Equine Canada and the Canadian Equestrian Team extend our heartfelt condolences to Beth Underhill and to everyone at Beth Underhill Stables on the passing of Monopoly.
Born in 1979, Monopoly, a Hanoverian Thoroughbred cross gelding, was imported from New Zealand by the Ierullo family for their daughter, Skye. In 1989, Monopoly was sent to Terrance Millar for training and his student, Beth Underhill, became Monopoly’s rider the following season. The pair made their Canadian Equestrian Team debut in 1990 when they were members of Canada’s winning Nations’ Cup team at the Royal Winter Fair in Toronto, a feat they repeated in 1991 and 1992.
“Beth and Monopoly were crowd favourites for Canada and beyond,” said chef d’équipe, Terrance Millar. “Their many accomplishments inspired many young equestrians to pursue their dreams. Beth gave Monopoly many years of wonderful retirement that one could only wish for.”
Beth and Monopoly also won both the team and individual silver medals at the 1991 Pan American Games in Havana, Cuba. The following year, they were part of the Canadian Equestrian Team at the 1992 Barcelona Olympic Games and represented Canada at the 1994 World Equestrian Games in The Hague, the Netherlands. In 1993, Beth rode Monopoly when she became the first woman to win the Canadian World Cup League, and, in 1994 and 1996, Beth and Monopoly won Canadian Show Jumping Championship titles at Spruce Meadows. The Ierullo family donated Monopoly, at the height of his international career, to the Canadian Equestrian Team in 1993. Monopoly won his last grand prix, $100,000 Treatwells Grand Prix at HITS V Ocala Winter Finals in Florida, at the age of 20.
“Monopoly will always have a special place in the history of the Canadian Equestrian Team,” said Akaash Maharaj, CEO of Equine Canada and the Canadian Equestrian Team. “He is the most successful horse ever donated directly to our team itself, and his pairing with Beth Underhill was a great boon to our team, to him, and to Canada’s performance on the international stage. We are saddened by his passing, but celebrate his long and happy life and his partnership with Beth.”
Monopoly was officially retired from competition in 2001, and enjoyed his well-earned years of retirement at Beth’s farm in Schomberg, ON.
All of Monopoly’s fans are invited to visit the Equine Canada website to post their thoughts and sentiments on his tribute page at http://bit.ly/v4OzxF.
More from Horse Sport:
