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Saint-Imier (Switzerland), Paris (France), December 1st 2012 – As Official Sponsor and Official Timekeeper of the Gucci Paris Masters, Longines had the great pleasure to present yesterday night the Longines Speed Challenge. This exciting event has been won by Roger Yves Bost (FRA) with Castle Forbes Cosma, in front of a very enthusiastic crowd.

Speed and precision are two words that perfectly describe this challenge. Roger Yves Bost with horse Castle Forbes Cosma have won the Longines Speed Challenge yesterday night at the Parc des Expositions, Paris Nord Villepinte. Gregory Wathelet (BEL) arrived second and Reed Kessler (USA) third. Created in 2010 by EEM World, the challenge facing competitors is to achieve the best time, with every bar knocked down adding a 2 second penalty. The winner is, therefore, the pairing that is both the quickest and the most precise. The format of the event ensures complete suspense, with the Longines Speed Challenge also being very attractive to the public, who can follow the time achieved by the competitors, in real time. Since they know the best time as the competitors leave the arena, each spectator can cheer on their favourite up to the end of the round.

Already Title Sponsor of the Longines Hong Kong Masters (February 28th - March 2nd, 2013), the second round of the Indoor Grand Slam Indoor Masters organized by EEM World after Paris and before New York, Longines decided to strengthen its involvement in equestrian sports.

Longines’ passion for equestrian sports began in 1878, when a timepiece was made with a jockey and his horse engraved. Since 1881, this watch was to be found on racecourses, having become extremely popular with jockeys and equestrian fans, in general. In 1926, for the first time, the brand was involved as timekeeper for the Official International Equestrian Competition of Geneva. Today, Longines’ involvement in equestrianism includes flat racing, jumps and endurance.

About the Indoor Masters Grand Slam

EEM World’s Indoor Masters Grand Slam competitions are unrivaled VIP events, each attracting the 30 best riders worldwide to compete for $1,000,000 in prize money. Similar to the Grand Slam in tennis, the Masters competitions are broadcasted to a global audience reaching more households than any other show jumping competition in the world, (500,000,000 households are reached). EEM World’s ongoing partnerships enable the Masters competitions to offer an unparalleled networking and social opportunity for worldwide elites, global institutions, luxury brands and industry VIPs. Hosted in the most influential financial and cultural capitals of Europe, Asia and the Americas, the Indoor Masters Grand Slam are designed to increase show jumping’s popularity and audience worldwide. Each Masters welcomes between 40,000 and 50,000 spectators to witness world-class competition and entertainment. The Masters Grand Slam Indoor guarantee a wide TV distribution and coverage on major international channels like Eurosport, Al Jazeera, CNN, BBC and CNBC and each event is broadcasted locally on Globosat, ESPN Star Sport and Sky. While being a top class event, charity also plays an important role. The Style & Competition benefits AMADE, the charity of HRH Princess Caroline of Hanover as well as Les Restos du Coeur, 1 Maillot Pour la Vie, les Secours Populaires, ... Legacy is also of great importance, as we want to develop sport at a local level by involving both youngsters and federations.



THE INDOOR MASTERS GRAND SLAM CALENDAR

The Gucci Paris Masters: November 30th to December 2nd 2012

The Longines Hong Kong Masters: February 28th to March 2nd 2013

The New York Masters: the first week of October starting in 2013