Wellington, FL – February 26, 2011 – Saturday night at the FTI Winter Equestrian Festival featured an exciting victory for McLain Ward (USA) and Pjotter Van De Zonnehoeve in the $78,000 Fidelity Investments CSI 2* Grand Prix. The class was held on a beautiful Florida evening under the lights at the Palm Beach International Equestrian Center.
Riders representing 12 different countries made up the international field this evening, showing over a course designed by Olaf Petersen, Jr. of Germany. Thirty-seven entries began the class, and seven were able to jump clear in the first round. An exciting jump-off followed, as some of the best riders in the world battled for top honors. The United States took home the top three places with Olympians McLain Ward, Beezie Madden, and Margie Engle leading the class.
A father and daughter each riding for France, Marie and Michel Hecart, were the first two riders to jump clear over the first round course to advance to the jump-off. Marie rode Myself De Breve, owned by Haras De La Rogue, through the jump-off course with eight faults in 44.72 seconds to finish in sixth. Michel and Babbe Van’t Roosakker, also owned by Haras De La Rogue, immediately followed and jumped in 46.44 seconds with four faults at the last fence to place fourth.
Enrique Gonzalez and Katina Gallop to Victory in $31,000 G&C Farm 1.45m Jumpers
Wellington, FL – February 25, 2011 – Meg O’Mara and Sinatra IV jumped to victory in the $15,000 Artisan Farms Young Riders Grand Prix on Friday night at the FTI Winter Equestrian Festival. Showing under the lights in the International Arena of the Palm Beach International Equestrian Center, O’Mara and Sinatra IV were the only pair to jump double clear in the evening’s class to earn top honors over a field of 54 starters.
The FTI Winter Equestrian Festival’s seventh week of competition continues through Sunday, February 27. Week seven, sponsored by Fidelity Investments, will feature the $78,000 Fidelity Investments Grand Prix, CSI 2* on Saturday at 7 p.m. and the Suncast 1.50m Championship Jumper Series Classic on Sunday at 1 p.m. The 2011 WEF will continue through April 3 and award more than $6 million in prize money.
Today’s class was the second of four qualifiers for the EY Cup Finals, held at the FEI World Cup Finals in Leipzig, Germany. The top three riders at the conclusion of the series will have the opportunity to travel to Germany to compete. The third event, which is a Team Event, will be held on Thursday, March 10 in the International Arena. The final $15,000 Artisan Farms Young Rider Grand Prix will be held on the grass derby field at The Stadium on Sunday, March 20, 2011. Through their sponsorship, The Dutta Corporation & International Horse Transport will be shipping the winning horse to the Finals and covering travel expenses for the highest scoring rider in this series.
Brianne Goutal’s trainer Max Amaya joins us this week to share his thoughts on the partnership between rider and trainer. Plus Dr. Jenny Johnson introduces us to the Abnormalities of limb Flight. All that and more on this week’s show so take a listen right here…
February 25, 2011 – Wellington, FL – Six time Olympian Robert Dover will host an amazing panel on his Dover’s World radio show, discussing everything eventing, attacking the coaching issue for the U.S., course designing and how it has changed the sport, and the one thing on the forefront of everyone’s minds: safety. Dover’s World airs on Tuesday February 15, 2011, at 6pm on WBZT (AM 1230) from Palm Beach to Miami, Florida. The program can also be found at DoversWorld.com, and will be streamed live there for listeners around the world. The roster for the evening’s radio show includes David and Karen O’Conner, Darren Chiacchia, and Phillip Dutton. Also in the evening’s line up at 6:15 is the voice of Welly World, Mason Phelps, who will update everyone on this week’s happenings in Wellington.
Raymond James Stadium to Once Again Host America’s Premier Outdoor Show Jumping Event
Tampa, FL – February 24, 2011 – The city of Tampa, Florida will once again play host to one of the world’s premiere show jumping event, as the $200,000 Gene Mische American Invitational, presented by G&C Farm, returns to Raymond James Stadium on Saturday, April 9, 2011 at 7:30 p.m.
