A formidable field headed for Les Étoiles de Pau CCI4* in the French Pyrenees this past weekend. Twelve nations fielded some seventy five horse/rider combinations. Competitors included Olympic Games medalists and the top seven best competitors on the International ranking list.
Among them were 2012 Olympians Hawley Bennett-Awad, a Langley, BC native who currently rides and trains in Temecula, CA, USA and her partner, Gin & Juice, a 13-year-old Thoroughbred mare by Audio, co-owned by Bennett-Awad and Linda Paine. Bennett-Awad is no stranger to challenging CCI4* events having placed seventh at the Rolex Three Day Event in Lexington Kentucky, USA earlier this year aboard Gin & Juice. Pau marked their seventh CCI 4* competition proving once again that they are at the top of their game.
The pair started out in 22nd position after solid dressage test, which earned them a score of 49.5 penalties. Next up was 2014 World Equestrian Games designer Pierre Michelet’s cross-country course. Bennett-Awad negotiated the course with no jumping penalties however Gin & Juice’s huge effort heading into the last water obstacle forced them to take an option costing them valuable time. The pair finished the course with 13.2 time faults placing them 23rd.