The $75,000 Voltaire National Grand Prix on Sunday, September 6, was the cherry on top of an action-packed HITS Hudson Valley Championship Week. Representing the culmination of a summer-long series of incredible sport, the long list of class highlights has featured a CSI3* division, a World Champion Hunter Rider (WCHR) designation, four $25,000 hunter derbies, the Arion Sellier Equitation Classic — which included a $25,000 trainer bonus, and the highly anticipated $300,000 ClipMyHorse.TV Hunter Classic Final. Closing out competition in the Douglas Elliman Grand Prix Stadium for the week, it was JJ Torano (USA) that claimed one final blue ribbon, this time aboard I Am Inge.
Esteemed FEI Level 4 course designer Bernardo Costa Cabral (POR) set the last track of the week for the 21 horse-and-rider combinations. Perhaps his trickiest test yet, only four duos managed to jump fault-free to advance to the jump-off.
Stella Wasserman withdrew her mount Tick a Lu, the nine-year-old Irish Sport Horse mare (Luidam x Clinton), from the jump-off, giving her the fourth place ribbon and leaving three remaining contenders to vie for the top prize. Therefore, it was Christian Coyle (IRL) to set the pace as the first to tackle the short course with Ballyoskill Big Bucks, the 13-year-old Irish Sport Horse gelding (Royal Concorde x Lux Z Z) owned by Elan Farm. Though the time was good in 40.941 seconds, the pair incurred an unfortunate rail to pick up a four-fault score. Then it was Torano’s turn. The young athlete, 16, guided I Am Inge to a speedy clear performance in 39.897 seconds for the lead. Laura Chapot (USA) did her best to challenge Torano with Ginola, her own 10-year-old Selle Français gelding (Otangelo x Chacco-Blue), but 12 faults and a time of 44.340 seconds would see her settle for third. Coyle would end up in the reserve spot, while it was once again Torano that ran away with the win.
“I knew Laura [Chapot] was coming behind me, and she’s always quick, so I wanted to put enough pressure on,” noted Torano. “I saw Christian [Coyle] go, and he did five strides up the first line. We questioned it for a second, but my dad told me to stick to my plan and just curve the six strides instead of trying to match the five Christian did. So, that’s what I did, and I ended up being able to turn really tight back to the third jump. Everything else came up pretty well, and luckily, it worked out in my favor.”
Torano has been partnered with the 10-year-old Holsteiner mare (Uriko x Clearway) since the beginning of the 2026 year, and already the pair have tallied some impressive placings together, really heating up over the summer season. Now with a win in the $75,000 Voltaire National Grand Prix over Labor Day Weekend, they have effectively finished off summer and started fall with a bang.
“I have to thank her owner Ilan Ferder; he really helps me out and gives me a horse to ride almost every year,” explained Torano of how he got the ride on “Inge.” “I know Inge very well; she’s an incredible horse and I’ve gotten really confident with her. We’re very comfortable with each other, and she’s right with me when we go fast, so a lot of credit goes to her as well.
“I have great horses and I’m really grateful for the horses and team behind me,” he concluded. “Obviously, none of this would be possible without them.”
With that, the HITS Hudson Valley Championship Week has come to a close. Competition resumes on Wednesday, September 9, for The League National Finals, presented by Marshall & Sterling Insurance, and then returns for the two-week Fall Series on Wednesday, September 30. For full results, please visit www.showmanagementsystem.com.
