There was no way course designer Anthony d’Ambrosio could stop the top riders of the 31st Rolex FEI World Cup™ Final from performing clear rounds. Both horses and riders were simply too brilliant to be fooled or overpowered by d’Ambrosio’s demands. While Meredith Michaels Beerbaum seemingly effortlessly collected her third Rolex FEI World Cup™, she had more trouble holding on to the cup during the spectacular prize giving ceremony in the hectic Thomas & Mack Center. The horse she was using for the ceremony gave her a hard time and while the rails all stayed up during the competition, the prestigious World Cup fell from her hands on the magic Las Vegas sand.
McLain Ward, second placed after two tough rounds of competition, had to wait and see if his former compatriot from California would copy his perfect final round. Meredith Michaels Beerbaum, who stated earlier this week that she is known for doing things differently, did not copy McLains strategy to stay clear. In the final round, she was the only one to make her horse do five strides towards the double combination, in stead of four.
Also Albert Zoer could only maintain his third position producing two superb clear rounds aboard his fighter Okidoki. Christina Liebherr stayed in fourth place, thanks to her fanatic super jumper LB No Mercy, who – accidentally – was produced as a young horse by Albert Zoer and was sold to Liebherr by his father.
The only one from the top listed riders to make a mistake was Rich Fellers. His small horse Flexible had troubles negotiating the wide oxers, made two mistakes in the first round and no less than 22 in the second. Former Rolex FEI World Cup™ winner Rodrigo Pessoa as not very lucky on the last day. The penultimate jump of the third competition, a huge oxer testing the stamina and concentration of the horses, was only slightly touched by Rufus’ hoofs, which caused the rail to fall own. This fault, however, didn’t drop Rodrigo down, it left the Brazilian in 5th place.
Ludger Beerbaum grew in the competition. The beautiful double clear aboard a relaxed and concentrated Coup de Coeur on the last day made him climb the ranks to 6th place.
Ben Maher and his powerhouse Robin Hood W had a silly mistake on fence number 1 of the first round. Other than that everything went perfect for the stylish rider from Britain, Maher took 7th place. Steve Guerdat held on to his top 10 position, also producing a 4 and 0 performance on the last day, which resulted in 8th place. The Swiss rider had to share this position with Thomas Velin, the only one to make more than one mistake. In the first round Grim st Clair became a bit strong in the mouth and knocked down two fences, in the second the Dnish rider had one fault to his name.
Also 10th position was shared by two riders. Marcus Ehning from Germany and Daniel Etter from Switzerland both ended on a total of 24 World Cup points.
The 31st Rolex FEI World Cup™ Final was dominated by superb horse and rider combinations. The top three riders did not make one mistake during three days of tough competition.
The competition at a glance:
– 31st FEI World Cup™ Jumping Final
– 3rd World Cup win of Meredith Michaels Beerbaum
– 4th ‘clean sweep’ (Ian Millar, Jos Lansink and Rodrigo Pessoa also won all three competitions of the Rolex FEI World Cup™ Final)
– 45 riders qualified for this Rolex FEI World Cup™ Final
– 44 competed in the first competition
– 42 competed in the second competition
– 29 competed in the first round of the third and last competition
– 23 competed in the second round of the third and last competition
– 9 American riders in the third and last competition
– 4 German riders in the third and last competition
– 3 Swiss riders in the third and last competition
– 11 clear rounds in the first round
– 7 clear rounds in the second round
– 5 double clears
– 12 obstacles and 15 efforts in both rounds
– 7.497 spectators on the last day
– 58.589 spectators in total
– upcoming Rolex FEI World Cup™ Final Jumping in Geneva (2010), Leipzig (2011), ‘s Hertogenbosch (2012) and Göteborg (2013)
QUOTES
Meredith Michaels Beerbaum (GER):
“This was my hardest win in a World Cup final. McLain left no room whatsoever. This was a big win for me, for several reasons. It was my most perfect win and it is something special to do that with the greatest horse ever while he is 16 years of age. I lost my father four weeks ago, this is also a big win for him.”
“I consider myself half American, half German. I felt like a home town hero in Las Vegas, cheered on by the crowds, but also supported by the Germans. Maybe that gave me a bit extra.”
“I didn’t drop the watch!”
“Shutterfly and I are like an old married couple. I hear him loud and clear. He tells me he’s a happy guy. And: ‘Don’t make me jump too much in the warm up ring’. I’ll ride him as long as he loves what he’s doing. And one day, when he tells me he’s not any longer enjoying it, I’ll retire him to my home.”
