Artisan Farms LLC, owned by Andy and Carlene Ziegler, has been honoured with the Jump Canada Owner of the Year Award for the fourth time since the initiative began in 1995.
Passionate supporters of show jumping, Andy and Carlene were first introduced to the sport in 1998 when their daughter, Caitlin, started riding ponies at the age of four. Soon after, Andy also took up riding, and both have enjoyed successful competitive show jumping careers.
For nearly a decade, the Ziegler family has been an integral part of the Canadian Equestrian Team, providing world-class horses to Canadian Olympians, Tiffany Foster and Eric Lamaze, through Artisan Farms LLC.
In 2016 alone, the Ziegler family had a profound impact on the Canadian Equestrian Team. A total of eight horses declared for the Canadian Show Jumping Team for the Rio 2016 Olympic Games were owned by Artisan Farms LLC.
Lamaze had four Artisan Farms LLC mounts to choose from for Rio, Fine Lady 5, Check Picobello Z, Powerplay and Coco Bongo. Ultimately, it was Fine Lady 5 who travelled to Brazil and carried Lamaze all the way to the podium for an individual bronze medal. The 13-year-old Hanoverian mare (Forsyth x Drosselklang II) was the only horse of the Games to put in an incredible five consecutive clear rounds.
Prior to the individual final, Fine Lady 5 and Lamaze led the Canadian Show Jumping Team to an impressive fourth place finish after going head-to-head with Germany in a jump-off for the team bronze medal.
With such a reliable mount during the Games, Lamaze was able to claim the record for the most medals won by a Canadian in equestrian sport. Plus, in August 2016 he cracked the top 10 in the FEI Longines World Jumping Rankings for the first time in four years. Following his success at the Olympics, he moved up once again to take over fifth place in the world in September.
Foster also had the opportunity to choose between four talented partners for Rio, Tripple X III, Victor, Houston and Brighton. Tripple X III (Namelus R x Cantango), a 14-year-old Anglo European stallion, proved to be her chosen Rio partner. Together they were indispensable to the team, putting in a clear round when Canada needed it most in the team final, helping to secure the jump-off with Germany for bronze. Foster and Tripple X III also put a clear on the board for Canada in the jump-off.
Outside of the Games, Artisan Farms LLC horses represented Canada in nations’ cup competitions throughout the year, with highlights including Foster and Victor producing a double-clear effort to help Canada take third in the $300,000 BMO Nations’ Cup, held Sept, 10 at the CSIO 5* Spruce Meadows ‘Masters’ Tournament in Calgary, AB. The duo also laid down back-to-back clear rounds in the Furusiyya FEI Nations’ Cup at the CSIO 4* BC Open in Langley, BC in June, where Canada took second place.
“It’s an honour to be named Jump Canada Owner of the Year again and, as always, we are delighted to support our dear friends Tiffany Foster and Eric Lamaze,” said Andy Ziegler, who firmly believes the key to Canada’s success on the international stage going forward is to develop a program around obtaining and retaining top level sport horses for Canadian riders. “It’s also important to remember that there are many talented riders in Canada just wanting for horsepower. If the country desires to remain competitive on the international stage, it needs to more systematically address how to source and obtain world-class competitive horses.”
Carlene and Caitlin Ziegler accepted the 2016 Jump Canada Owner of the Year award on behalf of Artisan Farms LLC on Nov. 6 at the Jump Canada Hall of Fame Gala in Toronto, ON.
Jump Canada is grateful for the level of dedication, commitment and support that owners generously provide in order to ensure that Canadian Show Jumping Team athletes have access to world-class horses, and is pleased to recognize deserving owners through the Owner of the Year Award. To view past recipients, click here.
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