MIAMI Beach in Florida provided its unique setting for the Longines Global Champions Tour at the weekend and the venue is sure to have added to the memories made by Michael Duffy from Co Galway. Duffy had an incredible weekend of success, winning Saturday’s five-star 1.60m Longines Global Champions Tour Grand Prix with Claptonn Mouche, as well as being on the winning Rome Gladiators team in the Global Champions League on Friday evening, jumping a crucial clear round with the 12-year-old gelding!

From the 38 starters over the first round of the Grand Prix course, featuring some of the world’s best horse and rider combinations, only nine jumped clear to get through to the jump-off, where Duffy was accompanied by two other Irishmen, namely Shane Sweetnam on RR Combella and Michael Pender on the Irish Sport Horse HHS Calais (by Cavalier Royale (HOLST) out of MHS OBOS Cruise (ISH) by OBOS Quality (OLD)), bred by Ita Brennan.