It was a hometown win as Kelley Robinson of Russell, ON, claimed victory in the $20,000 Open Welcome held Thursday, July 15, at Wesley Clover Parks in the nation’s capital.
The first of two weeks of back-to-back show jumping competition comprising the Ottawa Summer Tournaments attracted a starting field of 20 entries for the $20,000 Open Welcome. Competing over a track set by course designer Mike Pegg of Uxbridge, ON, six horse-rider combinations produced clear rounds to advance to the jump-off. Three other competitors – Paul Halpern, Canadian Olympic team silver medalist Jill Henselwood, and Susan Horn – left all the jumps in place but incurred time faults for exceeding the 89-second time allowed.
As the fourth of six riders to return for the tie-breaking jump-off, Robinson moved into the lead with a clear round in a time of 40.92 seconds riding Blue’s Yer Daddy. Francois Lamontagne of Saint-Eustache, QC, was next to challenge with Chanel du Calvaire but one rail down meant that Robinson remained at the top of the leaderboard. It was all up to Hyde Moffatt of Brantford, ON, as the last to go riding Grafton for owner Ariel Grange. When the first fence of the jump-off course came down, the victory went to Robinson.