Tag Archives: Ottawa National Horse Show

Jordan Coyle Races to Victory in Ottawa Speed Derby

July 16, 2018 Associate Editor Leave a comment

Jordan Coyle and Mojo TSP. Photo by Ben Radvanyi Photography.

Ottawa, Ontario –Ireland’s Jordan Coyle riding Mojo TSP blazed to victory in the $7,500 Speed Derby, presented by Millar Brooke Farm, on Sunday, July 15, to conclude the Ottawa National Horse Show at Wesley Clover Parks in Ottawa, ON.

When Coyle entered the grass ring midway through the 17-horse starting field, he was chasing the leading time of 83.30 seconds set by Kelly Soleau-Millar of Wellington, FL and Centre Ice, her 16-year-old grey Canadian-bred gelding.

Coyle and Mojo TSP, a nine-year-old Holsteiner gelding owned by Top Line Sporthorse International, bravely tackled the speed course set on Wesley Clover Parks’ grand prix field, which featured natural obstacles such as a steep bank and intimidating devil’s dyke. The pair left all the rails in place and raced through the timers in 80.18 seconds to move to the top of the leaderboard.

Kelley Robinson of Russell, ON riding Lise came the closest to catching Coyle’s time. They were fast, but not fast enough, settling for second place with a time of 82.97 seconds. Soleau-Millar’s time with Centre Ice held up for third place while 17-year-old Sam Walker of Nobleton, ON took fourth with a time of 83.77 seconds riding Laconia 7 after a four-second penalty was added to his time for a rail down. New Zealand’s Kirk Webby had the fastest time of the day, 77.72 seconds, but an eight-second penalty for a final time of 85.72 left him in fifth with The Irishman.

“I love going fast and speed derbies, especially when it’s four seconds added for each rail, give you a real chance to go fast,” said Coyle, 25, of the format that sees four seconds added to the rider’s time for each rail down.

While the Irish native has jumped numerous derbies in the past, it was the first time his mount had attempted a speed derby course.

“He’s very brave and nothing really fazes him,” said Coyle, who began riding Mojo TSP at the Winter Equestrian Festival in Wellington, FL earlier this year. “He never did any schooling on the natural obstacles either, so I’m really happy with him today.”

Coyle is making his Ottawa Equestrian Tournaments debut and will continue competing in the nation’s capital during the CSI3* Ottawa International Horse Show, running July 18 to 22.

“Everything here has been great so far, and the field is perfect,” said Coyle, who hails from Northern Ireland. “The grass here is as good as you’d get anywhere in the world.”

Speed continued to be the name of the game as horses and dogs then took the grass field for the entertaining $2,500 Canine-Equine Relay, presented by Royal LePage TEAM Realty. Horse and rider combinations negotiated a show jumping course before their canine partners from Dogz Canine Sports Centre in Nepean, ON tackled their own agility course.

Marcus Davis of Haliburton, ON riding Viekie and his canine partner, the Australian Shepherd Zuni, teamed up to post the winning time of 76.83 seconds. Finishing runner-up with a time of 79.88 seconds was Dutch competitor Frank Hendriks riding Nouvelle Bleue and his canine teammate, Stanley the Border Collie. Third place went to Christine Carlsen of North York, ON riding Mise le Meas and Antic, an adorable Miniature American Shepherd, with a combined time of 80.80 seconds.

Visit www.OttawaEquestrianTournaments.com for more information on the Ottawa National and CSI3* Ottawa International Horse Shows.

Contact: Jennifer Ward
cell: (613)292-5439
jward@jumpmediallc.com

Competitions, Show Jumping

Olympian Ian Millar Opens Ottawa Horse Show with a Win

July 12, 2018 Associate Editor Leave a comment

Ian Millar riding Ericson. Ben Radvanyi Photography.

Ottawa, Ontario – Ten-time Canadian Olympian Ian Millar of Perth, ON kicked off the Ottawa National Horse Show by claiming the top two spots in the 1.35m Open Jumpers, presented by Omega Alpha, on Wednesday, July 11, at Wesley Clover Parks in the heart of Canada’s national capital.

Millar, aptly dubbed ‘Captain Canada’ by his fans, earned the win with a jump-off time of 37.88 seconds aboard Ericson, owned by Millar Brooke Farm, and he finished second riding another Millar Brooke Farm entry, Truman, with a jump-off time of 39.37 seconds.

Millar took over the rides on both Ericson and Truman for his daughter, Canadian Olympian Amy Millar, who is expecting her second child. Ian will look to continue his success with both horses throughout the two weeks of top show jumping competition at Wesley Clover Parks, with the Ottawa National Horse Show continuing through July 15 followed by the CSI3* Ottawa International Horse Show from July 18-22.

“I’ve been enjoying Ericson immensely, but he’s just on loan,” said Ian of the nine-year-old Dutch Warmblood stallion (Padinus x Iroko). “He’ll go back to Amy; she’s in really great shape, and we’re all very excited for her and looking forward to welcoming her new son next week. I know she can’t wait to get back to her horses, too.”

For Ian, competing and winning at Wesley Clover Parks is particularly special, as he has spent much of his career competing at the facility and has been instrumental in developing the Parks’ riding school program and on-site competitions.

“I grew up in this area,” explained Millar, 71, who is competing at the Ottawa Equestrian Tournaments alongside his son, Jonathon, and daughter-in-law, Kelly Soleau-Millar. “Now here we are in Ottawa, doing this and bringing top international competition to the city. It would not happen without the Matthews family and Wesley Clover Parks, and it’s an honour to be involved in it and to be able to say to our friends and neighbours, ‘hey, this is what we do all over the world; now you can come and see it right here in Ottawa!’”

Echoing similar sentiments was Lauren Hayes of Orangeville, ON who topped a 49-horse starting field to win Wednesday morning’s 1.25m Open Jumper competition aboard Faloma, an eight-year-old mare owned by Norman Amondsen. Hayes has been competing at Wesley Clover Parks “since the beginning,” and her family ran the horse show for four years prior to the Matthews family and the Wesley Clover Parks Foundation taking over the management in 2013.

“They’re doing a fabulous job,” said Hayes, 37, following her win over the track set by Canadian course designer Michel Vaillancourt. “The field is great; it’s always been a really nice field to jump on, and the atmosphere here is great. They incorporate the city and the spectators, and they really do a great job making it feel like a special horse show.”

As for her mount, Hayes explained, “I just got the ride on Faloma two weeks ago. She jumped great today. She was brave, and she walked right out there like she owned the place!”

Taking Wednesday’s final victory on the grass grand prix field to conclude a successful opening day of competition was Kerrigan Brown of King City, ON. She and her mount, Colibri, won the 1.30m/1.40m Junior/Amateur competition, presented by Flow Water.

“We’re very excited to be back for our fourth year of the Ottawa Equestrian Tournaments, and we’re off to a great start,” said Karen Sparks, Executive Director of Wesley Clover Parks. “We’ve made some infrastructure changes that I’m really excited about, and they’re being well received. We put in a new warm-up ring and we made some tweaks to the stabling area to make it even more comfortable for the horses on site.

“We also have CIBC Wood Gundy on board as a new sponsor for our $15,000 National Grand Prix next week which is really a lovely addition and a great way to end the horse shows,” continued Sparks. “We’ve got great weather, and we couldn’t be happier to have our tournaments underway!”

Contact: Jennifer Ward
cell: (613)292-5439
jward@jumpmediallc.com

Competitions, Hunter/Equitation, Show Jumping

Stephanie Dubois-Emond Dominates Ottawa’s $10,000 Canadian Hunter Derby

July 18, 2016 Associate Editor Leave a comment

Stephanie Dubois-Emond and Castello. Photo by Ben Radvanyi Photography.

Ottawa, Ontario – Stephanie Dubois-Emond, of Morriston, FL, won the $10,000 Canadian Hunter Derby, presented by Topline Trailers, on Sunday, July 17 at the Ottawa National Horse Show held at Wesley Clover Parks in Ottawa, ON.

In her hunter derby debut, Dubois-Emond topped a large starting field of 59 entries riding Castello, a 13-year-old Oldenburg gelding owned by Colleen McKenzie. The pair earned a total score of 103 points from the judges, including ten bonus points for taking all of the high option fences offered throughout the course.

“I’ll definitely do that again!” said Dubois-Emond, who normally competes in the show jumping divisions. “This is my first hunter derby ever. I’ve never done one; I’ve never really ever even watched one. Before riding Castello, I had not done the hunters since I was a kid, so this was really a lot of fun today.”

Finishing in close second to Dubois-Emond and Castello was Ryan Roy of King City, ON and Bayridge, owned by Doug Bannister. The pair was one point off the lead, earning a score of 102 points while Isabelle Lapierre of Levis, QC placed third with a score of 101.5 riding Excellent Balou, owned by Gabrielle Buisson.

Renowned Canadian course designers Evie Frisque and 2015 Jump Canada ‘Official of the Year’ Chris Brandt set a challenging track on Wesley Clover Parks’ expansive grass grand prix field that attracted the most entries ever seen in a Canadian Hunter Derby Series qualifying event. Horses and riders competed over specially-constructed natural obstacles, and bravery was tested as they galloped down through the dreaded devil’s dyke.

“Castello was great today; he’s the simplest horse I’ve ever had to deal with,” said Dubois-Emond, who began riding the horse in January for McKenzie. “Now I’ll probably aim to do the next event [in the Canadian Hunter Derby Series].”

