Tag Archives: Beezie Madden

*Featured/Spotlights, National Horse Show, Show Jumping

Madden Outguns Ward in Sensational Jump-Off at $250k CP World Cup Qualifier at NHS

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Beezie Madden and Cortes ‘C’.

Shawn Casady Captures Inaugural $65,000 Sleepy P Ranch & Deeridge Farms Under 25 Championship with Twister

Lexington, KY – November 1, 2014 – In front of a pumped up Saturday night crowd at the 131st National Horse Show in Lexington, Kentucky, Olympic teammates Beezie Madden and McLain Ward did battle once again. In this skirmish it was Madden and Cortes ‘C’ edging out Ward and Rothchild by a single second to claim the title in the $250,000 Canadian Pacific Grand Prix CSI4*-W, presented by the Harrison Family. Madden had the advantage of going last and ripped across the finish line in a sensational time of 34.71 seconds to nail down the win. Just minutes earlier, Ward and Rothchild had posted the top time of 35.73 seconds, but ended up settling for second place. Georgina Bloomberg and Juvina finished in third in 39.46 seconds.

Thirty-eight starters went to the post and were faced with a solid World Cup test with 13 numbered obstacles and 16 jumping efforts, designed by popular Brazilian course designer Guilherme Jorge. He used a triple combination early on at 5abc and a double later at 9ab. The triple caused plenty of problems at the top of the order and then once the riders began to solve that dilemma, fence 6, the tall CP vertical and 12, the very wide CP oxer coming home, began to take their toll. All in all though, faults were spread throughout the course and a snug time allowed added time faults to a number of score sheets, but none more heartbreaking than the single time infraction that prevented Laura Kraut and Andretti S from advancing to the dash for cash.

Tonight’s top finishers all had praise for Jorge’s tough, but fair, test.

“Today he really ratcheted up the test,” Ward noted. “I think it was an appropriate test for a World Cup. Three of the best horses in the class, in my opinion, near the top. So I think that was a really good result for this level of competition.”

Madden agreed. “I think he made it a bit more difficult today. I think he was a little restricted in the height in the prize list for the other classes. In this one he had a little bit more freedom, and I think it made for a good jump-off and a good result. It was a good class.”

“Thursday was very much on the soft side, but he learned the footing is good here; there are good horses here,” added Bloomberg. “Today he did a really good test which is the most important thing.”

Overall, eight horse and rider combinations mastered the first round course, totaling seven women and Ward, and all of the riders were from the United States. In fact, the highest placed foreign rider tonight was Beat Mandli of Switzerland with Antares F in 10th place.

Although the jump-off would prove to be one of the best we’ve seen in a long, long time, it didn’t start out that way. Over the shortened jump-off track, the first three to return all rolled the rail in the same fashion, at that same problematic fence #6. Brianne Goutal, the first to go clean in the first round with Nice de Prissey, had that rail and then one more to finish with eight faults in 38.856 seconds.

Kirsten Coe and Baronez had only the troublesome rail at fence 6 down to move ahead of Goutal with only four faults on her scorecard, in 40.54 seconds. Local favorite, Reed Kessler, finished with eight faults, but was faster than Goutal to move ahead of her in the order with Cylana in 37.53 seconds.

And then the fun began.

Candice King guided Kismet 50 to the first double clear of the night, much to the delight of the boisterous crowd on hand. King was clean and concise in a time 41.66 seconds, but in the end she would be nearly seven seconds off the winning pace. But, she certainly got the crowd buzzing.

And Georgina Bloomberg got them going even more. Making some neat turns with Juvina, Bloomberg galloped home almost two seconds faster than King in 39.46 seconds. “For me, my aim with her is to go for a nice slow clear and hopefully have that be good enough for a good ribbon,” Bloomberg said. “Today, I felt I could be a little quicker and take a shot at it. I also knew that realistically, she at her fastest is always going to be a little slower than Beezie and McLain at their fastest. So I knew if they didn’t pull any rails, I probably wouldn’t finish behind them,” she said.

McLain Ward and Rothchild
McLain Ward and Rothchild

McLain Ward and Rothchild were the next to enter the ring and from the start, Ward never let off the gas. He was at high speed the entire way around the eight fence track. Meeting every fence almost perfectly, Ward raced home almost four seconds faster than Bloomberg in 35.73 seconds. “I didn’t think I left a lot out there, but I wasn’t confident I was going to win either with Beezie coming behind me,” Ward admitted. “I have to say though, if I was in that position 100 times I would have ridden the same exact ground. With her coming behind me, I think I would have ridden the same round. Maybe if I had gone after her, I would have tried to do the impossible, but I did about all that I could. My horse doesn’t have quite as big a stride, but he jumped super.”

“Rothchild just keeps giving and giving,” he said. “I would have liked to have won, but I really can’t second guess anything that I did.”

Lillie Keenan and Pumped Up Kicks, in their race for tonight’s top prize, dislodged the rail at 8 on their way to a finish time of 38.82 seconds. She would end up fifth on the night.

That set the stage for Beezie Madden and her always ready to go partner, Cortes ‘C.’ Madden matched Ward’s track step for step, but Cortes, naturally, has the bigger stride. However, it was Madden’s approach to the final fence that really sealed the deal on tonight’s win. The pair raced home in 34.71 seconds, a second ahead of Ward and Rothchild. “I knew McLain was very fast. My husband John told me that. I knew that I would have to pull out all the stops. He also told me to take a risk and use his scope at the last fence. I think maybe I stretched it a little too far,” she laughed.

“He’s been amazing all year. I’m really happy that he came back and did well,” said the WEG Team and Individual Bronze medalist. “This is his first competition back in the states. I’m really happy he’s still on form and doing well.”

“He’s like a big puppy dog. He loves attention from people. He’ll put his head right in your lap. I think he’d love to be a lapdog in his next life,” she smiled. “He’ll let you know if he doesn’t like something though. He’ll make that very clear.”

Hunter Harrison, the CEO of Canadian Pacific and Chairman of the Board of the National Horse Show and sponsor of tonight’s event, said, “Let me congratulate Georgina and McLain and Beezie for an outstanding performance. It’s a pleasure for us to be able to sponsor a show of this prestige and for it to come off as well as it did. You can congratulate the course designer. He did a wonderful job because you see the cream came to the top here tonight. Three of the top riders in country and three of the top riders in the world,” he said. “We just feel very privileged at Canadian Pacific to be able to sponsor a wonderful event like this.”

Harrison then announced some very exciting news. “We made a commitment today to go through the 2016 National Horse Show as sponsors. We would probably go even further, except we have a policy that you cannot go beyond a CEO’s tenure. I’m out in 2017 and we’ll have to sell the new CEO that it’s a tradition that he should carry on,” he smiled.

Madden captured the Martha Jolicoeur Leading Lady Rider award and the Audi Leading Rider award for her efforts tonight, but more importantly, she bankrolled some valuable World Cup points as everybody is fighting for a spot at the World Cup Finals in Las Vegas next April. “My first goal is to qualify. Even though I had a good score today, I really only have planned to do seven qualifiers unless I get desperate and start scrambling around,” she said. “Seven scores count, so I need all those to be good really.”

Tonight was certainly a step in the right direction.

Madden and Ward will head to Toronto next. For Bloomberg, it’s wait and see. “I’m right on the cusp for Toronto. So I’ll have my bags packed and ready to go if I get the call the night before,” she said. “I’d love to go. Juvina has had a little rest now, and she felt fresh so I felt like I could make a little shot at it. Hopefully, I get into Toronto. If not, Paris is the next stop.”

Not a bad alternative.

Shawn Casady Moves Up the Ranks to Claim Inaugural $65,000 Sleepy P Ranch & Deeridge Farm Under 25 Championship

The final day of the $65,000 Sleepy P Ranch & Deeridge Farm Under 25 Championship at the 131st National Horse Show ultimately came down to two demanding rounds and an upset in the ranks as Shawn Casady and Twister made a comeback to seal the victory. Casady jumped from the fourth position to the first with a double clear today, finishing on a total of 6 penalties to lead the victory gallop for the inaugural championship.

Casady’s consistent efforts in the first two days of competition put him just behind the 18-year-old Michael Hughes and MacArthur. Hughes and MacArthur, owned by Christina Fried, led the standings going into the final day of competition, with day one and two class winners Wilton Porter and Kalvin Dobbs sitting in third and second respectively. With zero penalties to his name, Hughes entered the competition with the weight of the world on his shoulders.

