The International Jumping Riders Club since 1977 is the voice of the showjumping riders from around the world.
The International Jumping Riders Club since 1977 is the voice of the showjumping riders from around the world.
12 March 2017, 's-Hertogenbosch, The Netherlands – In one of the most dramatic Grand Prix in Indoor Brabant's long history, Leopold van Asten riding VDL Groep Zidane N.O.P. today won the Rolex Grand Prix. Established in 1967, and celebrating its 50th anniversary this year, this leading show has a long history of attracting the very best riders, and with 12 of the World’s Top 20 taking part, 2017 proved to be a sporting classic which resulted in Dutch riders also taking second and third place.
Since its foundation 50 years ago, Indoor Brabant has focussed on delivering not only world-class sport, but also creating an infrastructure based around tradition and a love of horses. Rolex extended its long-term partnership with the show in 2014 and Indoor Brabant has now built on its reputation as being one of the best indoor shows on the calendar. This year the show enjoyed 60,000 spectators over the four days of competition.
This shared approach to absolute perfection in the sport has been recognized globally and from 2018, Indoor Brabant will become the fourth equestrian Major and join CHIO Aachen, Spruce Meadows ‘Masters’ and CHI Geneva as a stage of the Rolex Grand Slam of Show Jumping.
Rolex’s support of show jumping dates back more than half a century. The prestigious Swiss watch brand’s close and long-standing association with equestrianism demonstrates its appreciation of a domain in which fair play, equality, horsemanship and tradition highlight superior skill, accuracy and achievement. From Pat Smythe, the greatest female show jumper ever to represent Britain and Rolex’s first equestrian Testimonee in 1957, to Scott Brash, the only rider in history to win three consecutive Majors in the Grand Slam in September 2015, Rolex continues to support riders in the three Olympic disciplines of show jumping, dressage and eventing, all of which demonstrate qualities of excellence and perfection.
Leading brand of the Swiss watch industry, Rolex, headquartered in Geneva, enjoys an unrivalled reputation for quality and expertise the world over. Its Oyster and Cellini watches, all certified as Superlative Chronometers for their precision, performance and reliability, are symbols of excellence, elegance and prestige. Founded by Hans Wilsdorf in 1905, the brand pioneered the development of the wristwatch and is at the origin of numerous major watchmaking innovations, such as the Oyster, the first waterproof wristwatch, launched in 1926, and the Perpetual rotor self-winding mechanism invented in 1931. Rolex has registered over 400 patents in the course of its history. A truly integrated and independent manufacturing company, Rolex designs, develops and produces in-house all the essential components of its watches, from the casting of the gold alloys to the machining, crafting, assembly and finishing of the movement, case, dial and bracelet. Rolex is also actively involved in supporting the arts, sports, exploration, the spirit of enterprise, and the environment through a broad palette of sponsoring activities, as well as philanthropic programmes.