Once again, the stellar event bears the name of the founder of the class, Stadium Jumping’s legendary Gene Mische, who first brought the event to the Tampa Bay area in 1973. Mische died recently after a long and hard fought battle with cancer, but was thrilled to be able to witness last year’s class before he passed away.
In addition to G&C Farm, who returns for a second year as the presenting sponsor, Stadium Jumping welcomes Horsewares Ireland, Land Rover, Gold and Diamond Source, Morgan Stanley, Innisbrook Resort and Elizabeth Busch Burke, who have all generously come forward to join in the 2011 sponsorship of America’s premier show jumping event.
Debby Winkler (née Malloy), wife of German Jumping legend Hans Günter Winkler, has passed away following a tragic riding accident. Mrs Winkler was seriously injured in a fall at the end of a training session on 18 February and was rushed to the University Clinic in Münster in critical condition. Sadly her injuries were too severe and, despite the best possible medical care, she died on 21 February. She was 51 years of age.
American-born Debby Malloy married five-times Olympic champion Hans Günter Winkler in 1994, having trained with him in Warendorf since 1986. Debby Winkler was successful in many Jumping events, her greatest achievement being a second place finish in the Frankfurt Grand Prix in 1998 with Sakrus HG.
Debby Winkler was a close personal friend to FEI President HRH Princess Haya, who said, “There is a comfort in knowing that horsemen and women who move on from our world, straight from the saddle, have done so on the terms they would have wished for. And yet I cannot find the words to justly pay tribute to Debby. She was so quiet in her ways, so kind and accepting, so humble and gentle that one would have thought she would live forever.
OCALA, FL (February 23, 2011) – What do you get when you mix beautiful weather, talented horsemen, first-class facilities, exciting events and fabulous prize money? The answer is simple: HITS Ocala! The Ocala Winter Festival marked the second AA rated week of show jumping in the ‘Sunshine State’.
The two Grand Prix and weekly Devoucoux Hunter Prix saw record-breaking entries this week. In Thursday’s $25,000 SmartPak Grand Prix, presented by Pfizer Animal Health, Kent Farrington (above right) of Chicago, Illinois, emerged as the winner out of what was then a record 48 starters, aboard Up Chiqui, owned by William Dobbs, Alex Boone and Farrington. Thursday’s track proved challenging, as only five returned for the jump-off. Sunday’s $50,000 class set a new record three days later with 50 entries, as Andre Thieme of Germany and Cesar won their first Grand Prix of the season. Despite the bigger entries and challenges on Sunday’s course, 12 talented teams advanced to the jump-off for an exciting conclusion. Thieme also picked up the third place ribbon aboard his own Uvalier, while German native Matthias Hollberg, now of Apex, North Carolina, was second aboard Apex Equestrian Center’s Wadisson. Both Farrington and Thieme are aiming to qualify for the 2011 Pfizer $1 Million Grand Prix on September 11 in Saugerties, New York.
$10,000 Devoucoux Hunter Prix The Devoucoux Hunter Prix has been the premier hunter event each week throughout the circuit, and Sunday’s outstanding $10,000 event showed just how eager the hunter riders are to qualify for the Diamond Mills $500,000 3’3″ Hunter Prix Final on September 10-11 in Saugerties, New York, as 70 riders tracked the course. Standing tall at the end of the $10,000 Devoucoux Hunter Prix was High-Performance rider Tracey Fenney of Flower Mound, Texas. Fenney, who is one of the all-time leading Grand Prix riders at HITS Ocala, was delighted to show her skills in the hunters aboard Mr. and Mrs. Ken MacKenzie’s MTM La Costa. Second place was awarded to standout junior Meg O’Mara aboard Walk the Line, owned by Don Stewart and O’Mara. The duo had a successful week at the Ocala Winter Festival, picking up two first place ribbons in the Large Junior Hunter 16-17 division, which helped earn them the Reserve Champion honors. Rounding out the top three was professional rider Kate Conover of Ocala, Florida aboard Doreen Toben’s Black Tie Affair.