MacArthur, a horse known for his foot speed, unfortunately had one rail during the opening round and continued into the second round with four penalties. A rub at the front rail of the tenth obstacle dropped him from the lead, leaving Casady to take the championship with six penalties overall.

“MacArthur is usually a horse that thrives off going a lot more, so I was a little bit surprised the first night when he went so well,” Hughes recounted. “Usually he can be a little bit spooky the first night, but he was great every round. He tried so hard. We made a few mistakes the last couple of rounds, being a little bit nervous. But other than that he was amazing all week.”

Hughes continued, “Going into the second round, I knew I couldn’t have a rail. I could have time faults, but MacArthur’s naturally a fast horse so I didn’t think I would. I thought it was going to be a great course for him. I was a bit surprised by the rail we had. I couldn’t have asked any more from him all week.”

Casady, a rider recently turned professional, was thrilled with his win aboard Twister, owned by Cavallo Farms, LLC. He trained with Ken and Emily Smith of Ashland Farm during his junior years, and his transition to professional rider has been smooth as he continues his relationship with their operation.

“As a junior I was always busy, kind of like a professional, catch riding and working for different people,” Casady said. “I have been trying to do more, ride more and get more classes like this. It’s been a really smooth transition. I’ve worked with Twister for a couple years now. The Spoglis own him – huge thanks to them for the opportunity to ride a real grand prix horse like that.”

Casady continued, “He likes to be ridden together with seat and contact. He’s not a small catty horse. You have to worry a little about the time allowed, but he thrives off the pace of it and it works.”

Third place finisher Nicole Bellissimo made a huge comeback after initially placing 17th on the opening day of competition. Although she consistently rode VDL Bellefleur to four clear rounds, her opening day put her into a low rank when she incurred time faults for her tidy round.

Bellissimo described, “I’ve had her since the end of her 6-year-old year, so even though she’s 8 years old right now, I know her extremely well. We’ve been stepping her up and down. She’s done some grand prix, won a 1.50m class at Bromont and jumped clear at New Albany. We let her tell us how she’s feeling and try not to push her too much.”

Casady admitted that the quality of horses was unbelievable, with the top ranked riders in the nation, 25 and younger, vying for the first annual championship.

“This championship is great!” Casady said. “It’s neat that they started it this year, and I’m excited to see where it goes. It is a really great program. I don’t think there was a bad horse in the class. Every round, every horse, every rider – it was intense!”

The Under 25 Championship was brought about with the support of Suzanne Porter of Sleepy P Ranch as a way of closing the gap between the High Amateur-Owner and Junior Jumpers and the Grand Prix. Most of the riders have competed through the pipeline, whether it was pony jumpers or equitation medals.

Hughes is one of those riders, entering into his last equitation competition of his junior years tomorrow during the ASPCA Maclay Final. Although he felt the nerves during the championship division today, now that he has achieved a great result at this year’s National Horse Show, he feels a bit less pressure going into the Maclay.

“I’d say that today was a lot similar height-wise to an under 25 grand prix , but the level of pressure going in made it all bigger going around. You just had to make sure everything was perfect, so hopefully you could jump a clear round. Pressure made everything harder than usual today, but the jumpers are my first priority. I’m pretty relaxed going into tomorrow. I have a great horse, and hopefully it all goes well.”

The ASPCA Maclay Finals will conclude the 131st National Horse Show tomorrow, commencing at 7 a.m.

About the National Horse Show

Founded in 1883 at the original Madison Square Garden, the National Horse Show is America’s oldest indoor horse show, firmly established as a major fixture on the national and international sports and social event calendars. The National Horse Show Association’s primary activity is the annual production of the National Horse Show and all ancillary events. Over the years, the National Horse Show has provided financial aid to many worthwhile charities.

With $755,000 in prize money offered, this year’s National Horse Show offers an International Open Jumpers with $460,000 in prize money, while the top rated hunter sections have a total purse of $195,000. Meanwhile, $100,000 in total is offered to the Amateur-Owner and U 25 Jumper sections.

For the fourth consecutive year, The National Horse Show received a top ranking from NARG, the North American Riders Group and was named the Show Hunter Hall of Fame Horse Show of the Year in four back-to-back years.

For more information, go to www.nhs.org.

2014 National Horse Show Fast Facts

What:
The Alltech National Horse Show is a week-long championship event featuring “AA”-rated hunters, open jumpers, junior/amateur jumpers, and the ASPCA Alfred B. Maclay Finals. The event will run October 28 – November 2, 2014, indoors in the Alltech Arena at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, KY, site of the 2010 Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games.

Parking:
The Kentucky Horse Park has waived the normal parking fee during the Alltech National Horse Show. Parking is free. While dogs are permitted at the Kentucky Horse Park on a leash, no dogs are allowed in the Alltech Arena during the ANHS.

Directions:
The Kentucky Horse Park is located at 4089 Iron Works Parkway, Lexington, KY 40511. The KHP is 8 miles northeast of Lexington at Exit 120 on Interstate 75.

Information:
2245 Stone Garden Lane Lexington, KY 40513
Cindy Bozan
email: cindy@nhs.org
Phone: (859) 608-3709
Fax: (866) 285-9496

Email:
Cindy@nhs.org

Website:
www.nhs.org

Shopping:
Vendors offering equestrian equipment, apparel, jewelry and home furnishings are located in the Alltech Arena.

Additional Contacts:
Vendors – Matt Morrissey at matt.morrissey@stadiumjumping.com or call (941) 915-3457
VIP Table Sales – Cindy Bozan at cindy@nhs.org Phone: (859) 608-3709
Advertising and Program Sales – Dee Thomas at jmstables@aol.com Phone: 561-310-7679
Sponsorship – Mason Phelps at mpjr@phelpsmediagroup.com or 561-753-3389 or Susie Webb at webb_susie@yahoo.com or 301-520-6162

Hotels:
HILTON – DOWNTOWN – 859-231-9000 – Approximately 6 miles
CLARION HOTEL (formerly Holiday Inn North) – 859 – 233-0512 – Approximately 4 miles
FAIRFIELD INN & SUITES BY MARRIOTT – 859 -977-5870 – Approximately 4 miles
FOUR POINTS SHERATON – 859-259-1311 – Approximately 4 miles
LA QUINTA – 859-231-7551 – Approximately 4 miles
KNIGHTS INN – 859-231-0232 – Approximately 4 miles
EMBASSY SUITES – 859-455-5000 – Approximately 4 miles
MARRIOT GRIFFIN GATE – 859-231-5100 – Approximately 4 miles
RESIDENCE INN – 859-231-6191 – Approximately 5 miles
COURTYARD BY MARRIOT – 859-253-4646 – Approximately 5 miles
HOLIDAY INN GEORGETOWN – 502-570-0220 – Approximately 6 miles
RAMADA INN – 859-299-1261 – Approximately 6 miles
RED ROOF INN – 859-293-2626 – Approximately 6 miles
HAMPTON INN – 502-867-4888 – Approximately 6 miles
SUPER EIGHT – 502-863-4888 – Approximately 6 miles
MICROTEL INN & SUITES – 502-868-8000 – Approximately 6 miles

For further information on housing in the Lexington area, we invite you to visit www.visitlex.com and www.georgetownky.com.

Management:
Kentucky Horse Shows, LLC
P. O. Box 11428
Lexington, KY 40575-1428
859-233-0492 (phone)
859-233-0495 (fax)
email: hakshows@earthlink.net
website: www.kentuckyhorseshows.com

Horse Show Secretary:
Cindy Bozan
859-233-0492
Email: secretary.nhs@aol.com

NATIONAL HORSE SHOW MEDIA CONTACT:

Re: News and Information:
Phelps Media Group, Inc.
12230 Forest Hill Blvd.
Suite 214
Wellington, FL 33414
561-753-3389 (phone)
561-753-3386 (fax)
pmginfo@phelpsmediagroup.com
www.phelpsmediagroup.com

Show Jumping, USEF, World Equestrian Games

Madden Earns Individual Bronze at WEG, Cortes ‘C’ Named Best Horse of Final Four

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Beezie Madden and Cortes ‘C’ (SusanJStickle.com)

Caen, France – The FEI World Individual Jumping Championship came to a conclusion on the final day of the 2014 Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games in the d’Ornano Stadium with the highly anticipated Final Four competition. The U.S. closed out the 2014 Games on a high note as Beezie Madden claimed Individual Bronze. Additionally, her partner at these Championships, Cortes ‘C’, earned the Best Horse title following four rounds of impeccable jumping on Sunday afternoon.

“I thought it was a great day and a very exciting Final Four,” said Madden. “I’m very happy to come out with a Bronze medal.”

