Five-star competition at the seventh week of the Winter Equestrian Festival (WEF) culminated on Sunday, February 27, in the $75,000 CaptiveOne Advisors 1.50m Championship Classic CSI5* where Daniel Deusser (GER) secured his second victory of the week. Deusser was also the victor of the $75,000 Adequan ® WEF Challenge Cup Round VII CSI5* with Scuderia 1918 Tobago Z on Thursday of week 7. WEF 7, presented by Lugano Diamonds, hosted multiple international five-star and two-star events as well as a variety of national hunter, jumper, and equitation divisions. The series gathers the best riders from across the world for 13 straight weeks of top competition running through April 3, 2022.
A total of 53 pairings put forth an effort in the first-round track of the final five-star course of the week designed by Anthony D’Ambrosio (USA) and Andy Christiansen (ECU). The class was one of many throughout the week to have an impressive turnout of international athletes with 17 different nations represented in the starting field. Early in the class, five entries had already qualified to return for the short track including McLain Ward (USA), Erynn Ballard (CAN), Andrzej Oplatek (POL), Chloe Reid (USA), and Jos Verlooy (BEL). When the final horse on course crossed the timers, an additional 10 duos had managed to navigate their way clear. Two competitors suffered at the fate of a single time fault while one dropped rail kept another 11 out of contention.
Ward kicked off the 15-horse comeback field and took the early lead with The Kasper Group LLC’s Kasper Van Het Hellehof. The top position shifted rapidly after that with multiple riders giving it their all in hopes of taking the win. As the class wound down, Deusser crossed under the bridge with his second jump-off mount, Kiana Van Het Herdershof. Having already gotten a feel for the track with Killer Queen VDM, Deusser precisely pinpointed what areas he needed to correct for the win and emerged victorious with a clean time of 33.36 seconds.