New York, NY – February 23, 2011 – The National Horse Show Association of America, Limited (NHSAA) is pleased to announce that it will be hosting the ASPCA Alfred B. Maclay Finals as well as a full complement of hunters and jumpers in 2011. These exciting events will be held November 2-6, 2011, at the new Alltech Indoor Arena at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, KY. For the past five years, the ASPCA Alfred B. Maclay Finals have been held at the Syracuse Invitational Sporthorse Tournament in Syracuse, NY. After lengthy discussions with the top professionals in the hunter and equitation divisions, the National Horse Show determined that it is in the best interest of the sport, equitation division, and the Maclay to relocate the competition to a new venue.
The Board of Directors for the National Horse Show is looking forward to a bright future at the Kentucky Horse Park. “We’re very fortunate that Syracuse gave us a home until we could sort things out. It was a great stepping stone for what is going to be the future of the National Horse Show,” noted President Mason Phelps, Jr. “It is certainly our desire to make the National Horse Show in Kentucky as similar to Madison Square Garden as possible. The very first objective is to do the best we can by the Maclay Finals.”
“The Kentucky Horse Park is honored to be the new site of the National Horse Show’s ASPCA Maclay Finals,” said Kentucky Horse Park Executive Director John Nicholson. “I am personally elated and we are committed to do all that we can to make the show worthy of its grand history.”
Weatherly Stroh and Sigfried Top $5,000 WCHR Amateur-Owner 3’3″ Hunter Classic Spectacular
Wellington, FL – February 19, 2011 – The Suncast 1.50m Championship Jumper Series Classic was held today, and it was Marie Hecart (FRA) on Babbe van’t Roosakker, owned by Haras de la Rogue, who were the fastest double clear combination. They won the sixth event in the Suncast 1.50m Championship Jumper Series, which will award $50,000 in rider bonus money at the end of the series.
The FTI Winter Equestrian Festival’s sixth week of competition continues through Sunday, February 20. Week six, sponsored by Fidelity Investments, will feature the $50,000 G&C Farm Palm Beach Jumping Derby on Sunday at 3 p.m. at The Stadium. The 2011 WEF will continue through April 3 and award more than $6 million in prize money.
There were 34 entries in today’s 1.50m classic, and seven of those were able to find the clear round over a course designed by Steve Stephens of Palmetto, FL. Hecart and Babbe van’t Roosakker, a 10-year-old Belgian Warmblood mare by Kannan, were able to keep a quick pace and efficient turns for the fastest clear jump-off ride in 39.496 seconds.
Wellington, FL – February 20, 2011 – The Palm Beach International Equestrian Center in Wellington, Florida transformed into a field of dreams for 32 Palm Beach charities in the second annual FTI Great Charity Challenge presented by Fidelity Investments where over a million dollars was raised in an exciting Pro-Am show jumping event on February 19. A signature event of the 12 week FTI Consulting Winter Equestrian Festival, the event featured 32 teams of three riders ranging in age from 11 to 70 where amateurs competed side by side with their professional heroes. Each team was randomly assigned to a charity to compete for $1,020,000 in prize money with the winning charity receiving $150,000 with a sliding scale to 32nd place of $10,000. A crowd of 6,000 came out to enjoy the family fun as part of the Saturday Night Lights series which continues through April 2nd.
Every team was generously sponsored by an equestrian family with additional monies coming from corporate and individual donors as well as all proceeds from ticket and VIP table sales for the evening’s event produced by Equestrian Sport Productions, which donates its staff and venue for the event.
The winning team, competing for Wheels for Kids, set a blazing fast time of 91.376 seconds. The riders were Olympian Pablo Barrios, 18-year-old Luis Fernando Larrazabal, and 14-year-old Emmanuel Andrade. All three riders are from Venezuela and competed for team sponsors, Gustavo and Carolina Mirabal of G&C Farm. The Mirabals, Barrios, and Larrazabal live in Wellington, FL.