Madden (Cazenovia, N.Y.) and Abigail Wexner’s 12-year-old Belgian Warmblood gelding were joined in the competition, which determined Individual medals, by The Netherlands’ Jeroen Dubbeldam with Zenith SFN, France’s Patrice Delaveau with Orient Express HDC, and Sweden’s Rolf-Göran Bengtsson with Casall ASK. In the final, all four started on a clean slate and jumped an eight-obstacle, Frédéric Cottier-designed track with their own horses, as well as with all three of their competitors’ horses.

Dubbledam clinched Individual Gold and the World Championship title after producing clear rounds with all four horses to finish on a score of zero, narrowly edging Delaveau, who also left all the rails in place over four rounds, but a single time fault on Casall ASK meant the crowd favorite collected Silver. Madden finished the day on a score of 12 to earn Bronze, with Bengtsson finishing fourth on 14 faults.

Madden began the Final Four jumping an immaculate clear on Cortes ‘C’ to build momentum for her remaining three rides. Next up for the two-time Olympic Team medalist was Casall ASK. Madden looked on track to produce her second clear of the afternoon with the Holsteiner stallion until faulting at the middle element of the triple, fence 5B, to finish the round on four faults. On her third ride of the day with Zenith SFN, she once again saw the hopes of a faultless effort disappear at the triple when the pole at the C-element came down.

Entering the ring on Orient Express HDC, Madden knew that she had a rail and a single time fault in hand to claim Bronze. The five point margin was cut by four for the second time of the day at the middle element of the triple combination. The team veteran used all her experience for the remainder of the round to leave the remaining rails in the cups and finish within the time allowed.

“Since the triple was my nemesis, I was happy it was over. I thought just settle down and breathe, and the horse was great,” said Madden of her Bronze medal-clinching ride on Orient Express HDC.

Madden was also extremely proud of Cortes ‘C’s performance throughout the week at the Championships that saw him jump four out of five clear rounds in the Team Championship and Individual Qualifiers, in addition to being the only horse to produce four clears on Sunday.

“I’m so, so proud of my horse. I’ve always thought he was a championship horse and I think he proved that today,” Madden said.

By Helen Murray

To learn more about the 2014 Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games, visit: http://www.normandy2014.com/2014-games/the-disciplines/1/jumping.

Follow the Hermès U.S. Show Jumping Team here.

FEI, Show Jumping, World Equestrian Games

Bengtsson, Delaveau, Dubbeldam and Madden Qualify for Top-Four Jumping Final

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Patrice Delaveau and Orient Express HDC will fly the French flag in tomorrow’s much-anticipated Top-Four Jumping Final at the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games™ 2014 in Normandy. (Dirk Caremans/FEI)

Normandy (FRA), 6 September 2014 – The battle for a place in the top-four Jumping final at the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games™ 2014 produced superb sport today, and with the host nation’s Patrice Delaveau making the cut, the noise, excitement and tension in the Stade D’Ornano at Caen is set to reach fever-pitch tomorrow afternoon.

The Frenchman will be joined by America’s Beezie Madden, Sweden’s Rolf-Goran Bengtsson and The Netherlands’ Jeroen Dubbeldam in the closing stages of what has been one of the most exciting world championships of all time.

There were several high-profile withdrawals before today’s penultimate competition began, including Germany’s Christian Ahlmann, who was lying 10th with Codex One, Canada’s Yann Candele, in 22nd place with Showgirl, and America’s Kent Farrington, who was holding 27th position with Voyeur.

A total of 29 horse-and-rider combinations lined out, and French course designer, Frederic Cottier, presented two superb tracks that brought the cream to the very top.

A significant role

Only eight horse-and-rider combinations jumped clear over the 12-fence first-round track, in which the triple combination at fence eight, the massive oxer at fence 10, the following vertical at 11 and final oxer at 12 all played a significant role.

There were three countries represented by three riders – Ireland, The Netherlands and France – as the day began, and the vociferous home supporters were devastated when Penelope Leprevost was eliminated for parting company with Flora di Mariposa at the open water at fence six.

Lying in seventh place as the competition began, Leprevost was looking good until her mare landed in the water, stumbled and pitched her out of the saddle to bring her world championships to a close. But the 34-year-old rider still goes home with a team silver medal in her pocket after great performances earlier in the week.

There were clears from Olympic champion Steve Guerdat from Switzerland (Nino des Buissonnets), Ireland’s Darragh Kenny (Imothep), Qatar’s Sheikh Ali bin Khalid Al Thani (Vienna Olympic), America’s McLain Ward (Rothchild) and The Netherlands’ Jeroen Dubbeldam (Zenith SFN) before the top 10 took their turn. But only three of the leading 10 managed to keep a clean sheet which led to a new-look leaderboard at the start of the second round.

Brazil’s Marlon Zanotelli (AD Clouwni) and Dutchman Gerco Schroder (Glock’s London) disappeared from the reckoning with eight and 12 faults apiece, but Germany’s Daniel Deusser kept himself well in the game when clear with his Longines FEI World Cup™ Jumping 2014 winning partner Cornet D’Amour. In overnight sixth, Belgium’s Gregory Wathelet and Conrad de Hus disappeared from the reckoning with 15 faults, while Brazil’s Rodrigo Pessoa picked up five with Status, who put a foot in the water and fell afoul of the 86-seconds time allowed.

Thrilling run

Delaveau and Orient Express followed with one of their typically heart-stopping rounds during which the stallion broke into a trot when checked between the open water and the following oxer and then survived a thrilling run through the triple combination. Denmark’s Soren Pedersen, lying third, plummeted down the leaderboard when leaving three fences on the floor with Tailormade Esperanza de Rebel but, second-last to go, Sweden’s Rolf-Goran Bengtsson produced a fabulous clear.

Last in the first round, America’s Beezie Madden and Cortes C hit the oxer after the roll-back at fence five. But as leaders going into the day, that only brought their tally to 4.16 and left them well in the chase as round two got underway.

The new course had just 10 fences, but the oxer at fence four and the triple-combination at nine weeded more of them out.

Bengtsson, Delaveau, Madden, and Deusser held the top four spots as it began, and clears from McLain Ward, now lying sixth, and from Dubbeldam in fifth piled the pressure on the leading pack.

When Deusser’s grey gelding hit the vertical three from home it opened a top-four spot for the Dutchman, and when Madden and Delaveau once again kept a clean sheet they were through too. But Swedish hearts were racing when Bengtsson’s stallion hit the oxer at four. He had a fence in hand as the day started, and any further mistakes would prove disastrous.

“My fault wasn’t just a little touch; it was a proper fault,” he said afterwards. “I’m not sure why he jumped so funny at that one. There was a lot going on in my head going down to the next oxer; I wondered if he would be in doubt again but he was fine.”

Much anticipated finale

Four veterans of the sport go through to tomorrow’s much anticipated finale, with three experienced super-star horses and Dubbeldam’s newcomer, Zenith SFN, who has proven his world-class ability this week.

The Dutchman, who was Olympic champion in Sydney 2000 and a member of the gold medal winning Dutch team on Thursday, admitted he is somewhat surprised to find himself challenging for the individual world title on a horse that is comparatively green.

Looking ahead to tomorrow, he commented tonight: “It’s a big surprise for me. My horse is really inexperienced at this level. Last winter he competing at 3 and 4-Stars and then he started 5-Stars this summer.” However, he has faith in the 10-year-old which he has had for some time. “Although he is inexperienced, he is cool and uncomplicated, and very fit. That might be an advantage for the other riders tomorrow because he hasn’t jumped as much as their horses – we will see.”

There is huge pressure on Delaveau, who is competing not only in front of his home crowd but also his neighbours, family and friends. “My home is just 40 kilometres from Caen,” he said. “I’m very happy and my horse today was very good; he didn’t touch a pole. I’m feeling relieved, as for me it was especially important today. There was pressure for my region, for my Federation and for my country.”

When asked how he handled the pressure today, Dubbeldam replied: “I didn’t feel under any pressure at all! No I’m joking; the pressure was very high. I was in 12th position at the start so I was hoping for some faults from the other riders so I could move up. I know that’s not a nice thing to do but I did it, and I jumped double-clear and it put me in!” he said, adding, “I’m really looking forward to riding all those super-star horses tomorrow. I hope we will see a lot of great horsemanship from all four riders – and may the best rider win!”

When asked how they will prepare for the final test in which they will all ride each other’s horses and start on a zero score, Delaveau was first of the four to reply. “For me it’s a secret and it is my secret and I don’t reveal it to anyone!” he said with a laugh. Madden and Bengtsson said they will probably watch a few videos of their rivals’ horses tonight but both agreed they know the oppositions’ rides very well.

