Jordan MacPherson of Toronto, ON was crowned the 2013 National Talent Squad Series Champion in front of a hometown crowd at the Royal Horse Show on Nov. 10.
Riding Aanwinst, an eight-year-old Dutch Warmblood mare owned by JEM Stables Inc., MacPherson made a clean sweep of the Final, winning both phases to earn a total of 14 points.
Her initial win came on Nov. 7 in the $8,000 Alfred Rogers National Talent Squad Series Championship – Phase 1.
Renowned course designer (and 1976 Individual Show Jumping Olympic Silver Medalist for Canada) Michel Vaillencourt set a challenging track for an against-the-clock speed round. But, MacPherson and Aanwinst tackled the multiple combinations and tricky broken lines, putting in one of only three clear rounds and crossing the timers in just 63.04 seconds.
“She lit up a little bit with the crowd. It’s obviously a very different experience (indoors) but she adjusted very well,” commented MacPherson, who has been riding Aanwinst for the past two years.
MacPherson and Aanwinst continued to put in clear performances in the $10,000 Alfred Rogers National Talent Squad Series Championship – Phase II on Nov. 10. After conquering the first round they progressed to the jump-off, keeping the crowd on the edge of their seats with a bold round that stopped the clock at 34.78 seconds for the win.
“I thought it was a very good class. I thought Michel did a very good job on the course, and I thought the competitors were very strong today,” commented MacPherson. “I knew that it was going to be a very fast jump-off.”
In recognition of her achievements, MacPherson was presented with a champion cooler in an awards ceremony attended by DM Rogers, who sponsored the 2013 Talent Squad Series Championship in memory of Alfred Rogers.
David Arcand of Mount Royal, QC was awarded the Reserve Championship after accumulating eight points over the two phases. Riding his eight-year-old Zangersheide mare, Cassis Z Ten Halven, Arcand finished fourth in Phase I and second in Phase II.
The Jump Canada Talent Squad Series was created to provide up-and-coming show jumping riders with the opportunity to prepare for the grand prix ranks. It also supplies a platform for riders to demonstrate their potential as future Canadian Equestrian Team members. Qualifying classes are held annually at EC sanctioned competitions, and are split into two divisions. The Eastern division is comprised of ON, QC, and the Maritimes, while the Western division covers AB, BC, MB, and SK. At the completion of the series qualifiers, the top 10 riders from each division are invited to attend the Final at the Royal Horse Show.
For more information on the Jump Canada National Talent Squad series, visit www.equinecanada.ca/jumpcanada.
Full results of the 2013 National Talent Squad Series Championship can be found at www.royalfair.org.
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