After Selena O’Hanlon and her horse Foxwood High made history as the first Canadian winners of the Fair Hill International CCI***, she and the horse’s owners, John and Judy Rumble, were flying high. Or at least they expected they would be.
Since 2013, the previous Fair Hill CCI*** winners – who were all American – have received a free return flight to Europe for their horse, courtesy of title sponsor the Dutta Corp., whose business is horse air transportation. But last week, six weeks after her historic win, O’Hanlon and John Rumble learned they would not be receiving the flight, and were advised that it was actually a “grant” that was awarded only to the top American finisher. They also learned that their share of the prize money – announced as $15,000 USD – would instead be just $11,000 USD.
O’Hanlon, who is based in Kingston, Ontario, says while the decreased prize money is disappointing, what is most upsetting is the loss of the flight (approx. value $20,000 CDN). She says the ultimate dream for John Rumble, 84, of Schomberg, ON, who was a member of Canada’s Eventing Team that won bronze at the 1956 Stockholm Olympics, is for ‘Woody’ to compete at the Badminton CCI****. They planned to use the free flight to transport Woody to England to compete at Badminton in the spring of 2018.