Dubbeldam was more stoic, however. “I’ve been thinking every night about it, so I don’t want to think about it anymore! Tonight I will have a good French steak and we will see what happens tomorrow!”

Full results and startlists at www.normandy2014.com.

Facts and Figures:

29 horse-and-rider combinations lined out in today’s penultimate competition in the Jumping championship at the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games™ 2014.

Leading riders that withdrew before today’s competition included Germany’s Christian Ahlmann who was lying 10th with Codex One, Canada’s Yann Candele who was in 22nd place and America’s Kent Farrington who was holding 27th position.

Today’s startlist included three horse-and-rider partnerships from France, Ireland and The Netherlands, and two each from Brazil, Denmark, Sweden and Denmark.

Only 8 jumped clear in the first round.

There was one elimination when Penelope Leprevost, lying close to the leaders in seventh place with Flora de Mariposa, fell when the mare landed in the water, stumbled and pitched her out of the saddle.

21 horse-and-rider combinations returned for the second round.

9 jumped clear in round 2.

The Top-Four finalists are Patrice Delaveau (FRA), Rolf-Goran Bengtsson (SWE), Beezie Madden (USA) and Jeroen Dubbeldam (NED).

France has taken the title once before when Eric Navet and Quito de Baussy came out on top at the first FEI World Equestrian Games™ in Stockholm, Sweden in 1990.

American finalist, Beezie Madden, was silver medallist at the FEI World Equestrian Games™ in Aachen, Germany.

No American or Dutch rider has ever won world championship individual gold.

If Beezie Madden takes the 2014 title she will be only the second lady rider to do so in the 61-year history of the Jumping world championship.

The last lady champion was Canada’s Gail Greenough who rode Mr T to gold at Aachen in 1986.

Quotes:

Jeroen Dubbeldam NED, talking about the challenge of tomorrow’s top-four final and the difficulty of riding strange horses: “It is a lot of jumping for the horses but they are well trained and top fit otherwise they would not have made it this far. When you come to a world championship, if you don’t want to ride other horses, then you shouldn’t have come here!”

Beezie Madden USA: “It’ll be an exciting day tomorrow for sure. You have to stay level-headed and hope the horses do as well, because a lot of the excitement is that they are in the ring, and they have to be able to handle that. Some of the horses get excited by that; there’s a lot of other factors out there tomorrow – a little fatigue, horses jumping the same course four times, sometimes they get a little bored.”

Jeroen Dubbeldam NED: “I’m looking forward to riding all three of the other horses and it would be a nice thing if all four riders go clear tomorrow and we have an extra jump-off and become world champion riding your own horse! That would be the nicest thing!”

Frederic Cottier, Course Designer: “It’s not by chance that we have these four great riders in the final. To get four outstanding riders and champions from 160 pairs – the sport spoke today. You asked about pressure: most sports are about pressure. I designed today’s course in the same spirit as all the others during the week so that it was comfortable for the horses but difficult for the riders. I designed it in a way that the riders again had the freedom of choice. Respect for the horses comes first and then the sport speaks for itself. But it’s just like a piece of theatre – you only get one shot! We are all looking forward to the final four, the draw will have an impact, and the fatigue of the horses, but we have talented and experienced riders – for me, my job is almost done.”

By Louise Parkes

Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games™ 2014

The Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games™ 2014 in Normandy (FRA) on 23 August – 7 September brings together close to 1,000 riders and 1,000 horses from 74 nations for 15 days of world-class competition in Jumping, Dressage and Para-Equestrian Dressage, Eventing, Driving, Endurance, Vaulting and Reining.

For more information, see: www.normandy2014.com.

History Hub

The FEI World Equestrian Games™ are held every four years in the middle of the Olympic and Paralympic cycle. They were first hosted in Stockholm (SWE) in 1990 and have since been staged in The Hague (NED) in 1994, Rome (ITA) in 1998, Jerez (ESP) in 2002, and Aachen (GER) in 2006. The first Games to be organised outside Europe were the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games™ in Kentucky (USA) 2010.

Visit the FEI History Hub here.

Media contacts:

Grania Willis
Director Media Relations
Grania.willis@fei.org
+41 78 750 61 42

Ruth Grundy
Manager Press Relations
ruth.grundy@fei.org
+41 78 750 61 45

Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games™ 2014 Organising Committee:

Amélie Patrux
Press Officer
presse@normandie2014.com

Competitions, Show Jumping, World Equestrian Games

Riders from Four Different Nations through to Final Four at WEG

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Patrice Delaveau (FRA), Beezie Madden (USA), Rolf-Goran Bengtsson (SWE) and Jeroen Dubbeldam (NED) through to Final Sunday

(Caen, France, 6 September 2014) Riders from four nations qualify for the ‘Final Four’ to compete for Individual medals and the World Champion title: Patrice Delaveau, Beezie Madden, Rolf-Goran Bengtsson and Jeroen Dubbeldam after a thrilling decider.

Results after Second Round, Third Competition in Individual Show Jumping

1. Patrice Delaveau (FRA), Orient Express HDC (4.08)
2. Beezie Madden (USA), Cortes C (4.16)
3. Rolf-Goran Bengtsson (SWE), Casall ASK (4.34)
4. Jeroen Dubbeldam (NED), Zenith SFN (6.25)
5. McLain Ward (USA), Rothchild (6.56)
6. Daniel Deusser (GER), Cornet d’Amour (8.70)
7. Bertram Allen (IRL), Molly Malone V (9.00)
8. Cassio Rivetti (UKR), Vivant (11.14)
9. Denis Lynch (IRL), All Start 5 (11.83)
10. Marcus Ehning (GER) Cornado NRW (12.14)

Top Four through to ‘FINAL FOUR’ on Sunday 7 September

1. Patrice Delaveau (FRA)
2. Beezie Madden (USA)
3. Rolf-Goran Bengtsson (SWE)
4. Jeroen Dubbledam (NED)

Final Four through to Sunday’s Championship Finale

Following a day of rest, the top 30 riders in the individual standings after four days of intensive jumping, competed again today in the Second Round of the Third Competition. Beezie Madden of the United States qualified for the Final Four in the Show Jumping competition at the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games, along with Rolf-Goran Bengtsson of Sweden, Patrice Delaveau of France and Jeroen Dubbeldam of the Netherlands.

It was a tense afternoon in front of a completely packed Stade D’Ornano in Caen, with seemingly the whole of France inside to cheer on the home nation hero, Patrice Delaveau. Both Dubbeldam and Delaveau jumped two clear rounds, while Madden and Bengtsson could afford to knock down one fence each but still qualify. Four riders from four different nations, riding four very different horses, prevailed over five rounds of jumping to now qualify to jump for individual medals and the World Championship title tomorrow.

Despite two superb clear rounds today, the USA’s McLain Ward just missed out on the fourth spot, ultimately from one pole down in the second round of yesterday’s competition, to take fifth place. And finishing seventh in the world was the teenage Irish sensation Bertram Allen riding Molly Malone V. Olympic Champion Steve Guerdat of Switzerland and Rodrigo Pessoa of Brazil missed out on qualification for the Final Four, finishing 11th and 21st respectively.

In a format unique to World Championship competition, the Top Four riders in the individual standings now advance to Sunday’s ‘Final Four’. World championship titles do not come easy; in the ultimate test of horsemanship, each rider will now complete the course with their own horse before jumping the course with each of their competitor’s horses.

Rolex Testimonee and Olympic Champion Steve Guerdat Thrills Swiss Fans

Rolex Testimonee Steve Guerdat produced another brilliant riding performance today in front of the many Swiss supporters to ride a perfect clear in the first round, with just one fence down in the second round. Guerdat has ridden superbly all week with just two fences down in total riding his London 2012 winning horse Nino Des Buissonnets.

Commenting after his two rounds, Guerdat said, “I’m very happy with the horse; I think it is difficult to make up so much ground when you start so badly on the first day, but the horse has been in great form all week and that’s the positive I want to remember for this week. The crowd has been amazing all week; from when you walk the course, they cheer for everybody, and for our sport it’s amazing to be able to ride here and gives you motivation to keep on going.”

Rider Quotes:

Beezie Madden (USA): I thought my horse was super today; I thought the rail in the first round was my fault letting him shift off the ground but I don’t think he touched a fence apart from that, so he was fantastic. McLain was also super today; that’s the only deflating part of the week: that McLain did not make it through to the Final Four and he just missed out. It (the Final Four) is a different challenge; it’s not something we do except from here. The best thing about it is that it pleases the crowd. I know all the other horses and have seen them over the years; Jeroen’s is the least experienced so I do not know as much about him, but Jeroen is a good friend so he will probably give me a few tips!

Patrice Delaveau (FRA): I am very happy. Caen is so close to my home and I live 40 km from here; for my fans, my owners, my family it is very very fantastic. The atmosphere is very special for French riders. There is very big pressure for the French riders; we have had five days of pressure and I’m delighted that it has finished for today!

Rolf-Goran Bengtsson (SWE): I feel very good now, in the moment that I finally made it. Of course my fault came very, very early in the course and it was quite a hard fault, of course it was very exciting to keep everything together all the way to the finish line; everything was still very, very open but finally I made it and I feel very good now. There are top riders in the Final Four with very good horses, and it is going to be a great day tomorrow to follow this and see how the situation plays out for the different riders and combinations. To win this would be even better than the European Championship; there is still a long way to go but we are one of the four.

Jeroen Dubbeldam (NED): It was amazing; he (Zenith) surprised me with what he did in the Team Competition and today I thought he would be over as he is very inexperienced at this level and it would be too much today but it wasn’t too much for him and he surprised me, which was unbelievable. He was not tired at all; even in the second round he was still bucking and playing. I want to enjoy the Final Four tomorrow; I have seen it many times before, but this is the first time I have ridden in it. I know all the other horses very well; we see them every week at the other shows so we don’t really need to prepare differently.

Rolex Testimonee, Rodrigo Pessoa (BRA): It’s his (Status) first Championship; he is only 10, and he has less experience than the horses he is going against, so that is a positive side of it. On the negative, it was really hard the other day to let slip a team medal like that. So little margin but that’s the name of the game. Today, to get back into it, Status felt really good, but the water was totally my fault. He is not a very good water jumper and this is something that we have to practise. I came up short and it really annoyed me as I was still in the hunt, but for the mistake in the first round today I can only blame myself really.

For more information on the 2014 Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games and full results, please visit www.normandy2014.com.

Rolex and the World Equestrian Games

Rolex’s association with the World Equestrian Games began in 2002 in Jerez, Spain and the brand is at the forefront of the 2014 Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games, which takes place between 23 August and 7 September in Caen, France where a record 74 nations intend to take part.

The exceptional bond between Rolex and the World Equestrian Games has no doubt been instrumental in attracting 12 new countries to make their debut this year; a glorious achievement in the development of the sport on a global scale. Across the 15 days, approximately 1,200 media will follow 1,000 competitors as they compete across eight official disciplines including the Olympic sports of Show Jumping, Dressage and Eventing in front of over 500,000 spectators.

Revolution Sports + Entertainment
team@revolutionsports.co.uk
www.revolutionsports.co.uk

Show Jumping, USEF, World Equestrian Games

Madden and Cortes ‘C’ Final Four Bound at WEG

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Beezie Madden and Cortes ‘C’ (SusanJStickle.com)

Caen, France – The United States sent two combinations into the d’Ornano Stadium for the Third Individual Qualifier of the FEI World Individual Jumping Championship, held as part of the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games, and came within a 3/10th of a point of qualifying both riders for the Final Four. Beezie Madden and McLain Ward were among the field of 29 that took on Frédéric Cottier’s 12-obstacle first round course, and came back along with 19 other competitors to contest round two.

On the strength of near immaculate jumping over the week with Cortes ‘C’, Madden (Cazenovia, N.Y.) will make her second career Final Four appearance on Sunday afternoon after finishing five rounds on a score of 4.16. In final competition of the 2014 World Championships, the Olympic Team Gold and Individual Bronze medalist will be joined by France’s Patrice Delaveau with Orient Express HDC (five round total of 4.08), Sweden’s Rolf-Goran Bengtsson with Casall Ask (five round total of 4.34), and The Netherlands’ Jeroen Dubbeldam with Zenith SFN (five round total of 6.25). On Sunday, all four will start on a clean slate and jump a Cottier-designed course with their own horse, as well as with all three of their competitors’ horses.

Madden and Abigial Wexner’s 12-year-old Belgian Warmblood gelding entered the d’Ornano Stadium for round one on Saturday afternoon looking to produce their fourth consecutive clear of the week, but it was not meant to be when the oxer came down at fence five.

“I still feel like my horse jumped fantastic,” said Madden of Cortes ‘C’s first round performance. “I thought I let him shift a little on take-off; I thought he jumped high enough. He just clipped it coming down.”

The 2013 Rolex/FEI World Cup Jumping Final champion came back in round two, knowing that a faultless effort over the 10-obstacle course would secure a spot in the Final. Cortes ‘C’ once again delivered with an immaculate performance to stamp their ticket into Sunday’s competition.

Madden is no stranger to Final Four competition after winning Individual Silver at the 2006 FEI World Equestrian Games in Aachen, Germany.

“It’s just an honor being in the final; switching horses anything can happen. It’s just adapting to those horses; I’ve seen these horses before and having done it before definitely helps,” said Madden. “For sure it’s a challenge and you can always be a little surprised which horse you get along with best.”

McLain Ward and Rothchild (SusanJStickle.com)
McLain Ward and Rothchild (SusanJStickle.com)

Ward (Brewster, N.Y.), who on Thursday won Team Bronze alongside Madden, jumped to an Individual fifth-place finish with Sagamore Farm’s Rothchild at the 2014 World Championships. The pair had proved unlucky with rails in the Speed Leg and the second round of Nations Cup when the slightest of rubs resulted in four faults. On Saturday, the pair left nothing to chance as the 13-year-old Warmblood gelding produced faultless efforts and was one of only three competitors to jump double clear.

Ward finished the five rounds of jumping in fifth place on a score of 6.56.

“He was amazing; he’s jumped amazingly all week,” said Ward of Rothchild’s performances in France. “I’m thrilled with my horse and my whole team; it hasn’t just been a week getting here it has been years. I think what we did was pretty remarkable.”

By Helen Murray

To learn more about the 2014 Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games, visit: http://www.normandy2014.com/2014-games/the-disciplines/1/jumping.

Follow the Hermès U.S. Show Jumping Team here.

Competitions, Show Jumping

Madden Speeds to Historic Win in the Longines King George V Gold Cup at CSIO5* Hickstead

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Beezie Madden and Cortes ‘C’ (Peter Martin-Turner/Spidge Photo for Shannon Brinkman Photography)

Hickstead, United Kingdom – Beezie Madden added another coveted title to her extensive resume on Sunday when she rode Abigail Wexner’s Cortes ‘C’ to victory in the Longines King George V Gold Cup at CSIO5* Hickstead. In doing so, she also made history as the first women ever to win the prestigious Grand Prix.

Madden (Cazenovia, N.Y.) and the 12-year-old Belgian Warmblood gelding were one of 14 combinations to jump Kelvin Bywater’s 12-obstacle track faultlessly and qualify to return for the jump-off. The pair, which had jumped double clear in Friday’s Furusiyya FEI Nations Cup of Great Britain presented by Longines, had the advantageous position of returning as the final competitors in the jump-off and seized the opportunity with both hands jumping clear and stopping the timers in 46.01 to seal their win by more than a full second.

Making the two-time Olympic Gold medalist’s win all the more impressive is that she only recently returned to competition after breaking her collarbone in May.

Also joining Madden in the jump-off was American pair Laura Kraut (Royal Palm Beach, Fla,) and the Evita Group’s 10-year-old KWPN mare, Nouvelle. The pair was clear over the jumps in a time of 54.04 to finish in sixth place.

Reed Kessler and McLain Ward earned 16th and 21st places, respectively, in the feature Grand Prix. Kessler (Lexington, Ky.) and Kessler Show Stables’ 12-year-old Belgian Warmblood mare, Cylana, were the second quickest four faulters of the afternoon over Bywater’s course finishing the initial round in 78.89 seconds. Ward (Brewster, N.Y.) and Double H Farm’s 10-year-old Holsteiner stallion, HH Cannavaro, also jumped a four fault round, stopping the timers in 79.90 seconds.

Rounding out the U.S. competitors in the Longines King George V Gold Cup were Margie Engle (Wellington, Fla.) and Elm Rock Partners, LLC’s 10-year-old Oldenburg stallion, Royce, finishing in 31st place after an eight fault round.

