In a result that surprises no one, Germany’s Michael Jung is once again sitting atop the leaderboard at the Rolex Kentucky Three-Day Event, presented by Land Rover. He added just 1.6 time penalties to his dressage score to lead with FischerRocana FST with a score of 38.7. He has a rail in hand over France’s Maxime Livio and Qalao Des Mers in second (44.6) and England’s Zara Tindall and High Kingdom in third (46.6).
Standing in fourth is U.S. rider Matthew Brown and Super Socks BCF (47.8), who leads the Rolex/USEF CCI4* Eventing National Championship. Taking home an extra prize is U.S. rider Erin Sylvester aboard Mettraise, who thanks to her perfect round finishing on the optimum time, receives a two-year lease on a 2017 Land Rover Discovery Sport as the Land Rover Best Ride of the Day.
For Canada, Selena O’Hanlon and Foxwood High sit in 11th place, having moved up from 12th when 7th-placed Vandiver, ridden by Doug Payne, did not pass the Sunday a.m. vet check. Hawley Bennett-Awad and Jollybo are in 13th going into the stadium phase, followed by Jessica Phoenix and Pavarotti (16th), Lisa Marie Fergusson and Honor Me (21st), and Holly Jacks-Smither and More Inspiration (30th).
Known as the “Best Weekend All Year,” the Rolex Kentucky Three-Day Event Presented by Land Rover is being held at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, Kentucky, April 27-30.
Though he is sitting in first, Jung did not have his signature perfect round as his mare got a few funny distances. “I think that’s cross-country,” said Jung, 34, Horb, Germany. “You never know what will happen. You walk the course and make a plan, but then I felt in the warm up today that Rocana was not feeling perfect with the weather. It made me nervous before the start, but on course she was galloping well and jumping powerfully.”
Jung, defending Rolex Kentucky champion and two-time Olympic champion, credits his partnership with his horses, and especially Rocana, with his ability to succeed even when things don’t go perfectly. “(Towards the end of the course) some situations were not very clear for me and the horse, but we have a good partnership,” he said. “That is the most important thing in eventing–that you know each other and trust each other and can find your way out of difficult situations. I am very happy that we both came out happy and healthy.”
Livio also had nothing but praise for his horse and his partnership. “I am super happy with my horse, who had a super round,” said Livio, 29, Saumur, France. “He started like he starts every time-fast and strong. I tried not to fight too much at the beginning, but he never wanted to get quiet. But he did exactly what I wanted everywhere. With all (the terrain and crowds) on that course sometimes you can have a plan and not realize that plan. It happened for me (on the fish in the Head of the Lake). My last stride was too short, but it was my only bobble on the course. The horse is well, I’m very happy, the ground was superb for me and the weather was a good thing today.”
Tindall, 35, Gloucestershire, England, had a rough time during her last trip to the Kentucky Horse Park, when her horse High Kingdom had to be withdrawn from competition after injuring himself in the stables right before he was set to do dressage. This time they’ve had a much better weekend, with a good showing in dressage and a strong double-clear in the cross-country to stand third.
“I had a great ride,” she said. “I was pretty happy after my dressage and to get through to my cross-country was already better than two years ago! I was happy for the rain last night, the ground was incredible. He loves this phase–he gallops great, he’s easy to turn, he’s very good at all the combinations and we did what we planned the whole way around. He kept galloping well in the heat–you are always worried and he coped really well. He finished really good too, so hopefully it will be easier for him tomorrow (in show jumping).
The cross-country caused a considerable shakeup in the standings. Overnight leaders Clark Montgomery and Loughan Glen dropped down the order after runouts at 18ab, the first of two narrow wedges in the water at the Land Rover Landing and the second of the Horse Park Barns at 27. Kim Severson who had been third after dressage retired Cooley Cross Border after a run out at the corner at the Fox Den at 22. The Land Rover Landing proved to be the most influential fence of the day, with 10 pairs coming to grief there.
