The 2023 Longines Global Championship Tour Features Show Jumpers, Watches, And Luxury Style

Watchmaker, Longines, hosts the 2023 Longines Global Champions Tour, which happens to be the biggest horse show that showcases the best and most prized horses and riders in a competition that takes teams globally. As equestrian culture continues to breach the fashion industry, such brands as Siegelman Stable push the idea of a novel sport influencing mainstream spaces, like golf has been over the years.

Longines has had an organic relationship with fashion’s most prestigious brands and some of the finest manufacturers of traditional riding gear, like the brand PS of Sweden. Fans of the sport gathered at the pop-up arena wear casual Miami attire with fedora hats to block out the sun, while the spectators located beachside seem to have wandered from a day a the beach sporting swimwear.

The Longines Global Champions Tour hosts a list of riders from all over the globe, and in locations like France, Switzerland, Germany, Italy, Spain, and recently in the city of Miami Beach, United States, from April 14-16, and heading to Mexico City, Mexico next, on April 20-23. Over three continents, 13 countries, 16 picturesque destinations, and two championship competitions, with the teams’ division referred to as the Longines Global Championship League. More than $36 million in prize winnings bring in crowds from all over the world. Miami brought together equestrian culture and beachside leisure.

Jan Tops, the founder and president of the Global Champions Tour, recalls starting the tour in 2006 with a partner. Tops would expand the league a decade later, solidifying the competition as world-class. “I started this in 2006 as a founder. We added the league in 2016, which means more teams. You can compare the individual rankings and the teams’ rankings.”

“We have been in an approximately nine-year partnership with Longines. They had originally been very supportive of the horse and equestrian culture for decades. They wanted to have the best product there, so they chose the Global games to partner with. This year we’ve extended our partnership for another five years.”

Familiar last names participate and attend the Longines Global Champions Tour, like Georgina Bloomberg, Jessica Springsteen, Eve Jobs, Jennifer Gates, Arianna Rockefeller, and Giselle Bundchen, showing up at the Miami edition. Besides the celebrities, plenty of riders have risen to the ranks in the championship show jumping competition circuit, flying into each destination and competing for the grand prize.

With the horses being the main attraction, riders naturally found style within their riding jacket, boots, and white riding pants required to participate. Brands like H&M have dressed their riding team in some of the most vibrant jackets over the years, with the jackets being the distinguishing feature in identifying riders and their teams, changing the design every six months.

Top riders like Jessica Springsteen wore Tommy Hilfiger and Ralph Lauren while riding beachside in the Miami heat, and Olympian and two-time tour champion Edwina Tops-Alexander in Loro Piana, formerly sponsored by Gucci, debuted her equestrian-inspired jewelry line, TOTI. “I started the brand five months ago,” Tops-Alexander explains.

“I’ve been working on it for a couple of years. The idea came from my best horse – a French horse. His name is Tito, and Tati was his nickname. TOTI is really about him. He had an accident at three years old – a truck ran into him. No one ever believed in him and he went on to do amazing things for me. I did two Olympics, and two championships won. I wanted to do something like equestrian jewelry, versatile enough to wear every day.”

Most riders, like Peter Lutz, relegate to tradition with their equestrian wardrobe and accessories, donning the names of equestrian sporting brands on their horse riding gear and uniforms. New York native born in Queens, Peter Lutz takes a simple approach to his equestrian style, sharing his interest in a monochromatic palette. As a rider, Lutz shares a similar taste to his athletic uniform.

He says, “It’s important to wear boots with a heel as these allow you to properly and safely place your foot in the stirrup. Sneakers are a don’t! It’s best to wear close-fitting clothes, as anything loose or flapping could startle a horse.”

“My favorite fashion brands are Theory, J. Lindeberg, Adidas, and Lacoste,” Lutz suggests. “These are comfortable, streamlined, athletic, professional-looking, and durable.”

The sponsorship from Longines has been synonymous with the show jumping world, carrying the tour with prestige. “The contribution of sponsors like Longines to the equestrian community is very special, and we riders are incredibly fortunate to have such committed partners in the growth and development of our beloved sport,” Lutz describes. He won First place at the Longines/FEI World Cup Jumping in Las Vegas, where he was awarded a watch as part of his prize.

“I have a Longines watch that I won at the Las Vegas national horse show. It was awarded to the winner of the World Cup qualifier Grand Prix. I love the watch because it is practical and beautiful, and it reminds me of a very special moment in my life, my first major international win. Riders often wear watches when riding. I personally like to wear my Longines watch.”

Co-founder of the Lutz-Manfredi stable located in North Salem, New York and Wellington, Florida, Peter Lutz, appreciates the support of brands fostering the equestrian aesthetic. It is a natural part of the sport, as is horseback-riding a mutual relationship between humans and animals.

Lutz concludes with a sentiment on the tour stating, “It has been incredible to be at Longines Global Champions Tour Miami, riding with the other riders from around the world. Some of the best international riders were there, with their horses that we watch all the time, and it feels like you are part of the whole experience.”