KILKENNY’s Susan Fitzpatrick got off to a good start in Valencia, Spain, last week, winning Sunday’s seven-year-old final with the Irish Sport Horse gelding CBI Keatingstown Victory.

Bred by Aidan Carroll in Co Offaly, the Vittorio-sired gelding is the first foal out of the Diamant de Semilly mare Cenith M registered on IHR online. Fitzpatrick has produced the horse since a four-year-old, qualifying for the age classes at the Dublin Horse Show in 2018 and 2019.

Sunday’s 1.35m final saw a startlist of 25 start, with 15 of those making it through to the jump-off. Fitzpatrick produced the best of eight clear rounds in a time of 34.60 seconds, to see off Romanian runner-up Andrea Herck with Epsilon de Roulard (0/0 35.10).

CBI Keatingstown Victory is carrying his good form forward from 2020, when he finished the season in Royan, France, last November, with a victory in the six-year-old final.

Fitzpatrick also had a good result in the five-year-old final at the Spanish venue, slotting into second place with the German-bred Keatingstown Mister Cool (HH Messenger x Chacco-Blue), who was sourced by recently retired National Hunt jockey David Mullins as a four-year-old from the Paul Schockemöhle auction last year.

The pair were one of just four double clears in the class, breaking the beam in 40.82 seconds, behind French winner Paco Manadou Diouf with Galaxy Destiny’s Z (0/0 39.98).

In the two-star division, Fitzpatrick placed sixth in Sunday’s 1.35m Table A with a new horse, Greenforest Candy, an eight-year-old by Sligo Candy Boy who was bred by Michael Devaney. Produced by David Moran, he joined Keatingstown House Stud in December and the pair were clear in a time of 78.54 seconds.

Also in the line-up, in fourth place, was Limerick native Shane Carey with Callisto KS. Now based in Denmark, Carey guided the eight-year-old gelding to a clear in 72.70 seconds.

Carey was runner-up in Thursday’s two-star 1.40m. Riding Contenance 15, he was one of 15 clear rounds in 67.12 seconds to take the runner-up spot, and he also guided Ringwood Cassero to fourth place in a time of 72.23 seconds. Victory went to Portugal’s Mario Wilson Fernandes.