Rachel Proudley Defends LeMieux Puissance Title with Easy Boy de Laubry Z
Britain’s Rachel Proudley successfully defended her LeMieux Puissance title after producing the only clear round at a towering 2.21m (7ft 3in) aboard Easy Boy de Laubry Z at the 2025 LeMieux Puissance.
The 20-year-old rider and Graham Ward’s 11-year-old Belgian Warmblood delivered a composed and confident performance across five rounds of jumping, ultimately standing alone as the sole combination to clear the final height in front of a packed home crowd.
“He is so brave and I can trust him. However, the first few rounds he was a little too brave, but his best round was the fifth round when he really listened to me,” said Proudley.
“When you are jumping the wall on a horse like Easy Boy – it is an amazing feeling, I never worry. Tonight was the biggest we have jumped and maybe the sky is the limit!
“Going into the arena can be nerve-wracking but he is such an amazing horse it feels so easy. The wall comes up so quickly and then you hear the roar of the crowd as you land, and you hear them standing on their feet and clapping – it’s fantastic.”
Easy Boy de Laubry Z has become a familiar name in Puissance competitions over the past year. Away from the showjumping arena, the gelding hunts regularly with the Hurworth as whipper-in and has also led the hound parade at the Royal Yorkshire Show.
Second place went to Britain’s Nathan Bull riding Casaltonia, a nine-year-old Oldenburg mare. The pair were unlucky to fall on landing after clearing the penultimate height and subsequently withdrew from the final round.
“After the fall I am glad that Casaltonia is OK,” said Bull.
“We pecked on landing and she lost her footing and I went over the handle bars. I have done three Puissances and every time she has just got better and better so I am delighted with her performance.”
Ireland’s Derek McCoppin, riding Explosief’s Legacy, shared third place with fellow Irish rider Andrew Hodgins on Shanaclough Luichew.
A total of 13 combinations contested the class, including former winner Joseph Trunkfield, who finished fifth with Locomotion.
