JOIN USWith a consistent season behind him, Ashish Limaye emerged the open category champion in the Equestrian Premier League which concluded at the Embassy International Riding School (EIRS) here in Bengaluru on Sunday.
Limaye from Pune, representing EIRS, was among the top three riders throughout the season, which started in June, during the 10th edition of the EPL and finished with a total haul of 55 points.
Limaye, a trainer at the EIRS and a mechanical engineer by education, came back into the sport following a five-year break to finish his education and managed to impress enough in the previous edition of the EPL that the EIRS came calling.
Although the initial decision was a hard one, it’s one that he feels has been vindicated with the title here.
“It’s a proud feeling. This is my second year taking part in the EPL. Last year I had my own set-up in Pune and was getting to know the new horses. This year, with EIRS, all the new horses were performing well. It’s all about the connection we develop because we both have to pull each other out of tough situations sometimes,” said the 25-year-old.
Basavaraju S (EIRS) came a distant second with 24 points, four ahead of V Vikas Kumar of RERS.
Now with a crown under his belt, Limaye is keen to progress to the next round with Asian Games and Olympics firmly in his dreams.
“This year is obviously Fouaad’s (Mirza) year. But of course, the Olympics is something that I think about. Next year, hopefully, I should move into international competitions,” he remarked.
In the junior category, Tiyasha Vathul of Chennai Equitation Centre took the crown with a haul of 41 points. He also won the feature event knock out of 100-105 cm show jumping that was held on Sunday. Malhaar Nimbalkar (32) and Shashank Kanumuri (29) finished the top three.
In the children’s category, Geethika Tikkishetty (EIRS) took the crown with 28 points, narrowly outscoring team-mate Anika Rane by one point. Aswin Va (URB) was third with 22 points.
Results: Open Category (120-125cm show jumping): Ashish Limaye (EIRS) 55 points, 1; Basavaraju S (EIRS) 24 points, 2; V Vikas Kumar (RERS) 20 points, 3.
Junior Category (100-105 cm show jumping): Tiyasha Vathul (CEC) 41 points, 1; Malhaar Nimbalkar (EIRS) 32 points, 2; Shashank Kanumuri (EIRS) 29 points, 3.
Children Category (80 cm show jumping): Geethika Tikkishetty (EIRS) 28 points, 1; Anika Rane (EIRS) 27 points, 2; Aswin Va (URB) 22 points, 3.