Irish star Bertram Allen just misses out on Olympia hat-trick

Irish teenage show jumping sensation Bertram Allen just missed out on a hat-trick of victories at the London International Horse Show on Sunday when his horse Molly Malone V clipped a bar in the jump-off of the Longines FEI World Cup event.

The 19-year-old from Wexford recorded the quickest time in the jump-off of 36.81 seconds and was eventually placed seventh after six of the 13 riders went clear. Allen was second fastest in the first round behind British veteran John Whitaker.

Whitaker also had a fence down in the jump-off, with Marco Kutscher leading home a German one-two in a time of 37.66 from defending champion Daniel Deusser's 38.44. Sweden's Malin Baryard-Johnsson was third.

Allen, ranked 17th in the world before the show, already had two wins from the prestigious show at Olympia, taking the Christmas Masters on board Billy Twomey’s bay stallion Aminko N on Saturday as well as Friday’s speed class on Wild Thing L.