Perfect weather greeted riders as competition got underway during the Kentucky Summer Series at the Kentucky Horse Park. The Open Jumper riders gathered at the Rolex Stadium, where the first 1.40m Open Jumper class focused on speed and Tatiana Dzavik had the winning key with Dahlia. She topped Shane Sweetnam and Fineman by just 3/10ths of a second to claim the blue ribbon. The final event of the day was the 1.40m Open Jumper Table 2 Section 2b jump-off class. No one was able to perfect the jump-off, but with speed on his side, Pablo Barrios of Venezuela scored the top prize for his four-fault round on Ambosell.
For the opening classes, Richard Jeffery of Bournemouth, England built welcoming courses in the Rolex Stadium, each featuring an open water option with a scored pole. The speed class also included two oxer-vertical combinations and eventually yielded nine clear rounds.
Christian Heineking set the time to beat early on as the first to show with NKH Selena, owned by NKH LLC of Dallas, TX, producing a faultless effort in 68.479 seconds, which held up for the third place honors. He also captured the fourth place award with his second mount Count Me In, owned by Isabelle Terry of Dallas, TX, who was also clear over the course in a quick time of 69.267 seconds.
Tatiana Dzavik was ready to tackle the track though when she entered the ring with her new mount Dahlia. She and the eight-year-old mare quickly covered the ground with a fast gallop and easily cut the turns as they made their way across the arena. The duo broke the beam at 68.057 seconds to take over the lead and eventually claim the blue ribbon. The only rider that came close to catching them was the last in the ring. Shane Sweetnam was right on Dzavik heels with Fineman, owned by Sweet Oak Farm of Wellington, FL, clearing the obstacles and dashing across the finish in 68.318 seconds, to capture the second place prize.
Dahlia is a new mount for Dzavik, one that she co-owns with Ilan Ferder of Wellington, FL. The eight-year-old mare came from Tal Milstein, Ferder’s partner in Belgium, and she is already showing that she has a great connection with Dzavik.
“This is the first time I’ve shown her here,” she smiled after her win. “The course was beautiful, and the horse was flawless. I was thrilled with the way she jumped. I felt like she was really quick and rode really easy. She has enough blood herself, and I don’t have too much. I just hold her, and she takes me to the jumps.”
Dzavik, originally from Canada, traveled to Kentucky with Olympian Will Simpson and the Von Heidegger family. The young professional began working for them just a few weeks ago, competing at The Oaks in California for two weeks before arriving in Kentucky.
“The facility here is phenomenal,” she expressed. “The Rolex Stadium is amazing to ride in. The footing is perfect. They have great management, good rings, and nice weather here; it’s an incredible facility.”
Next week, Dzavik will set her sights on the $25,000 Hagyard Lexington Classic with Dahlia. For more information about the Kentucky Summer Series, please visit www.KentuckyHorseShows.com.
Results
OPEN JUMPER 1.40m II sec 1
1 875 DAHLIA TATIANA DZAVIK 0 0 0 68.057
2 1020 FINEMAN SHANE SWEETNAM 0 0 0 68.318
3 220 NKH SELENA CHRISTIAN HEINEKING 0 0 0 68.479
4 225 COUNT ME IN (CHAKIRA) CHRISTIAN HEINEKING 0 0 0 69.267
5 488 GIDEON CALLIE SCHOTT 0 0 0 74.331
6 651 ROCKY W KAITLIN CAMPBELL 0 0 0 74.856
7 399 ACCORDANCE JUAN ORTIZ 0 0 0 75.052
8 344 ZIBON HC VICTOR AMAYA 0 0 0 77.728
9 11 DEEP SNOW MAX AMAYA 0 0 0
10 1313 SOLERINA SHANE SWEETNAM 4 0 4 64.734
11 58 PUERTAS CATENA JUAN PABLO GASPAR 4 0 4 72.629
12 8 CARTIER MAX AMAYA 0 6 6 87.523
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