Madden’s victory comes on the heels of double Furusiyya FEI Nations Cup victories this week for the United States. On Friday, the Hermès U.S. Show Jumping Team were the victors of the Furusiyya FEI Nations Cup of Great Britain presented by Longines in Hickstead and the U.S. team at CSIO5* Gijon followed up with a victory of their own in Nations Cup competition on Saturday.

“Beezie’s win is icing on the cake as we close in on our WEG (2014 Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games) preparation. Winning two CSIO5* Nations Cups accompanied by Beezie’s comeback is a tremendous boost for the team as we head down the final stretch,” said U.S. Chef d’Equipe Robert Ridland.

Ireland’s Bertram Allen and Romanov finished second in Sunday’s Grand Prix jumping clear in the jump-off in a time of 47.09, with Germany’s Marcus Ehning and Plot Blue earning third place after jumping clear in a time of 47.91.

By Helen Murray

Learn more about CSIO5* Hickstead here.

Follow the Hermès U.S. Show Jumping Team here.

Community/Charity, Show Jumping

Beezie Madden to Have Surgery to Repair Fractured Collar Bone

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Beezie Madden and Coral Reef Via Volo. Photos By: V. Valenti/The Book LLC.

May 19, 2014 – After a fall, yesterday, with Breitling LS during the $100,000 Empire State Grand Prix at Old Salem Farm Spring Horse Shows, Beezie Madden will be undergoing surgery for a broken collar bone. Both Madden and Breitling LS fell on course at the open water obstacle. They were both quickly back on their feet after the fall and left the arena together after the elimination. Breitling was assessed immediately after the competition and was not injured.

Madden initially walked away from the fall, but was later seen by a doctor who confirmed a broken collar bone. It was determined that the best and fastest choice for recovery for Madden will be to have surgery to repair the fracture. Madden will undergo surgery tomorrow morning at the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York City to repair the fractured bone and begin her recovery process. It is yet to be determined how long the recovery process will be, but Madden looks forward to getting back in the saddle as soon as possible.

“It’s unfortunate, but these things happen in this sport. I have a great string of horses with a hugely supportive team of owners, sponsors and co-workers behind me and have no doubt I will be back in the saddle soon,” said Madden.

Media Contact:
Connie Sawyer, LLC
518-461-6288
Sawyer.EquestrianEvents@gmail.com

Competitions, FEI, Show Jumping

Madden Leads the Way in 12th for the US Following Speed Leg of FEI World Cup Jumping Final

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Beezie Madden and Simon (Kendall Bierer/PhelpsSports.com)

Lyon, France – The 2014 Longines FEI World Cup Jumping Final got underway on Friday evening at the Lyon Eurexpo, with 40 of the world’s best horse-and-rider combinations from 20 nations going to task over Frank Rothenberger’s 13 obstacle track. Of the talented field that lined-up to contest the Speed Leg 11 were representing the United States and looking to bring the World Cup title back across the Atlantic for the third time in as many years. Utilizing the faults converted format competitors were asked to balance forward riding and efficient turns with tidy jumping. On an evening where luck was not in their favor, American combinations left themselves within striking distance with three rounds left to jump.

“Sometimes the ball doesn’t bounce your way, and that’s a bit what happened to us tonight. We had a good night, except on the scorecard. So, I can’t be unhappy with that,” said U.S. Chef d’Equipe Robert Ridland. “Tomorrow is a new day and these World Cups have a way of turning around.”

Leading the way for the U.S. after the first leg of the 2014 Final are reigning champions Beezie Madden and Simon in 12th place. Madden (Cazenovia, N.Y.) and Abigail Wexner’s 15-year-old KWPN gelding set-out eyeing a finish near the top of the order on Friday as they looked to retain their title. While they completed in a competitive time that would have challenged leaders, a rail at fence eight meant they finished on a score of 68.55.

“I thought he was fantastic. It was a fast class. I wanted to be in the top five after this round,” said the two-time Team Olympic Gold medalist. “If not for that (rail) I would have been third, but I am happy with him and there is still a ways to go.”

Hear more from Madden here.

Finishing in 14th and 15th on Friday were U.S. team veterans Leslie Burr Howard and McLain Ward. Riding Jane Clark’s powerful 11-year-old Belgian Sport Horse stallion Tic-Tac, Howard (Darian, Conn.) used her experience to produce a clear round in 69.14 seconds to be in the mix for the rounds to come.

Hear Howard’s thoughts here.

As the final competitors of the evening, Ward (Brewster, N.Y.) and Double H Farm’s HH Carlos Z made it clear from the outset they were aiming to challenge the leaders but when the 12-year-old Zangersheide gelding lowered the oxer at fence eight it meant the combinations would finish on a score of 69.64.

Kent Farrington (Wellington, Fla.) preceded Ward into the ring as the penultimate rider with Robin Parsky’s efficient 12-year-old Anglo-European mare Blue Angel. They were another of the American pairs that completed in a competitive time but were forced to add four to their score after lowering the out of the double at fence four, finishing in 18th place with a score of 70.80.

Charlie Jacobs and Flaming Star (Kendall Bierer/PhelpsSports.com)
Charlie Jacobs and Flaming Star (Kendall Bierer/PhelpsSports.com)

Charlie Jacobs (Boston, Ma.) was making his Finals debut on Friday evening and impressed as he produced a clear effort with CMJ Sporthorse, LLC’s 15-year-old Irish gelding Flaming Star in a time of 71.35. They head into Friday’s second round in 21st place.

Completing the Speed Leg in 24th and 27th place, respectively, were Katie Dinan with Nougat du Vallet and Charlie Jayne on Chill R Z. Dinan (Wellington, Fla.) and Grant Road Partners LLC’s 13-year-old Selle Francais gelding completed with a score of 72.41 after having a rail at 11C. Jayne (Elgin, Ill) and Alex Jayne and Maura Thatcher’s 11-year-old Zangersheide stallion also fell afoul of the final element of the triple adding four faults to their score and finishing on 72.9.

Ashlee Bond Clarke (Hidden Hills, Calif.) and Little Valley Farms’ 10-year-old La Silla mare Chela LS finished directly behind Jayne in 28th. The pair set a fast time but two rails on the ground meant they added eight faults to finish on 74.81.

Lucy Davis (Los Angeles, Calif.) jumping in her second World Cup Final lowered two poles to finish on a score of 77.73 in 31st place with Old Oak Farm’s 10-year-old Belgian Warmblood gelding Barron. Heading into round two in 32nd place are Saer Coulter (San Francisco, Calif.) and Copernicus Stables LLC’s 15-year-old Springtime, who also added eight faults in their first ever World Cup Final class to complete Friday with a score of 78.47.

Rounding-out the U.S. effort on Friday were Jenni Martin-McAllister and Granville Equine’s 15-year-old Holsteiner gelding Casseur de Prix in 35th on a score of 82.96 after adding eight faults to their time.

Leading the way following the Speed Leg of the 2014 Longines FEI World Cup Jumping Final is Switzerland’s Pius Schwizer who produced a clear round in 63.37 seconds with Quidam du Vivier, lying second are France’s Patrice Delaveau and Lacrimoso HDC after a fault-free trip in 63.67, with Germany’s Ludger Beerbaum and Chaman standing third on a score of 65.54 after also jumping faultlessly.

By Helen Murray

To find a full list of orders of go and results from the 2014 FEI World Cup Finals, visit: http://eventcontent.hippoonline.de/890/index.html.

Learn more about the 2014 FEI World Cup Finals here.

To watch the 2014 FEI World Cup Finals live, visit feitv.org.

Follow the U.S. Jumpers here.

*Featured/Spotlights, Show Jumping

Beezie Madden and Coral Reef Via Volo Capture First Victory for $200,000 American Invitational

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Beezie Madden and Coral Reef Via Volo. Photos By: V. Valenti/The Book LLC.

Miami, FL – April 5, 2014 – Tonight, history was made as the 42nd Gene Mische $200,000 American Invitational, presented by G&C Farm, found its new home at Sun Life Stadium in Miami, FL. The class has become a landmark of the showjumping world, and tonight was no exception as 29 horse and rider combinations gathered on the field to compete in a battle of the best. It was an electrifying night as spectators looked on to the stadium turf, but it was with swiftness and accuracy that Beezie Madden was able to emerge as the victor tonight. Aboard Coral Reef Via Volo, Madden rode to her third American Invitational victory, a feat few can claim.

Madden navigated Coral Reef Via Volo to a double-clear effort during a five-horse jump off. They tripped the timers in 35.91 seconds after completing a clear short course, while Meredith Michaels-Beerbaum and Atlanta rode to the second place for the only other double clear effort. Lauren Hough and Ohlala were the third place finishers, taking the honors as the fastest of the four faulters after lowering the height of obstacle 17, an oxer set near the in gate.

