Wellington, FL – January 14, 2010 – Show jumpers in Wellington had their first grand prix event of the season in the $30,000 WEF Challenge Cup Round One, and it was Georgina Bloomberg of New York, NY, who rode to the win on Metropolitan, owned by Gotham Enterprizes. The first week of the FTI WEF is sponsored by G&C Farm and runs through Sunday, January 17. The 2010 FTI Winter Equestrian Festival has 12 weeks of competition that conclude on April 4, 2010, and they will be awarding almost $6 million in prize money through the circuit.
Olaf Petersen of Germany set the course for 22 entries in the $30,000 WEF Challenge Cup Round One, and there were five that cleared the course with no jumping or time faults. Two riders were clear over the jumps in the first round, but their slower times accumulated time faults over the 79 second time allowed. McLain Ward and Rothchild earned sixth place when they finished with one time fault in 79.864 seconds. Kirsten Coe and Faustino, owned by Ilan Ferder, had two time faults in 80.293 seconds for seventh place.
The first to return in the jump-off was Christine McCrea (USA) on Promised Land, owned by Candy Tribble and Windsor Show Stables. They had two rails for eight faults in a time of 42.419 seconds and fifth place. Following McCrea in the ring was Ljubov Kochetova (RUS) on Aslan. They put in a double clear performance and stopped the clock in 48.820 seconds to take the early lead, but would eventually settle for second place.
Bloomberg and Metropolitan, a 10-year-old Selle Francais stallion, were next in the ring. Bloomberg upped the pace and finished with no faults in a faster, winning time of 48.086 seconds. However, Bloomberg would have to watch two other fast riders finish the jump-off before she could claim victory.
Neither rider following Bloomberg was able to go clear. Cara Raether and Lord G, owned by Trelawny Farm, finished with four faults in 46.224 seconds for fourth place, while Leslie Howard and her horse Jeans Glove Varnel were a bit faster in 43.273 seconds, but also with four faults for third place.
Bloomberg has owned Metropolitan for almost two years, and she has brought him up through the ranks from the Young Jumpers and 1.40-1.50m Jumpers to the grand prix level. She feels that he is near the top of her string in terms of ability and will compete with him in this year’s USEF WEG Show Jumping Trials, which will be held at the 2010 FTI Winter Equestrian Festival on February 25-March 7.
“A lot of people don’t start the first week, and they don’t start so early, but we had a couple of younger horses that we wanted to get in there and see what we had. It’s nice to get one under my belt and know we have one that’s a contender in the grand prix,” Bloomberg explained. “I haven’t done any big stuff with Metropolitan. It’s nice to know he can go out there and is confident. I felt like today was easy for him. It’s good to win again.”
While Bloomberg has been concentrating on finishing school at New York University, she plans to concentrate full-time on horses when she graduates. “I’ve put (school) first over the past year. I finish on Tuesday for good, and it’s nice to have this to look forward to and know that my horses are going well,” she said.
Bloomberg was very pleased with today’s win, but she knew that she couldn’t count on her time holding up with Howard and Raether following her in the jump-off. “He’s not a naturally fast horse. I don’t usually go for speed in the jump-offs with him; I go for the double clear. I was lucky today that I went as fast as I possibly could and still leave the jumps up, and everyone else had a rail down. I would be happy with second too; you always know Leslie is going to go in and beat your time, you just hope that maybe she knocks a rail down!”
“It was my first win with him in any class,” she said with a smile.
The first week of the 2010 FTI Winter Equestrian Festival continues tomorrow, and riders will be competing in the $6,000 Spy Coast 1.40m Speed Challenge in the International Arena. The highlight class of the week is the $25,000 G&C Farm Speed Derby at 1 p.m. on Sunday.
Final Results: $30,000 WEF Challenge Cup Round One
Order, Entry #, Horse Name, Rider Name, Owner, Round 1 faults, Round 1 time, Round 2 faults, Round 2 time
1, 1941, METROPOLITAN, GEORGINA BLOOMBERG, GOTHAM ENTERPRIZES, 0, 77.026, 0, 48.086
2, 4126, ASLAN, LJUBOV KOCHETOVA, LJUBOV KOCHETOVA, 0, 78.374, 0, 48.820
3, 1442, JEANS GLOVE VARNEL, LESLIE HOWARD, LESLIE HOWARD, 0, 75.035, 4, 43.273
4, 2311, LORD G, CARA RAETHER, TRELAWNY FARM LLC, 0, 77.950, 4, 46.224
5, 1414, PROMISED LAND, CHRISTINE MCCREA, CANDY TRIBBLE & WINDSOR SHOW STABLES, 0, 76.720, 8, 42.419
6, 1694, ROTHCHILD, MCLAIN WARD, MCLAIN WARD, 1, 79.864
7, 1072, FAUSTINO, KIRSTEN COE, ILAN FERDER, 2, 80.293
8, 2835, QUICK STAR 11, PABLO BARRIOS, GUSTAVO MIRABAL, 4, 73.943
9, 1443, LENNOX LEWIS 2, LESLIE HOWARD, LESLIE HOWARD, 4, 74.495
10, 2373, PARADIGM, MARIO DESLAURIERS, MARIO DESLAURIERS, 4, 75.391
11, 2829, LAGRAN, PABLO BARRIOS, PABLO BARRIOS & ANDRES OLIVARES, 4, 75.610
12, 3181, URBAN, BLYTHE MARANO, RIVERVIEW FARM LLC, 4, 76.442
The 2010 FTI Winter Equestrian Festival has 12 weeks of top competition running from January 13 through April 4. 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 $5.5 million in prize money will be awarded.
WEF is proud to be supported by their title sponsor, FTI Consulting, Inc. FTI Consulting, Inc. exists to help companies and their stakeholders protect and enhance enterprise value in an increasingly complex economic, legal and regulatory environment. FTI is the trusted advisor entrenched in many of the game-changing events that make headlines, move markets and create business history. For more information, please visit www.fticonsulting.com.
WEF will offer many exciting events this year, including: the $500,000 FTI Finale Grand Prix, the USEF WEG Show Jumping Trials, the $150,000 World Dressage Masters, CDI-5*, the AHJF/WCHR Hunter Spectacular, the $150,000 Spy Coast Grand Prix, the $100,000 FTI Rider Challenge, the $75,000 CN Nations Cup, the $50,000 CN Palm Beach Derby, the $50,000 Chronicle of the Horse/USHJA International Hunter Derby, the $25,000 G&C Farm Young Rider Grand Prix, the Nespresso Battle of the Sexes, the Third Annual George Morris Excellence in Equitation Exhibition, and the Palm Beach Charity Pro/Am Exhibition.
During the 12 weeks of WEF, “Saturday Night Lights” headlines the entertainment each Saturday night where spectators not only enjoy the Grand Prix class, but a street carnival, live music, and numerous dining options with box seats, sports bars, and the famed Tiki Hut for front row fun.
The competition areas include the 360′ x 280′ all-weather International Arena, the Bertalan DeNemethy Arena, Mogavero Ring, and E.R. Mische Grand Hunter Field each with their own schooling ring, in addition to several other competition rings. The competition and warm-up rings have all-weather footing. Amenities include VIP seating in the International Club, refreshment and food vendors, and shopping areas. Please visit www.equestriansport.com or call 561-793-5867 for more information.