Category Archives: FEI

FEI World Cup Finals Set to Begin in The Netherlands

Margie Engle topped the North American East Coast League standings. (Photo by Sportfot)

Lexington, KY – The U.S. contingent arrives in ‘s-Hertogenbosch, The Netherlands with expectations of strong performances at the 2012 FEI World Cup Finals. In total, 11 riders have travelled to Holland to compete in the most prestigious indoor competition of the year. The United States will be represented by two dressage riders in the Reem Acra FEI World Cup Dressage Final, while nine jumpers will contest the Rolex/FEI World Cup Final. The Finals will run April 17-22 at the Indoor Brabant.

Reem Acra FEI World Cup Dressage Final

Both Jan Ebeling and Shawna Harding make a return trip the Reem Acra FEI World Cup Dressage Final, after having impressed in 2011. For Ebeling (Moorpark, CA) this will be the third time he has competed Rafalca in the Finals, they also competed in 2009 and 2011. They head to ‘s-Hertogenbosch on the heels of second place finishes at the Mid-Winter Dressage Festival and in the $5,000 FEI Rancho Valencia Grand Prix Freestyle. After making their World Cup debut last year, Harding (Aiken, SC) and Come On III have improved throughout the 2011/2012 season and are poised for a strong result.

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David Marcus Leads Canadians in Sweep of Intermediaire 1 at WEF Wellington Dressage Nations Cup CDIO-3*

David Marcus and Chrevi's Capital

Wellington, FL – April 14, 2012 – David Marcus and Chrevi’s Capital led the Canadians in a sweep of the top three places in the FEI Intermediaire 1 at the WEF Wellington Dressage Nations Cup CDIO-3*, presented by Stillpoint Farm, at the Global Dressage Festival (GDF) Stadium show grounds on Saturday afternoon.

Marcus’ score of 69.211% was followed closely by that of fellow Canadians Chris Von Martels aboard Udon P with a 67.974% and Diane Creech on Hallmark with a score of 66.132%.

“My horse was more confident and relaxed today,” said Marcus.  “The test rode better; I was very happy with him.  Yesterday was not his best day, I think it was because of Friday the 13, so for him to come back and be so great today really pleased me.”

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US Teams Win and Take Third at FEI Dressage Nations Cup in Florida

Christopher Hickey and Witness Hilltop earned the top score at the Intermediaire I Freestyle (Susan J. Stickle)

Wellington, FL – Two U.S. Dressage teams competed in the Intermediaire I Freestyle Saturday night at the WEF Wellington Dressage Nations Cup CDIO 3* presented by Stillpoint Farm. Both went home with medals.

Helped by three of the night’s top seven scores, the first U.S. team beat out their American counterpart, a team from Europe, and two teams from Latin America to capture the FEI Nations Cup crown. The team was led by Christopher Hickey riding Hilltop Farm’s Witness Hilltop. The pair kept their momentum from Friday’s Prix St. Georges and scored a competition high 71.425%. Caroline Roffman and Pie scored 70.050%, Shelley Francis and Patricia Stemple’s Doktor 68.650%, Devon Kane and Diamante Farm’s Destiny 67.525% and together they edged out a victory on Saturday night. With a final score of 210.125 (the lowest score from teams of four riders was dropped) the first US team beat out the European team by less than one whole point.

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News from the 2012 Adequan FEI North American Junior/Young Rider Championships

Winners from NAJYRC 2011 (Brant Gamma)

Lexington, KY – Less than four months before the Opening Ceremonies for the 2012 Championships, planning is already well underway. Five disciplines (a total of 9 championships for juniors and young riders) will take part in the only FEI Championship to be held annually in North America. This year the event will run July 17-22, 2012.

Schedule:

The Tentative Competition Schedule for competitors is available here: http://www.youngriders.org/Schedule.aspx, and as soon as the Draft Schedules get approved by the FEI they will be posted. We have made some changes this year to the schedule, as we are sharing the Kentucky Horse Park with Breyerfest, not with the Kentucky Summer Horse Show.

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Cornelissen and Parzival on the Trail of a Double at Den Bosch

The Netherlands' Adelinde Cornelissen and Jerich Parzival will defend their title on home ground at the Reem Acra FEI World Cup Dressage Final in 's-Hertogenbosch next week (18-22 April). Photo: FEI/Karl-Heinz Freiler.

Lausanne (SUI), 12 April 2012 – Adelinde Cornelissen will be hoping to reclaim the Reem Acra FEI World Cup Dressage series title on home turf in ‘s-Hertogenbosch, The Netherlands next week. This Dutch city, which played host to the very first FEI World Cup Dressage Final back in 1986, will welcome 18 competitors from 11 nations to the 2011/2012 finale which begins on Tuesday 18 April.

Historically, riders from The Netherlands have dominated this series, with 11 wins from 26 seasons, and Cornelissen is, undoubtedly, the one they all have to beat this time around. She has been all but untouchable since scooping the Reem Acra title in Leipzig (GER) 12 months ago, going on to claim Grand Prix Special and Freestyle gold, along with team bronze, at the FEI European Dressage Championships in Rotterdam (NED), last August. And her equine partner, the big, bold chestnut Jerich Parzival, showed he has lost none of his edge when sweeping to victory on both of their appearances on the Reem Acra Western European League circuit over the winter months, swamping the opposition with strong scores at both Mechelen (BEL) in December and again in Amsterdam (NED) in January.

