Shanghai Swans soar to the lead in Madrid

The first round of the Global Champions League saw the riders of the Shanghai Swans team storm to the lead; with Daniel Deusser and Pedro Veniss picking up the only double clear-round in the first round in Madrid.Second in the rankings is Montreal Diamonds, represented by Canadian Eric Lamaze and Israeli Danielle Goldstein. Rome Gladiators, meanwhile, are third with Laura Kraut and Lorenzo De Luca. 
Pedro Veniss is a new recruit for the Shanhai Swans tam, and made a dream debut riding young horse Uccello de Will, while his teammate Deusser opted to ride Equita van T Zorgvliet. 
The 16 top teams ranked teams at the end of the season will face off in the Play Off in Prague in December; and the teams’ tactics will be decisive to reach the final goal, as every point counts. 
The track set up by Santiago Varela Ullatres is ideal for horses to reach their full galloping speed on the green of the Club de Campo Madrid, but control and precision were crucial in taking on the undulating terrain. 
A lot of teams improved their score in the second round, with the Miami Celtics climbing closer to the podium positions while the home team Madrid in Motion, represented by two generations of van der Vleuten (Eric and Maikel),will have to go all out after having picked up 12 faults in the first round. 
The athletes will be back in action tomorrow at 15.15 and can be streamed live on the Longines Champions Tour websiteGLOBAL CHAMPIONS LEAGUE – RANKINGS AFTER THE FIRST ROUND 1. Shanghai Swans: Daniel Deusser // Pedro Veniss // 0 faults2. Montreal Diamonds: Eric Lamaze // Danielle Goldstein // 4 faults3. Rome Gladiators: Lorenzo de Luca // Laura Kraut // 4 faults4. London Knights: Emily Moffitt // Ben Maher // 4 faults 5. Miami Celtics: Jessica Springsteen // Denis Lynch // 4 faults6. Berlin Eagles: Ben Asselin // Christian Kukuk // 4 faults 
Press Release LGCT
Photo: GCL / Stefano Grasso