Wizolympics 2016: Hippogriff Show Jumping Final!
Yesterday, France wowed the crowd with a stunning performance in the qualifier event to come out in the lead in the Hippogriff Show Jumping competition. The final event today has Canada, France, and the United Kingdom competing to decide who will get the Galleon, Sickle, and Knut.
Due to the ferocious competition between the countries, we only saw a taster of what these talented witches and wizard are capable of. In training, Wizolympic officials had to burst into the arena to contain an explosion that sent colored sparks into the sky. Each of the competitors has been given an official warning after these “unexplained fireworks” were broadcast on multiple Muggle websites.
Let’s recap the rules of the qualifying event!
- Each witch or wizard must approach the hippogriff and follow etiquette to allow the competitor to continue with the task.
- The competitor then must complete a magically enhanced acrobatic routine over the hippogriff.
- The competitor shall then mount the hippogriff and perform an acrobatic jumping routine on the hippogriff as the creature flies around the designated arena.
- All contestants are marked out of 10 for each section of the competition.
- The competitors must use the Ministry-provided hippogriff allocated to them on the day of the event.
United Kingdom – Wilkie Abbott
Mr. Abbott burst into the arena looking more determined than a house-elf with a pile of laundry to do. An excited hush came over the arena as he approached the hippogriff. With a nod to the adoring crowd, he centered his attention to the beast. He stepped toward the hippogriff and took a deep bow to begin his routine. The hippogriff appeared to question whether to bow back but decided against any internal dialogue and bowed back. Without waiting a further second, Mr. Abbott used the Water-Making Spell to rain over the performance and cast multiple charms to change the color of the water raining down. He then proceeded to complete a stunning acrobatic routine over the hippogriff, shooting rainbows out of his wand. He skillfully used his last jump to land directly on the hippogriff and flew through the air, leaving a trail of stardust behind him!
In what can only be described as a blur of movement, the crowd gasped at the display and erupted into cheers as he landed the hippogriff.
Ground event – 10/10 Flying event – 9/10
France – Florence Javnier
Yesterday, Florence Javnier flew into the lead and became the favorite to win the Galleon in this event. Mr. Abbott’s fantastic display had warmed up the crowd, and as Ms. Javnier walked into the arena, she was met with a chorus of cheers. Ms. Javnier was able to command a control over the hippogriff in a way that exuded confidence. The French competitor used beautiful charmwork to create a fairy tale forest around the arena; with each jump, she cast a new spell that added to the beautiful forest growing around her! The crowd was delighted with the performance, but there was one problem with her stunning routine. The hippogriff in question became distracted by a movement in the newly created forest and took off at a gallop! Stunned, Ms. Javnier tried her very best to control the hippogriff and coax the creature back down to the ground for her to mount it and continue with the flying portion of the event but to no avail. A hushed silence came over the crowd as Ms. Javnier sat sobbing on the ground of the arena. One of the officials took it upon herself to enter the arena and comfort the competitor and escort her away from the scene. It looks as though that’s the end of Ms. Javier’s golden dreams in this Wizolympics.
Ground event – 10/10 Flying event – 0/10
Canada – Nicole Goldthread
The final competitor today was Canadian Nicole Goldthread. Yesterday, she wowed the crowd with her hippogriff taming skills, so we were expecting a lot from her today. It’s safe to say that we weren’t disappointed! Ms. Goldthread took the decision today to showcase her superb creature skills with minimal magic. It is clear that she had a deep understanding of these fantastic beasts and chose to use this to her advantage. Instead of the normal jumps over the hippogriff, she persuaded the creature to lift various limbs and use these to create an unusual display. The real crowd-pleaser was when she coaxed the beast to stand on its rear legs and used this position of the beast to mount and soar into the next part of her routine. She used a snow charm to trace her movements in the air so that snow fell from under the hippogriff. As the crowd cheered her along, the creature also appeared to be enjoying the display and was in tune with every movement she made. In a final flourish of jumps, spins, and backward flips, she landed the beast down on the arena floor. The crowd jumped to their feet and shot sparks into the sky to show their enjoyment of the display.
Ground event – 10/10 Flying event – 10/10
The Galleon goes to Canada, the Sickle to the United Kingdom, and the Knut to France!
