Last year’s CHI Geneva programme introduced a new competition: the Youth Challenge.
This brings together four teams of riders and horses from four different categories to compete in a mini Nations Cup format – teams that comprise, respectively, four juniors, four young riders, four young Swiss-bred horses, and four of the equestrian world’s stars.
Sponsored by Swiss Team Trophy (the Swiss show jumping support association), the Youth Challenge will be back at this year’s CHI Geneva, where it is scheduled for 12.30 pm on Saturday, 8 December.
Switzerland’s top hopefuls will be trying to beat the world elite, who won in 2017. But it was no walk in the park for Luciana Diniz, Martin Fuchs, Jeroen Dubbeldam and Roger-Yves Bost, as they had to fight to win the jump-off and so relegate the Under 21s to second place. As for the Juniors, they were only penalised one point, while the young Swiss horses also had good rounds in spite of higher penalties (21 pts).
Who will win CHI Geneva’s exclusive competition this year? Find out at 12.30 pm on Saturday, 8 December.
Rules of selection
The CHI Geneva management and Christian Sottas, the Swiss youth team coach, will jointly select the younger riders during the autumn.
The four Swiss-bred horses will be selected according to the rules of the FECH (Swiss breeding federation) from among those competing in the Swiss championship for Swiss-bred sport horses. The four top horses aged 8-9 in the #13 Swiss Cup Final and Superpromotion CH Elite will qualify. In the event of a withdrawal, the fifth-placed horse will be promoted (and so on).
