LONDON, April 13 (Xinhua) -- America's Beezie Madden, one of just four women riders in the field of 37 starters, threw down the gauntlet to all the rest when galloping to victory in the opening speed competition at the Longines FEI World Cup jumping final 2018 in Paris on Thursday night.
The double Olympic gold medallist gave her 12-year-old stallion, Breitling LS, a spectacular ride, full of confidence, precision and determination to finish almost a second clear of runner-up Daniel Deusser of Germany.
Madden's compatriot, the relatively unknown Devin Ryan, was third going into Friday's second test just three points off the lead after the day's results were calculated into points.
Three-time title-holder Marcus Ehning of Germany finished fourth with Cornado NRW, while one of the most talked-about partnerships ahead of these finals, Sweden's Henrik von Eckermann and Toveks Mary Lou, are close behind in fifth.
The champion will be decided in Sunday's finale.
Madden was happy with her result having mastered the balance between speed and risk over the clever 13-fence course set by Spain's Santiago Varela better than all the rest.
"It's quite tense on the first day," she said. "It's a little bit of a juggling act, so when it all works out well it's a big relief."
Another American and defending champion McLain Ward fell victim to a tight turn to the penultimate double where HH Azur hit the first element, which added four seconds to their time and has left them in tenth place overall.
