Irish Olympian Shane Sweetnam and Coriaan van Klapscheut Z won their second Adequan® WEF Challenge Cup of the 2026 Winter Equestrian Festival (WEF) season in Thursday’s $116,100 CSI5* offering. The week’s first qualifier for the Rolex US Equestrian Open Grand Prix, a Rolex Series Event, saw Sweetnam lead a second-round face-off between seven pairs representing six different nations. WEF hosts 12 weeks of FEI competition—four of which are five-stars—running through March 29, in Wellington, FL.
Six of the world’s top ten show jumping athletes were among the 60 who lined up for Guilherme Jorge’s (BRA) course. Sweetnam—currently World No. 9—led the charge with his 10-year-old Zangersheide gelding (Comme Il Faut 5 x Lord Z Z) owned together with Voquest, LLC.
“Any win in the WEF is a big deal,” said Sweetnam, who won the Adequan® WEF Challenge Cup during Week 10, also aboard Coriaan van Klapscheut Z. “There were two plans for him this week—one to qualify, and two to win the class.”
With his qualification complete, Sweetnam has elected to pilot his Olympic mount, James Kann Cruz, in the Rolex US Equestrian Open Grand Prix on Saturday.
Stopping the second-round clock at 39.71 seconds, Sweetnam was one of only two double-clear rounds. Reigning European Champion and World No. 4 Richard Vogel (GER) was last to go and a notch too slow to match Sweetnam’s time. He settled for second in 40.53 seconds riding Cloudio, a 12-year-old Casall Ask x San Patrignano Cassini Holsteiner stallion owned by Vogel & Will Equestrian GmbH.
Pushed to third after cinching the fastest time (39.55 seconds)—but suffering an unfortunate rail—was Israel’s Daniel Bluman riding Abigail Wexner’s Hummer Z, a 12-year-old Zangersheide stallion (VDL Harley x Hemmingway).
“He’s brilliant, so consistent, especially now in the last six weeks. We’ve figured each other out, and we’re in contention for most classes,” said Sweetnam of Coriaan van Klapscheut Z. “I felt Coriaan could go clear and have a chance of winning, so I figured it was a good gamble. It keeps Gizmo [James Kann Cruz] fresh for Saturday night.”
The Rolex Series includes seven events—beginning in Wellington and culminating in Brussels—with the world’s top riders competing for the podium. The $1m Rolex US Equestrian Open Grand Prix kicks off the series during Saturday Night Lights on March 28. Thirty athletes from Thursday’s WEF Challenge Cup qualify for Saturday night.
Shane Sweetnam & Coriaan Van Klapscheut Z are presented as winners of the $116,100 Adequan® CSI5* WEF Challenge Cup Round 12. Photo ©Sportfot
“The Rolex finale at WEF is always a big deal,” continued Sweetnam, who dedicated Thursday’s win to his wife Ali after celebrating her birthday a day earlier. “There’s a real big grand prix feel about it—not just for America—but for really for the world. Now being a million dollars this year, it has even more. It’s a big part of the calendar every year for the best horses.”
For complete results from the $116,100 Adequan® CSI5* WEF Challenge Cup Round 12, click HERE.
Rolex Finale Week continues Friday in the $62,500 Bainbridge Companies CSI5* 1.50m Speed, where ten more qualifiers will join the starting order for the $1m Rolex US Equestrian Open Grand Prix. Visit WellingtonInternational.com for results, schedules, and wall-to-wall streaming.
Wellington International Press Release
Reporting from Wellington, FL: Simona Diale/International Horse Press