McLain Ward (USA):
“If I would have to do it again, I would do it exactly the same way. Meredith and Shutterfly are the greatest pair in show jumping. They came up two seconds faster than me. Two seconds in three days of jumping, that’s a fine line. In sport that’s what it’s about.”
“It is a little frustrating for Rich Fellers, who was second last year, and me, to be runner-up. But the whole development of American show jumping is a victory.”
Albert Zoer (NED):
“Okidoki is always a fighter. He does everything for me, I love him. Noise makes him nervous, that’s why I was not so sure about my chances in Las Vegas. But he did a great job.”
Anthony d’Ambrosio, Course Designer
“The courses grew in size and difficulty during the whole competition. I did expect the riders to do so
Doug Meine, Executive Vice-President of Rolex USA:
“We have to step up our production, in order to supply Meredith with watches.”
“This was literally perfect, it could not have been better. Rolex and this sport share passion, precision and excellence.”
Robert Ridland, show jumping manager of the Las Vegas organisation:
“Supported by Las Vegas events, my company will bid for the World Cup final of 2014. This is too good to give up.”
Results of the 31st Rolex FEI World Cup™ Final Jumping
1. Meredith Michaels Beerbaum (GER), Shutterfly, 0 pnts
2. McLain Ward (USA), Sapphire, 2 pnts
3. Albert Zoer (NED), Okidoki, 4 pnts
4. Christina Liebherr (SWI), LB No Mercy, 7 pnts
5. Rodrigo Pessoa (BRA), Rufus, 12 pnts
6. Ludger Beerbaum, Coupe de Coeur, 14 pnts
7. Ben Maher (GBR), Robin Hood W, 18 pnts
8. Steve Guerdat (SWI), Tresor, 19 pnts
Thomas Velin (DEN), Grim st. Clair, 19 pnts
10. Daniel Etter (SWI), Peu a Peu, 24 pnts
Marcus Ehning (GER), Leconte, 24 pnts
12. Beezie Madden (USA), Danny Boy, 26 pnts
13. Mikael Forsten (FIN), Isaac du Jonquet, 27 pnts
14. Edwina Alexander (AUS), Isovlas Itot du Chateau, 28 pnts
Ian Millar (CAN), In Style, 28 pnts
16. Richard Spooner (USA), Ace, 31 pnts
17. Mandy Porter (USA), San Diego, 34 pnts
18. Rich Fellers (USA), Flexible, 36 pnts
19. Hillary Dobbs (USA), Quincy B, 40 pnts
20. Christine McCrea (USA), Vegas, 42 pnts
21. Helena Lundbäck (SWE), Madick, ret. 18 pnts
22. Michael Whitaker (GBR), Portofino, ret. 23 pnts
23. Todd Minikus (USA), Pavarotti, ret. 27 pnts
24. Keean White (CAN), Celena Z, 25 pnts
25. Darragh Kerins (IRE), Night Train, 26 pnts
26. Ashlee Bond (USA), Cadett 7, 27 pnts
27. Marco Kutscher (GER), 29 pnts
28. Angel Nygalov (BUL), Baloufino, 39 pnts
29. Rutherford Latham (SPA), Guarana Champeix, 44 pnts
30. Lars Nieberg (GER), Lucie, 22 pnts
31. Vladimir Beletsky (RUS), Larkanaro, 31 pnts
32. Hasan Senturk (TUR), S.I.E.C. Concept, 32 pnts
Kent Farrington (USA), Up Chiqui, 30 pnts
Michelle Spadone (USA), Melisimo, 22 pnts
35. Danielle Torano (USA), Vancouver d’Auvray, 33 pnts
Geir Gulliksen (NOR), Sundal Colliers Cattani, 33 pnts
Ludo Philippaerts (BEL), Cavalor’s Winningmood, 33 pnts
38. Alberto Michan (MEX), Chinobampo Lavita, 37 pnts
39. HRH Prince Abdulla Al-Saud (KSA), Mobily Ashkur Allah Obelix, 38 pnts
40. Anna Trent (NZL), Muskateer NZPH, 39 pnts
Harley Brown (AUS), Cassiato, 30 pnts
42. Daijiro Mashiyama (JPN), Paradox, 41 pnts
Gerco Schröder (NED), Eurocommerce Seattle, 41 pnts
44. Enrique Gonzalez (MEX), Frida, 45 pnts
More from Horse Sport:
