Another massive medal haul for Brazil, but Argentina takes Young Rider gold

Brazilian athletes dominated the podium once again at the FEI South American Jumping Championships for Children, Pre-Juniors, Juniors and Young Riders 2019 staged at Mariano Roque Alonso in Paraguay from 16 to 22 September.

There were seven sets of medals up for grabs, and a total of 68 young people competed. The flags of Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Paraguay and Brazil flew high throughout the week of great sport.

Children

Brazil’s Camila Junqueira Ribeiro de Mendonça was a class-winner at last year’s South American Championships in Las Condes, Chile, and, riding Impressiv Jmen, the 14-year-old rider came out on top again in the opening qualifier this year, pinning Argentina’s Juan Cruz Candisano (Kappi Casandra) into runner-up spot.

Her compatriots Choe Tanzilli Teillere (JCR Guinness) and Enzo Toque (Cantana Beeroquie) each collected a single penalty point in this competition, but when they were clear on the second day they helped secure Team gold for the Brazil Verde side that completed with just those two points on the board. Joao Maucelli Egoroff (Holandesa T) carried four from the first competition, but this was the team discard when 14-year-old João Vitor Gomes de Lemos (Christhiano Jmen) was clear all the way, and it was the latter who went on to take the individual title.

Gomes de Lemos was the only competitor to complete five rounds of jumping without mistake, and fellow-Brazilian Luiz Eduard Requiao Strutz (Graf Lena Ri) scooped the silver while Paraguay’s Jose Emanuel Perez (Ondina Z) took individual bronze.

Pre-Juniors

João Pedro de Almeida Chaves (Cuantica Loar) led the Brazilian whitewash of the first Pre-Junior qualifier, and he helped the Brazil Verde side to Team silver two days later. But Philipp Greenlees, who shared the main honours in the second qualifier with fellow-Brazilian João Felipe de Albuquerque Maranhão Gomes, secured double-gold.

All eyes were on Greenlees last year following his victory at the 2017 FEI Children’s International Classics Final in Beijing (CHN), but he had to settle for individual silver on that occasion. This time around however it fell perfectly into place for the 16-year-old who demonstrated real consistency.

Alongside de Almeida Chaves, Antonio Johannpeter Cirne Lima (Unforgettable JM) and Augusto Bonotto Perfeito (Busch van het Prinseveld) he stood top of the Team podium, and on the final day he was fault-free once again with Premiere Avignon Z. Completing on a final scoreline of 2.44 points he was undisputed champion ahead of de Albuquerque Maranhão Gomes (Vereda do Araucaria) who slotted into silver medal spot on 7.14 while another of the hot Brazilian contingent, Maria Luiza de Silva Martha Vieira (Arica du Caillou) posted a final tally of 8.46 for the bronze.

Juniors

Just two Brazilian sides contested the Junior Team medals and it was Juliana Salles Amaral de Almeida (Christoball Jmen), Giovanna Baptista Braz (Domenico), Raphael Halaban (Rahmannshof’s Canterbury) and Laura Bosquirolli Tigre (Fleur de Vauxelles) who scooped the gold.

However team silver medallist Carolina Souza Chade (Flying High Das Umburanas) soared to individual glory ahead of Bosquirolli Tigre in silver and Baptista Braz in bronze on the final day when Brazil claimed the top five finishing places.

This was Souza Chade’s fourth South American Championship medal as the 17-year-old was on the winning Junior team last year and took individual silver and team bronze at the 2016 edition at São Paolo (BRA). Silver medallist Bosquirolli Tigre is no stranger to the medal podium either, having claimed two individual and two team titles in her hugely successful championship career that already spans a four-year period, while Baptista Braz was a team bronze medallist in 2018.

Young Riders

Once again this year there was no team competition in the Young Riders Category in which 10 athletes started and just half of those made it into the closing stages.

There were three eliminated in the opening competition in which the clear winner was Argentina’s Lautaro Franchi who steered the nine-year-old mare BM Che Fantastica to the only zero score of the class. The 20-year-old, who was on the fourth-placed team and who finished individually 13th in the Junior division at Capilla del Senor four years ago, held on to take the individual title.

However he had to see off a strong challenge from Brazil’s João Pedro de Souza Robert (Dammaz van het Indihof) who pipped him for the win in the final competition but finished just 0.63 points behind him when all five rounds of jumping were taken into account. Another Brazilian stalwart, five-time gold-medallist Victoria Junqueira Ribeiro de Mendonça (Diamant Z) who was competing at her eighth South American Championship, was also close behind in bronze.

Results here