The richest qualifying event in the Canadian Hunter Derby Series, the $10,000 Canadian Hunter Derby is a qualifier for the prestigious Canadian Hunter Derby Series Final, offering a total of $40,000 in prize money, to be held at Toronto’s Royal Horse Show on November 6 and 8.

*Ludovic Richer and Grand Slam 3E. Photo by Jump Media*

Earlier in the day, young riders had an opportunity to compete on Wesley Clover Parks’ grass grand prix field in the CET Medal competition, won by Montreal’s Ludovic Richer riding Grand Slam 3E. The CET Mini Medal was also held on Sunday, with Quebec’s Marie Deragon St. Cerny topping 26 entries riding Qui Est-Ce de Bromont.

To find out more about the Ottawa National and CSI2* Ottawa International Horse Shows, visit www.ottawaequestriantournaments.com. For complete results from the Ottawa National Horse Show, visit ottawa.showmanagementsystem.com.

Jennifer Ward
cell: 613-292-5439
jward@jumpmediallc.com

Jump Media, Show Jumping

Ian Millar Captures $50,000 Brookstreet Grand Prix at Ottawa National Horse Show

July 17, 2016 Associate Editor Leave a comment

Ian Millar and Teddy du Bosquetiau. Photos by Ben Radvanyi Photography.

Ottawa, Ontario – Ten-time Canadian Olympian Ian Millar, known as ‘Captain Canada’ to his fans, added another win to his extensive resume by taking victory in the $50,000 Brookstreet Hotel Grand Prix, on Saturday, July 16, at the Ottawa National Horse Show at Wesley Clover Parks in Ottawa, ON.

The large crowd at Wesley Clover Parks witnessed great sport as nine of the 33 contenders jumped clear to advance to the jump-off. Millar of Perth, ON was the seventh rider to return for the tie-breaking jump-off aboard Teddy du Bosquetiau, a 13-year-old Belgian Sport Horse gelding owned by Emily and Fiona Kinch. The pair made easy work of the jump-off track, leaving all the rails in place and coming home in a time of 42.43 seconds.

“This was definitely the fastest I’ve ever ridden Teddy,” said Millar. “He’s really, really fast, but what happens to him sometimes is that his feet get going faster than his brain. Then rails can come down because of that. So as you’re riding him, you try to keep the two in sync. It’s about knowing your horse, and I was quite thrilled with him today because this was a fast jump-off. I knew my time would be hard to beat.”

Melissandre Lincourt of Montreal, QC immediately followed Millar and gave him a run for his money over the course designed by 1976 Olympic individual silver medalist Michel Vaillancourt. She came close, stopping the clock in 43.79 seconds to finish second riding Just Stella L, a ten-year-old Oldenburg mare owned by Gabrielle Pelchat.

Millar’s son, Jonathon Millar, also of Perth, ON, jumped clear in the jump-off with a time of 43.87 seconds to place third with Daveau, an eight-year-old Dutch Warmblood gelding owned by his family’s Millar Brooke Farm.

*Melissandre Lincourt and Just Stella L*

For Ian, competing at Wesley Clover Parks is incredibly meaningful, as he has spent a lifetime riding at the facility and has been instrumental in developing the riding school program and competitions on-site throughout the years. He has been an advisor to the Wesley Clover Parks organizing committee, headed by Karen Sparks, since it took over management of the facility in 2013 and reintroduced world-class show jumping to the nation’s capital in 2015.

“This is where I really learned about show jumping when I was 15 years of age,” said Ian of the facility now known as Wesley Clover Parks. “This is where I really started with two-day eventing, three-day eventing, and the jumpers. The big shows were in Montreal and Toronto; we were sort of the bush league back then. So when the opportunity came along years ago to get this place going and get a show here, I was so excited to do it. To be able to bring show jumping to this area was very important to me, and to all of the people on the committee.

“As time went on, the horse shows sort of got into a little difficulty and faded out,” continued Ian. “Then, because of the Matthews family and its Wesley Clover Foundation, the park has been put back together and on the map. The riding school and the show operation are doing fantastic, and these horse shows are back in Ottawa and better than ever. Within the horse show community, we’re getting rave reviews about the show this year, as we did last year. I would say the future is very bright for Wesley Clover Parks.”

Ian’s own future is also looking bright. The Canadian Show Jumping Team for the 2016 Rio Olympic Games was announced during the Ottawa National Horse Show, and Ian’s daughter, Amy, was named to the four-rider squad. While the elder Millar will not be riding in Rio, he debuted a new horse, the eight-year-old Hanoverian stallion Vittorio 8, at the Ottawa National Horse Show.

Where did Ian go to find a new grand prix partner?

“Munich, which was actually the site of my first Olympics,” said Millar, 69, smiling broadly. “It’s funny, going back to Munich, the site of my first Olympics, to find my next Olympic horse.”