin between them and Henrik showed the scale of the challenge.
After the break, the pace shifted. Sophie Hinners and Iron Dames My Prins lit up the second half, with seven of the eventual top 10 going after the interval.
Henrik ultimately slipped to fourth, and Kevin Staut – eliminated at this stage last year – completed the top five.
The next leg of the FEI World Cup Finals – a 1.60m jump-off class – takes place at 7.15pm (UK time) tomorrow (4 April), the third and final round on Sunday (6 April). The overall World Cup champion will be the rider with the fewest penalties across all three rounds.
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