Designer of the 2008 Olympic courses, Steve Stephens of Palmetto, FL, designed tonight’s toilsome track. The 13 numbered obstacles featured a triple bar-oxer double combination, a scopey vertical leading into the oxer-liverpool combination, a unique, suspended American Invitational wall, a skinny, a blue, square oxer and a daunting G&C Farms final oxer. The most difficult obstacle proved to be the double combination coming off of the Miami Dolphins oxer, resulting in numerous rails on the ground.

Hough and Ohlala were the first to traverse the opening track, showing the way as the eleventh to take on the course. The crowd erupted into a resounding applause as she showed that it could be done. Madden guaranteed a jump-off only two rounds later, crossing the finish line without fault. Brazil’s Rodrigo Pessoa and Citizenguard Cadjanine also rode to a clear effort, while Meredith Michaels-Beerbaum rode Atlanta to the fourth slot of the short course. It was Miami’s own Margie Engle, aboard Royce, who filled the fifth position, leaving the audience on the edge of their seats.

With a jump off eminent, the stakes were high as riders entered into the seven-obstacle track. Their eyes were set on the prize, but Stephens’ course left much to be determined on the turf.

Lauren Hough and Ohlala
Lauren Hough and Ohlala

Hough was the first to return, and although she was very quick early on, her approach to the final oxer sealed her fate as a four-faulter with Ohlala. They completed the course in 34.44 seconds.

“I am so privileged to get to ride a horse like Ohlala. She is such a trier,” Hough said. “I have to say, I think she’s proven to really be a top international horse. She’s very small, but she doesn’t know she’s small. I think I just needed to take a little bit more pull to the last, because she’s so quick everywhere else. But I’m just thrilled with the results tonight. I’m happy to be sitting up her with the ladies.”

Reining Longines FEI World Cup Show Jumping Champion, Beezie Madden, took her turn with Coral Reef Via Volo. She posted a more conservative effort than her counterparts, but her intent was clear: accuracy over speed. Using Coral Reef Via Volo’s stride to her advantage, and knowing her mount’s weaknesses, she followed her plan for the jump off and broke the beam without fault in 35.91 seconds.

“I was really thrilled for my horse. She’s had a great circuit,” Madden explained. “She’s done a lot of big classes for me down here. I was thrilled to end this way. I have to say, I always kind of miss Authentic when we come here. He loved this class, but she was a good stand in tonight.”

Madden secured the victory on Authentic in both 2005 and 2007, but since his retirement, Madden’s talented string of mounts has stepped up to shine.

“I was really happy with my first round. I think that was one of our best rounds yet down here,” Madden described. “I thought her rideability was great. I don’t think she touched a fence, so I was really happy with that. Last year I went to Raymond James, and she was a bit star struck in there. I was glad that she reacted well tonight.”

Madden continued, “In the jump off, I saw Lauren [Hough] go. She was very fast. I was a bit relieved that she knocked the last fence down.” [laughed] “Honestly, but then I thought just try to be smooth; try to be very efficient, and give the others something to catch.”

Although Pessoa attempted to catch Madden, four faults at the opening oxer of the double and a fault at the penultimate obstacle would earn him the fifth place position tonight. It wasn’t until Michaels-Beerbaum returned to the field that defeat seemed possible.

Meredith Michaels-Beerbaum and Atlanta
Meredith Michaels-Beerbaum and Atlanta

The German rider was aboard a more recent mount, Atlanta, and although this was only their second time competing under the lights and their first time in a jump off, they proved that with time they could become unstoppable. They cleared the course in 38.02 seconds without touching a rail.

“This was the first jump off I have ever done with Atlanta. I thought I was really good one to two to three, four and the combination. I have to say, I couldn’t believe I was going as fast with her as I was because I never, ever went fast with her,” Michaels-Beerbaum said. “So then I got all nervous and started pulling on the reins and thinking, ‘I better slow down now to make sure I go clean.’ I kind of planted her under the last two fences, but she still jumped them. It was a bit messy to be honest. I was just really pleased because the horse never gave up.”

She continued, “She has no experience going fast what so ever. In fact, most of this circuit I had time faults with her. She jumped clear in some of the 1.50m events, but going fast is something that we definitely have to work on. I never really wanted to push her on time. I am just really pleased.”

Margie Engle was the final rider to go against the clock, but her choice to do eight strides to the second fence cost her the clean round she was hoping for. She ended on four faults in 36 seconds, finishing in the fourth place position. Pessoa would pick up fifth, while Shane Sweetnam and Eregast Van Kizelhoff rounded out the top six as the fastest of the four-faulters from the first round.

Madden is the fourth rider to ever take home three victories from the American Invitational. Although Madden has quite the string of horses, tonight was Coral Reef Via Volo’s time to shine under the lights, and she stepped up for the challenge.

“It’s exciting to be here in Miami,” Madden smiled. “Wellington is kind of the heart of the horse world here in Florida, and this is very close and yet special to come down here and be in a stadium like this. We were in Tampa for over four decades; it took some time to get everything figured out – what we need for horses is a little different than football. This event will only grow in prestige, and I think it is going to be fantastic.”

For more information about the 2014 $200,000 American Invitational, presented by G & C Farm, please visit www.StadiumJumping.com.

Media Contact: Kendall Bierer
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Hunter/Equitation, Jennifer Wood, Show Jumping

Beezie Madden and Cortes ‘C’ Take $50,000 Ruby et Violette WEF Challenge Cup Round 12

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Beezie Madden and Cortes ‘C’. Photo © Sportfot.

Darragh Kenny and Prof de la Roque Dash to Victory in $34,000 G&C Farm 1.45m; Scott Stewart and Golden Rule Take All in Perfect Products High Performance Hunters at FTI WEF

Wellington, FL – March 27, 2014 – The 2014 FTI Consulting Winter Equestrian Festival (FTI WEF) continued with its twelfth week of competition at the Palm Beach International Equestrian Center (PBIEC) on Thursday with a full schedule of jumper action in the International Arena. The Ruby et Violette WEF Challenge Cup Series hosted its final leg of the twelve-week series with a win for Beezie Madden (USA) and Cortes ‘C’. Darragh Kenny (IRL) and Prof de la Roque won the $34,000 G&C Farm 1.45m, and the young jumpers hosted their first classic of the week.

FTI WEF week twelve, sponsored by FTI Consulting, runs March 26-30, 2014. Friday will host the $15,000 Adequan 6-Year-Old and $20,000 Adequan 7- and 8-Year-Old Young Jumper Classics. The $100,000 Suncast 1.50m Championship Jumper Series Final and $500,000 FTI Consulting Finale Grand Prix CSI 5* will be held on Saturday along with round one of the $50,000 USHJA International Hunter Derby, which concludes on the derby field on Sunday at 1 p.m.

Live streaming is available on Saturday, March 29, at approximately 6:30 p.m. EST for the $500,000 FTI Consulting Finale Grand Prix CSI 5*. Live streaming will begin with the $100,000 Suncast 1.50m Championship Jumper Series Final Jump-off. Watch here: http://www.chronofhorse.com/article/2014-fti-finale-grand-prix-live.

Anthony D’Ambrosio (USA) set the track for Thursday’s Ruby et Violette WEF Challenge Cup competition, which saw 69 competitors in round one with 15 clear rides to advance to the jump-off. Eight jumped double clear over the short course, where Madden and Abigail Wexner’s Cortes ‘C’ blazed through the course in 36.91 seconds for the win, second to last in the jump-off order. The pair surpassed the time of last week’s winners, Eric Lamaze (CAN) and Artisan Farms LLC’s Zigali P S, who finished second in 37.74 seconds. Jessica Springsteen (USA) had another great finish with Stone Hill Farm’s Vindicat W, placing third with their time of 38.19 seconds.

This was the second win of the series for Madden and Cortes ‘C’ after the pair also topped the $34,000 Ruby et Violette WEF Challenge Cup Round 8 during CSIO week. They now have their sights set on Saturday night’s big class as the finale to the circuit.

“He is fantastic. He just canters around and jumps over the fences,” Madden praised Cortes. “He makes my job very easy. I know him quite well right now, so I know where I can leave strides out and I know where I might want to do the normal strides. He is so solid about everything; I feel like I don’t have to do this or have to do that, I can do whatever I think is best to jump the course clear.”

