{"id":48703,"date":"2025-08-25T08:01:54","date_gmt":"2025-08-25T12:01:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ehorses.com\/magazine\/?post_type=news&#038;p=48703"},"modified":"2025-08-25T08:01:55","modified_gmt":"2025-08-25T12:01:55","slug":"dutch-delight-smolders-and-monaco-claim-home-victory-at-lgct-valkenswaard","status":"publish","type":"news","link":"https:\/\/www.ehorses.com\/magazine\/news\/dutch-delight-smolders-and-monaco-claim-home-victory-at-lgct-valkenswaard\/","title":{"rendered":"Dutch Delight: Smolders and Monaco Claim Home Victory at LGCT Valkenswaard"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t<div data-elementor-type=\"wp-post\" data-elementor-id=\"48703\" class=\"elementor elementor-48703\" data-elementor-post-type=\"news\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<section data-particle_enable=\"false\" data-particle-mobile-disabled=\"false\" class=\"penci-section penci-disSticky penci-structure-10 elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-42ad22aa elementor-section-full_width elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"42ad22aa\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-e-type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"penci-ercol-100 penci-ercol-order-1 penci-sticky-ct    elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-de4c278\" data-id=\"de4c278\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-387d2f36 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"387d2f36\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>In front of a packed, passionate Dutch crowd, Harrie Smolders and his 17-year-old partner Monaco delivered a fairy-tale performance\u2014securing their second Grand Prix win of the 2025 Longines Global Champions Tour in Valkenswaard.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Electric Atmosphere in Valkenswaard<\/h2>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">On Sunday, August 24, 2025, the Longines Global Champions Tour made one of its most memorable stops at the Longines Tops International Arena in Valkenswaard. The sold-out venue buzzed with energy as <strong>local hero Harrie Smolders<\/strong> took center stage in front of his home crowd.<\/p>\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">A Storybook Win for Smolders and Monaco<\/h2>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Harrie Smolders, riding the ever-consistent 17-year-old Monaco, achieved another <strong>fairy-tale moment<\/strong> by delivering <strong>the only double-clear round<\/strong> of the Grand Prix, sealing their second LGCT Grand Prix victory of the 2025 season. The crowd\u2019s roar resonated far beyond the arena lines, celebrating a stunning performance in what was clearly his moment.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In a tense showdown, only he and Belgium\u2019s <strong>Nicola Philippaerts advanced to the jump-off<\/strong>. Philippaerts, aboard Katanga vh Dingeshof, blazed through with breathtaking speed\u2014only 0.01 seconds faster\u2014but was cruelly denied by two rails down, giving the win to Smolders on home turf.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Visibly moved, Smolders praised his equine partner: \u201cHe only gets better the more he is aging\u2026 He is a <strong>once-in-a-lifetime horse<\/strong>,\u201d he shared, expressing deep gratitude for his team and Monaco\u2019s owners, Team Evergrate.<\/p>\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Redemption &amp; Championship Implications<\/h2>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A year earlier at this same venue, Smolders and Monaco finished agonizingly close, but second. This time, they returned stronger, writing a perfect turnaround in front of the home fans. Despite triumphing in Valkenswaard, the coveted<strong> Golden Ticket to the LGCT Super Grand Prix<\/strong> went to Philippaerts as Smolders had already secured his spot with a previous win in Cannes.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Belgian star <strong>Gilles Thomas completed the podium<\/strong> in third, delivering a blistering first round with just one rail down to extend his lead in the overall championship standings\u2014a dominant display in a sensational season.<\/p>\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Looking Ahead<\/h2>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">With Valkenswaard behind them, the LGCT now shifts focus toward the final stretch of the season\u2014beginning with the <strong>next leg in Riesenbeck, Germany<\/strong> (September 11\u201314). The championship race remains wide open as Smolders, Philippaerts, Thomas, and other top contenders charge toward the season\u2019s finale.<\/p>\n<p><br \/><em>Source:<a href=\"https:\/\/www.worldofshowjumping.com\/LGCT-events\/Harrie-Smolders-and-Monaco-light-up-Valkenswaard-with-second-Longines-Global-Champions-Tour-Grand-Prix-win-of-2025.html\"> worldofshowjumping.com<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In front of a packed, passionate Dutch crowd, Harrie Smolders and his 17-year-old partner Monaco&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":129,"featured_media":48708,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[209],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-48703","news","type-news","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v28.3 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>LGCT Valkenswaard: Smolders &amp; Monaco Take the Win<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"LGCT Valkenswaard \u2013 Harrie Smolders and Monaco thrill Dutch crowd with Grand Prix victory \u25ba Find out more now!\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" 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