Kent Farrington of the United States opened international show jumping competition at the Royal Horse Show by scoring victory in the $38,000 Jolera International Strength and Speed Challenge on Wednesday, November 9, as part of the 100th Royal Agricultural Winter Fair in Toronto, ON.
Competing over a “power and speed” track designed by Michel Vaillancourt, riders had to navigate eight fences fault-free within the 45-second time allowed before immediately advancing to the speed portion of the course. Of the 12 horse-and-rider combinations to jump clear through the first phase, Farrington and Austria 2 were the fastest in the speed phase, stopping the clock in 30.08 seconds. It marked a repeat victory for pair, who also won in 2019.
“Austria is a hyper-competitive modern show jumper, so almost any course suits her,” said Farrington of the 14-year-old Holsteiner mare (Casall x San Patrignano Corrado) owned by Take the High Road LLC. “She’s won some five-star grand prix classes and jumped at some of the biggest shows in the world, but as she’s gotten older now, I try to pick classes that I think are a little bit easier for her to jump. She’s a great winner and has been since day one, and I think she will be until the end of her career.”