Detailing her plan in jump-off, Madden noted, “In the beginning I was going to hunt around nice, but then it looked like I could probably take a shot at winning without taking a lot of risk, especially when McLain (Ward) did seven (strides) up the first line as easy as he did on his second horse. I thought if somebody could do it, then I could do it the same. I was just nice back to the vertical and I knew I could take a cut into that double with him, and then the end was kind of how I would have done it anyway even if I wasn’t blazing around, so it worked out good for me. I would have done the end the same anyway just to get him to gallop. He goes Saturday night too, so it is good for him to really gallop and set himself up at the fences.”

Madden feels good going into the finale grand prix with another win for Cortes and hopes for a good class. “It is nice. Sometimes you wouldn’t run a horse before a big class like that, but I didn’t think I had to run that fast,” she admitted. “He seems to like it, to just be able to go, and it is nice to be able to set the tone for the week and be on a roll.”

Madden chose to use Cortes for Saturday night after making the decision to take Simon back to the FEI World Cup Finals this year to defend his championship title. Cortes remains confident showing day or night, and Madden looks forward to a great end to the circuit.

“He has been confident at night,” she stated. “I have to say when he was younger the first year here, the night bothered him a little, but knock on wood since then he has been very good at night.”

The horse is also very simple to prepare, no matter how big the class. “This morning he got a few bucks out on the lunge line because he had not shown in a while and it was windy and cold,” Madden explained. “He never acts that fresh when I’m on him, but he has it pent up sometimes, so it is nice for him to get some bucks out. Then I flatted him and went. He is pretty simple that way. I will probably give him a light day tomorrow and then a flat Saturday morning and go. He is uncomplicated, and we try to keep it that way.”

Darragh Kenny and Prof de la Roque Dash to Victory in $34,000 G&C Farm 1.45m

A $34,000 G&C Farm 1.45m speed class was held earlier on Thursday with a win for Ireland’s Darragh Kenny and Postage Stamp Farm LLC’s Prof de la Roque. Seventy-six entries showed in the one round competition with 14 clear rounds. Kenny and the eleven-year-old Selle Francais gelding (Kannan x Damiro B) completed the fastest round in 59.54 seconds for the win.

They were over a full second faster than second place finishers, McLain Ward (USA) and Zander, who stopped the clock in 60.57 seconds. Ronan McGuigan (IRL) and Capall Zidane finished third in 61.49 seconds, and Daniel Deusser (GER) and Stephex Stables’ Domingo placed fourth in 61.54 seconds.

Prof de la Roque has had several top placings throughout the FTI WEF circuit, but Kenny noted that this was actually his first win. “It only took 12 weeks to do it,” he joked. “He is a super competitive horse. He was second in a 1.50m and he was second, third, and fourth in some of the other world ranking speed classes. He has been a really good horse for me, and today he was fantastic.”

“He is a little bit odd, but he wants to leave the jumps up,” Kenny detailed. “You can go as fast as you can go with him. You can go so fast, it is unbelievable, and he just wants to miss the jumps. He is actually really easy to ride and he is really fun. He is just better when he is going a lot.”

“I couldn’t believe I was faster than McLain, actually, because McLain was flying,” Kenny said of his round. “I think after the double of liverpools, there was seven strides to the vertical, and then I turned really, really, really tight after that vertical to the next vertical. He is really great because he lands really soft at the back of the jump, so you can turn very tight.”

Speaking about his history with the horse, Kenny explained, “I have had him for a little bit. I jumped him in a couple of world cups during indoors, and now in Old Salem he will jump the grand prix classes and in Spruce Meadows he will jump some of the bigger classes. He jumped one or two grand prix down here good with one down, really unlucky, but he is also great because he can do those classes too and win in the speed classes also. That was his last class of the circuit today, so we went out with a bang.”

Also showing in the International Arena on Thursday, the $10,000 Gut Einhaus 5-Year-Old Young Jumper Classic was held, awarding top honors to every entry with a clear round. There was an eight-way tie for the championship between Carracci Blue and Christina Kelly, Gotham Enterprizes LLC’s Nolita and Vasco Flores, Haylee Jerkins’ El Corda and Sarah Sturges, North Star’s Char Grey and Rodrigo Pessoa, Gustavo Mirabal’s G&C Clemenza and Luis Miguel Martinez, Eldato and Shaine Brooks, Jocky Club DB and Maggie Mcalary, and Windosr Farm Sales’ Forget Me Not Windsor Z and Renato Troiani.

Scott Stewart and Golden Rule Take All in Perfect Products High Performance Hunters at FTI WEF

Scott Stewart and Golden Rule were crowned division champions of the Perfect Products High Performance Hunter division on Friday morning of the final week of the FTI WEF. Stewart and Golden Rule, a 10-year-old Oldenburg gelding owned by Stephanie Danhakl, topped the division after finishing first in three over fences classes and second under saddle. The pair also placed fourth in another over fences round.

The reserve champion for the division was Summer Place, ridden by Haylie Jayne and owned by Pony Lane Farm. Jayne piloted Summer Place to sixth, second, fourth, and second over fences and fifth under saddle.

Stewart imported Golden Rule at the beginning of 2014 and debuted the gelding during the fourth week of the FTI WEF. Golden Rule picked up one of his first division championships during the most competitive hunter competition of the season, World Championship Hunter Rider Week 6, and hasn’t slowed down since. Danhakl, one of Stewart’s clients, recently bought the gelding for herself and was division champion of the Bainbridge Companies Amateur-Owner 18-35 Hunter division during week eleven of the FTI WEF.

“He’s been great. We got him week four. Week five was his first time. He’s been unbelievable. Stephanie was champion last week the first time showing him, so he’s been a dream,” Stewart smiled.

Stewart carefully chose which weeks to show the horse, making sure to give him several weeks away from the show ring. “This is only his fifth show I believe. So he’s not feeling burnt out. This is still all new to him. Yesterday, actually, in the first class he was a little bit too interested. He was a little bit looky. But he doesn’t feel like it’s Week 12!” Stewart laughed.

Golden Rule has certainly made a statement in his first few months on American soil, and Stewart has been thrilled to see the big chestnut only get better as the weeks go by.

“When he first came, he was so skinny and he had a bridle path that was growing out. When they first saw him, everybody said he didn’t look like a horse that I would have,” Stewart recalled. “But his expression is so good through the bridle. You know, typically I have a pretty bay or brown horse, but I think he’s really attractive going around. I think he’s really matured and physically I think he feels stronger and better.”

That striking look is what drew Stewart to Golden Rule when he saw him in Europe. “The way he went around, with his ears always forward, always interested. He just had a cool expression. And I thought he was going to be a good mover; he won the hack last week and he was second [this week], and he’s really starting to move better and better as he gets stronger,” Stewart remarked.

Golden Rule also caught the eye of Danhakl, who recently purchased the gelding after watching Stewart campaign him in the Perfect Products High Performance Hunter division. Of what he thought appealed to Danhakl the most, Stewart said, “I think his rhythm, and he’s just so stridey and comfortable.”

He continued, “Stephanie’s a really good rider and she’s got a couple of greener horses this year, and they’ve been great too, but this one is probably the easiest horse she’s ridden.”

Golden Rule will take on the Bainbridge Amateur-Owner 18-35 Hunter division over the weekend with Danhakl before resting up for shows in the spring.

Hunter competition for the FTI WEF continues on Friday with the Ariat National Adult Medal in Ring 7 of the Main Grounds of the PBIEC. For full results, please visit www.showgroundslive.com.

About FTI Consulting, Inc.

FTI Consulting, Inc. is a global business advisory firm dedicated to helping organizations protect and enhance enterprise value in an increasingly complex legal, regulatory and economic environment. With more than 4,000 employees located in 24 countries, FTI Consulting professionals work closely with clients to anticipate, illuminate and overcome complex business challenges in areas such as investigations, litigation, mergers and acquisitions, regulatory issues, reputation management, strategic communications and restructuring. The company generated $1.58 billion in revenues during fiscal year 2012. For more information, visit www.fticonsulting.com.

About the FTI Consulting Winter Equestrian Festival

The 2014 FTI Consulting Winter Equestrian Festival has 12 weeks of top competition running from January 8 through March 30. The FTI WEF is run by Equestrian Sport Productions, LLC, and Wellington Equestrian Partners and held at the Palm Beach International Equestrian Center. All 12 shows are “AA” rated and Jumper Rated 6, and more than $7 million in prize money will be awarded.

Please visit www.equestriansport.com or call 561-793-5867 for more information.

Lauren Fisher and Laura Cardon for Jennifer Wood Media, Inc.

Jennifer Wood Media, Inc.
Equestrian Public Relations
info@jenniferwoodmedia.com