Delestre Does the Double and Makes History at Saut Hermès

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The iconic Grand Palais in Paris welcomed back 5* showjumping with style this weekend, and it was Simon Delestre who stole the show with an absolutely electric performance in the €400,000 Grand Prix Hermès. Let's not bury the lede here—Delestre has done something no rider has ever done before: he's now a THREE-TIME winner of this prestigious Grand Prix. And what's even more jaw-dropping? He's coming off another massive win at Dutch Masters just one week ago. Talk about being in the zone!

The Grand Prix saw nine riders make the jump-off, with Great Britain's Robert Whitaker setting an early target of 41.70 seconds on Vermento. Delestre and Cayman Jolly Jumper delivered a blistering round, crossing the finish in 41.21 seconds. That's just half a second faster, but in this game, half a second might as well be a lifetime.

"It's an indescribable feeling," a visibly emotional Delestre said afterward. "I've always believed that Cayman was a legendary horse and he demonstrated that again in this Grand Prix."

Let's talk about this track for a second. Santiago Varela's course asked all the right questions—technical but fair, yielding those nine clear rounds. The final line proved particularly tricky, with French rider Alexa Ferrer actually posting the fastest time but bringing down the last fence. As Delestre put it: "I had a choice... go steady and finish fifth, or take risks for the win."

We all know what choice he made, and it paid off brilliantly. Cayman Jolly Jumper looked absolutely spectacular throughout—scope for days and that sixth sense that only the truly special horses have. "When I'm in a mess, he gets me out of it with a stroke of genius," Delestre admitted. This horse overcame issues before last year's Olympics and now looks to be at the absolute top of his game.

Whitaker, in his first Saut Hermès appearance, was gracious in defeat: "Simon was too quick. I had one more stride than him at the end but I have no regrets—I'd do the same thing again." His 12-year-old Vermento, a son of John Whitaker's Argento, certainly made an impression. Max Kühner and EIC Julius Caesar completed the podium in third.

The return to the historical Grand Palais venue after the temporary use of the Grand Palais Éphémère certainly added extra magic. You could feel the weight of the occasion in every round.

Watch the full Saut Hermes Grand Prix

Quick Hits – Breakout Stars and Another American Rising

Sadran Takes Battle of the Sexes at Saut Hermès

23-year-old Jeanne Sadran, an Hermès Partner Rider, pulled off a stunning upset in Saturday's Le Saut Hermès class. The young Frenchwoman was the ONLY rider to jump double clear in the 1.55m class reserved for the 10 best male and 10 best female riders, beating world #4 Martin Fuchs into second place. Talk about making a statement in your Grand Palais debut! "Dexter is a machine. I think he's one of the best horses in the world," she said of her 12-year-old stallion. You heard it here first—this girl's one to watch.

20-Year-Old Holtgers Jr. Tops WEF's $200,000 KASK CSI4 Grand Prix

While the Europeans were battling it out in Paris, across the pond in Wellington we saw yet another young gun make a major breakthrough. Ansgar Holtgers Jr., just 20 years old, piloted his Belgian Warmblood Pixel-K van't Kattenheye to victory in the Week 11 feature class. In a 12-horse jump-off, Holtgers stopped the clock at 40.04 seconds, beating Spencer Smith by the slimmest of margins—just 0.09 seconds! "This is only his third 1.60m," Holtgers said of his horse. "I figured what's there to lose? And it all worked out."

McLain Makes Triumphant Return in the Ocala League of Nations

After four weeks sidelined with an injury, McLain Ward came back with a bang, delivering a clutch double-clear performance aboard HH Ilex to lead Team USA to victory in the Longines League of Nations in Ocala. When Germany's Sophie Hinners jumped clear, putting all the pressure on Ward as the anchor, his reaction was pure champion: "I got a smile on my face and thought, 'OK, game on.' This is what we live for." Shit happens with injuries, but class is permanent—and Ward's got class in spades.

Watch the final 3 riders of the class

Or watch the rounds of the winning riders from Team USA

Other Paris Winners

The Saut Hermès delivered a feast of top sport throughout the weekend. Belgium's speed king Gilles Thomas took the Prix Hermès Sellier with 9-year-old mare Qalista DN in her 5* debut. French legend Roger-Yves Bost thrilled the home crowd by winning Saturday night's accumulator class. Martin Fuchs proved his consistency with three podium finishes, including a win in Friday's opener with Commissar Pezi.

Industry News – Rankings Race Heats Up

The Longines World Rankings race is getting spicy at the top! Henrik von Eckermann still sits at #1, a position he's now held for an astounding 32 consecutive months—but Kent Farrington has climbed to #2 and is now just 29 messily points behind the Swede. Steve Guerdat slips to #3, while Martin Fuchs rises to #4 after his consistent Paris showing. Ben Maher rounds out the top five.

With Delestre's back-to-back 5* Grand Prix wins, expect to see him surge up the rankings from just outside the top 10. The question on everyone's lips: can Kent finally dethrone Henrik in the coming months? One big Grand Prix win could flip the standings completely.

Looking Ahead – LGCT Mexico City and WEF Finale

The Global Champions Tour continues this weekend with the LGCT Mexico City Grand Prix, the second leg of the 2025 tour. After Abdel Saïd's victory in the season opener in Doha, who'll claim the next big check on the circuit?

All eyes will also turn to the final week of WEF, featuring the $750,000 Rolex Grand Prix CSI5* as the season finale in Wellington. With Kent Farrington hunting ranking points and McLain Ward back in action, who'll take the last big check of the Florida circuit?

Meanwhile, riders are making final preparations for the Longines FEI Jumping World Cup Finals in early April. The Swiss contingent of Guerdat and Fuchs will be among the favorites, but don't count out any of the top Americans either.

Rating: 8.7/10

The Saut Hermès gets a solid 8.7/10 from us this week. The technical quality of Varela's courses created just the right balance—challenging the world's best while still producing exciting jump-offs with 9 riders in the Grand Prix. The return to the renovated Grand Palais was absolutely spectacular, adding that extra layer of prestige and atmosphere that only Paris can deliver.

What really pushed this rating up was the storylines: Delestre making history with his third win in this Grand Prix, the breakthrough performance of 23-year-old Jeanne Sadran as the only double-clear in the battle of the sexes, and Martin Fuchs showing incredible consistency with three podium finishes. The French riders stepped up on home soil, with three of the six major classes going to the home nation.

The only thing keeping it from a 9+ was the absence of a few top-10 stalwarts, but with world #4 Fuchs in such fine form, nobody can complain about the quality of competition. The Grand Palais provided the perfect stage, and the riders delivered drama worthy of such a venue.

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