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Dressage Teams from Around the World Assemble to Challenge for Nations Cup Title in Florida

Lexington, KY – Eight teams from around the world are preparing to represent their countries and regions at the WEF Wellington Dressage Nations Cup CDIO3* presented by Stillpoint Farm in Wellington, FL this week and challenge for the $35,000 FEI Nations Cup title. The United States, Canada, Australia, Latin America and Europe will all be represented in small tour competition.

Comprising the United States team are four riders in the midst of very good 2012 seasons. Chris Hickey will ride Hilltop Farm’s Witness Hilltop with whom he recently won the Intermediaire I and Prix St. Georges at the Wellington Classic Spring Challenge. Shelly Francis will compete upon Patricia Stemple’s Doktor, Devon Kane upon Diamante Farm’s Destiny, and Caroline Roffman will look to continue her success with Pie. Roffman owns Pie and together they swept the FEI Prix St. Georges and FEI Intermediaire I classes at the $15,000 Wellington Dressage Classic CDI3* in March. Chef d’Equipe for the U.S. team will be Eva Salomon.

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Germany Poised to Set New Record at Rolex FEI World Cup Jumping Final in Den Bosch

Christian Ahlmann will defend his title at the 2011/2012 Rolex FEI World Cup Jumping Final. Photo: FEI/Karl-Heinz Frieler.

Lausanne (SUI), 11 April 2012 – In the long and distinguished history of the Rolex FEI World Cup Jumping series, no country has ever won the title on more than four consecutive occasions.  American riders dominated throughout the early years with seven victories over the first nine seasons, including four between 1980 and 1983, but as the 37 representatives from 19 nations gather at ‘s-Hertogenbosch (NED) next week for the 34th annual decider, it seems Germany is poised to break the mould.

Already with the greatest number of wins to their credit, a total of nine since Ludger Beerbaum’s success with the great mare Ratina Z in Gothenburg (SWE) back in 1993, German competitors have held a firm grip on the coveted crown in recent years. They have been denied only twice since Otto Becker (Dobel’s Cento) held the trophy aloft in Leipzig (GER) 10 years ago, and for the last four seasons they have been all but unstoppable.

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CBS Sports Network Will Broadcast Equestrian Events during Primetime April 10th and April 17th

Lexington, KY – Over 45 million viewers will have the chance to watch world class show jumping in their living rooms this coming Tuesday, April 10th when CBS Sports Network broadcasts the FEI Nations Cup at 8pm ET. The event, which was held on March 2nd, features the world’s best equestrian jumpers representing their countries in an exciting team competition. Ten countries fielded teams of four riders this year including the United States, Canada, Great Britain, Germany and Ireland.

The Following Tuesday, April 17th CBS Sports Network will broadcast the final round of the 2012 USEF National Show Jumping Championships and Selection Trials for the U.S. Show Jumping Team at 8pm ET. The 2012 USEF National Show Jumping Championship is a four round competition that began on March 21st and ended March 24th. CBS Sports will air the determining round of that competition which featured strong performances from Reed Kessler, Margie Engle, Mario Deslauriers, Rich Fellers and other premier American riders.

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Nine U.S. Jumping Riders Head to the 2012 Rolex/FEI World Cup Final

Lexington, KY – The United States Equestrian Federation (USEF) will be well represented at the Rolex/FEI World Cup Final April 17-22 as nine American show jumpers will head to ‘s-Hertogenbosch, The Netherlands for the 2012 Final.

After 30 World Cup Qualifying Events throughout the 2011-2012 season the following riders have qualified in this order in their respective Leagues:

East:

Margie Engle (Wellington, FL) will ride Gladewinds, Griese, Garber, and Hidden Creek Farm’s Indigo
Indigo is a 12-year-old Dutch Warmblood gelding

Michelle Spadone (Kennett Square, PA) will ride Almi Venture’s Uitteraard and Morgan Hill Partners’ Uwwalon
Uitteraard is an 11-year-old KWPN gelding
Uwwalon is an 11-year-old KWPN gelding

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Star-Studded Line-Up Emerges from North American FEI World Cup Jumping Qualifying Leagues

Richard Spooner and Cristallo won the North American West Coast FEI World Cup Jumping qualifying series and will line out at 's-Hertogenbosch. Photo: FEI/Kit Houghton.

Lausanne (SUI), 4 April 2012 – The 2011/2012 North American FEI World Cup Jumping qualifying leagues concluded last weekend at Tampa in Florida (USA), yielding a star-studded selection of contenders for the 34th Rolex FEI World Cup Jumping Final at ‘s-Hertogenbosch, The Netherlands which is now only two weeks away.

Two separate leagues take place on the North American continent. The East Coast league began at Blainville in Quebec (CAN) last July, while the West Coast league kicked off at another Canadian fixture, Langley CSI2*-W, a month earlier. A total of four groups of athletes can qualify from this region – two from Canada, another two from Mexico, three from the USA West Coast League and seven from the USA East Coast series. And many of the riders who have made the cut for this season’s decider are big names that are likely to make their presence felt when the action gets underway at the Brabanthalle on 19 April.

Continue reading Star-Studded Line-Up Emerges from North American FEI World Cup Jumping Qualifying Leagues