In all, only five of the 57 starters (Copper Beech/Buck Davidson and Revitavet Capato/Jordan Linstedt withdrew before the start) managed to come home double clear, and only 26 came home with no jumping penalties. The five putting in sparkling double-clears included: Livio/Qalao Des Mers, Tindall/High Kingdom, Super Socks/Matthew Brown, Tim Bourke (IRL)/Luckaun Quality and Erin Sylvester/Mettraise.
Sylvester has something to be extra pleased about, other than just jumping double clear at her horse’s first CCI4*–she made a huge leap up the standings–38 place–to stand 13th, and by finishing exactly on the optimum time she won the Land Rover Best Ride of the Day. By being the American finishing closest to optimum time with no penalties, she wins a two-year lease on a 2017 Land Rover Discovery Sport.
“I was really pleased with ‘Missy,'” Sylvester, 32, Kennett Square, Pa., said. “This is her first four-star, so I did not go out with a plan to hit optimum time, but at the end of the last big combination I was hitting all my minute markers and thought we could do it. She’s always supper bold but not the most ridable. She was great everywhere, in a few spots she felt green, but she tried hard to squeeze between the flags and land galloping away. She came in well and I’m looking forward to jumping her tomorrow.”
Brown and Super Socks BCF put in an impressive double-clear round to move into fourth place. As the highest-placed American, they are currently leading the Rolex/USEF CCI4* Eventing National Championship.
“I was really happy with Super Socks,” Brown, 36, Cochranville, Pa. said. “My only plan was to take each exercise one at a time. I started with one idea of the options out there and I realized after jumping through the Head of the Lake that I just need to trust this horse and he’ll jump anything in front of him. I didn’t give a him a great jump in and he just did it, and I thought I need to trust that my horse knows what he’s doing.
“I’ve since discovered he jumped out of both of his front shoes somewhere before the Head of the Lake,” Brown continued. “There were a few jumps where I thought I saw a good distance, but he added up. Now, knowing he didn’t have fronts, I see he was making good decisions. I thought it was hard to find good ground at the end of the day, and he was quite tired but that horse is nothing if not all heart. I asked for more and he kept giving.”
In the Dubarry of Ireland Nations Team Challenge, the combined team of New Zealand/France/Germany kept its lead with a score of 156.3 over Team USA (162.2) and Team Canada (194.5). The combined team includes Jung (38.7), Livio, (44.6), Joe Meyer (NZL)/Clip Clop (73.0) and Tim Price (NZL)/ Ringwood Skyboy (121.3).
The Rolex Kentucky Three-Day Event is the nation’s premier Three-Day Event and one of the most prestigious equestrian competitions in the world. The International Equestrian Federation (FEI), the world’s governing body of equestrian sports, has designated the Rolex Kentucky Three-Day Event as a ‘Four Star’ eventing competition, the highest designation, which is given only to the Olympic Games, World Championships, and six annual events around the world. “Rolex Kentucky” is the only Four Star event in the Western Hemisphere and is part of the Rolex Grand Slam of Eventing. It hosts the Dubarry of Ireland Nations Team Challenge and serves as the Rolex/USEF CCI4* Eventing National Championship.
Spectators can enjoy a world-class three-day event competition and shop at the Sponsor Village and International Trade Fair with almost 200 booths and tents. Rolex Kentucky also features tailgating, a fund-raising farm-to-table dinner Thursday evening, on-site beer garden, 5K race on Friday evening, Land Rover test drives and Champions Live! on Sunday morning. Ticket buyers also receive general admission to the Kentucky Horse Park, America’s only theme park dedicated to horses.
The Rolex Kentucky Three-Day Event will be broadcast on NBC on Sunday, May 7, from 1:30-3:00 p.m. EDT. USEFNetwork.com is livestreaming the competition in its entirety live as it happens and will also have the coverage available on demand. FEITV.org will also livestream the event internationally.
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