WELLINGTON, Fla.--Luciana Lossio, 49 of Brazil, only found out she would jump her first ever five-star last Sunday night, and six days later, on March 9, riding Lady Louise Jmen she won the $385,000 CSI5* Grand Prix during 'Saturday Night Lights’ at the Winter Equestrian Festival.

Luciana Lossio on Lady Louise Jmen (Photo by Sportfot)“This is unbelievable for me; I've been with this mare for six years, and in the beginning I just wanted to jump 1.20m, but we became so much more,” said Lossio of her 14-year-old mare. “We went higher and higher, and today I'm here in my first five-star and winning alongside these riders that I just enjoy watching."

“She's so confident; she doesn’t change from day to night or from the grass to the sand; she’s perfect,” said Lossio.

Lossio went second to last in a four-horse jump-off over courses designed by Ireland’s Alan Wade. and she beat the then leading time of Nayel Nassar of Eqypt by fourth tenths of a second.

“Friday was International Women's Day, so I think they may have let me win because of that,” said Lossio, an amateur who works full time as a lawyer in Brazil. “Tonight was our night. In the warmup, she was telling me, ‘I want to go.’ She’s very strong and I have to be there trying to keep her in my hands because she really likes to jump.”

 

NASSAR was second on his Olympic mount Igor van de Wittemoere, finishing in 39.57 seconds behind Lossio’s 39.15.

“I think we can all agree when we walked the course tonight that it was quite a meaty track; a lot of oxers at the end of the course and the triple combination at fence 10,” said Nayel. “It was tough, but Alan does a great job opening up the horses and then asking them to close."

“We know each other inside out, but at the same time I still feel like I'm learning more about him every round,” sai Nayel about his longtime partnership with Igor van de Wittemoere. “We're tweaking our training, tweaking the bridle, always just trying to find the right connection because he is such an active, buzzy horse. Every round this circuit he's gotten better, and he felt fantastic tonight. When they're 16 years old and you feel like that was one of the best rounds they've jumped, it's something we take a lot of pride in.”

First to go in the jump-off, U.S. Pan American Games team gold medalist  Karl Cook on Kalink van’t Zorgvliet was clean in 39.9 second for third.

Shane Sweetnam of Ireland on Otis Blue, last to go, had four faults to place fourth, but he won the Martha Jolicoeur Leading International Rider Award for a top 10 finish in the WEF challenge Cup qualifier on Thursday with James Kann Cruz.

“It's always interesting going first in the jump-off because it's a different dynamic than when you go later,” said Cook, who posted the exact same placing in this five-star grand prix during the 2023 season. “You obviously know you want to go as fast as possible, but you haven't seen anyone go yet so the smartest thing to do is to go as quick as you can without being reckless. Kalinka was laser focused tonight and I could feel that.”

The day before, Laura Kraut's Olympic mount Baloutinue made his first appearance this winter in a major competition, going clean in a schooling round  in a five star speed class in which Kent Farrington on Greya was also clean but slow in another schooling round.

Both these horses are being prepared as their riders will vie for a place on the Paris Olympic team.

 

JIMMY TORANO on Laskano continued his winning record in the  $25,000 USHJA International Derby, held on the grass derby field at Equestrian Village on Saturday afternoon.

Jimmy Torano on Laskano (Photo by Sportfot)In a hunt & go format, 44 horses competed in the single round derby course designed by Andy Christiansen of Ecuador.

Fences one through eight represented the “classic” portion of the course, while fences nine through 14 offered a “handy” track.

The day’s top scores went to Torano of Mohrsville, Pa., with a classic round score of 92 and a handy score of 91.5 for a hard-to-catch total of 183.5.

No stranger to the derby podium, Torano and Laskano have claimed numerous wins throughout their career together, including derbies throughout their tenure at WEF like the International Derby held during Premiere Week earlier this season.

“I would call him a derby specialist,” said Torano. “I can count on him every time. He never ever spooks at a jump. I can count on him for every inside turn, every handy landing, and I think we have a relationship where I know him like the back of my hand. If I call on him he's there for me.”

Torano was the only one to score a total in the 180s.

Kate Conover, of Pipersville, Pa.,on Caristo, was second with scores of 90.75 and 88.5 for a total of 179.25, and Greg Crolick on Chappy was third with scores of 91 and 88 for a total of 179.

“I was thinking really bold everywhere,” said Torano. “In the handy, there weren't a lot of places to be really handy, but I turned back tight on that straw jump, angled the double and I let him gallop to the big jump home. The nice thing about a big open field is that it allows for a good gallop out here and again with that horse you really don't have to protect anything, he’ll be there for you.”

As for Laskano, he’ll make a return for more derby action during WEF 11, but in the meantime he will continue to show under Torano’s son, JJ, in the junior hunter ranks.

“They're accumulating a lot of points, and the goal is to make it to Devon in the junior hunters,” said Torano. “The horse has been everywhere he's seen everything so I think he's lucky. He's well-mounted in general but to have this horse for his first junior hunter season is really exciting. Now we both owe a lot of gratitude to Isalou for letting us continue to ride such an incredible animal.