🇵🇹 BRUNO PICA DA CONCEIÇÃO & ISTAMBUL | 80.833% Ease of Handling | 2026 World Championship

Watch former World Champion Bruno Pica da Conceição of Portugal and Istambul deliver an exceptional Ease of Handling performance at the 2026 WAWE World Championship of Working Equitation in Jerez de la Frontera, Spain. 🥈 2ND PLACE — EASE OF HANDLING ⭐ Score: 80.833% Bruno and Istambul broke the 80% barrier on the World Championship stage, finishing second behind their Portuguese teammates Gilberto Filipe and Morante, who won the phase with 81.667%. Two Portuguese combinations over 80% at a World Championship made this an extraordinary display of Working Equitation at the highest level. A FORMER WORLD CHAMPION Bruno Pica da Conceição has a long history at the top of international Working Equitation. In 2014, Bruno and the Lusitano Trinco became Individual Working Equitation World Champions, helping Portugal also capture the Team World Championship. Even more impressively, Bruno and Trinco won Dressage, Manageability and Speed during that championship. A year earlier, Bruno and Trinco had also become 2013 European Champions, establishing Bruno as one of Portugal’s leading international Working Equitation riders. Fast forward 12 years, and Bruno was back on the World Championship podium — this time with Istambul. 🇵🇹 BRUNO & ISTAMBUL — 2026 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP 🥈 Dressage — 2nd — 77.531% 🥈 Ease of Handling — 2nd — 80.833% 🥉 Individual Overall — 3rd 🥇 Team — WORLD CHAMPIONS, Portugal Their performances in Dressage and Ease of Handling put Bruno and Istambul firmly among the strongest combinations of the championship and ultimately helped carry them to the Individual Bronze Medal. ABOUT ISTAMBUL Istambul is a 2013 grey Lusitano (PSL) stallion and Bruno’s international championship partner. Together, Bruno and Istambul have established an impressive championship record of their own. They earned Individual Silver at the 2024 European Working Equitation Championship before returning to the international podium at the 2026 World Championship. In Jerez, their 80.833% Ease of Handling score demonstrated the balance, collection, precision and experience of this partnership. WHAT IS EASE OF HANDLING? Ease of Handling — also known internationally as Manageability — is one of the most distinctive phases of Working Equitation. Horse and rider negotiate a course of obstacles based on the traditional skills required of working horses. Depending on the course, obstacles can include the gate, bridge, livestock pen, sidepass pole, bell corridor, slaloms, barrels and the iconic garrocha. Unlike the Speed phase, this isn’t about completing the course as quickly as possible. Judges evaluate the quality, accuracy, harmony and correctness with which each obstacle is performed. At the Masters level, riders must demonstrate a remarkable degree of collection, balance, precision and communication while smoothly linking one obstacle to the next. Bruno and Istambul’s 80.833% is a wonderful example of what Ease of Handling looks like at the very highest level. 🏆 2014 Individual World Champion — Bruno & Trinco 🥈 2026 World Championship Ease of Handling — Bruno & Istambul — 80.833% 🥉 2026 Individual World Championship Bronze 🥇 2026 Team World Champion — Portugal More than a decade after becoming Individual World Champion, Bruno Pica da Conceição continues to demonstrate why he remains one of the accomplished riders in international Working Equitation. 🎥 2026 WAWE World Championship of Working Equitation 📍 Jerez de la Frontera, Spain This is video 8 of 12 in the Portuguese World Championship Series. 🇺🇸 INTERESTED IN WORKING EQUITATION IN THE UNITED STATES? USA Working Equitation (USAWE) is the national organization for Working Equitation in the United States. General inquiries: info@usawe.org 👉 Find competitions, clinics, local groups, instructors, rules and information about getting started through USA Working Equitation https://usawe.org/ 📍 Looking for Working Equitation near you? Check out the USAWE Local & Regional Resources to connect with opportunities in your area. https://usawe.org/local/ USAWE also has an excellent Getting Started guide for riders who are brand new to the sport. (USA Working Equitation) https://usawe.org/getting-started/ Subscribe to Working Equitation Cross Training for more complete World Championship rides, rider profiles, training videos and coverage of Working Equitation.