Katie Laurie (AUS) Claims Victory Aboard McCaw MVMZ in the ATCO Challenge
The third day of the Spruce Meadows ‘National’ CSI5*, presented by Rolex, opened with the aptly named ATCO Challenge on the International Ring. Out of the twenty-two horse/rider combinations that started in today’s competition, only 6 advanced to the jump-off.
The course, designed by FEI course designer Anthony D’Ambrosio (USA), featured 11 obstacles (13 jumping efforts) and a time allowed of 73 seconds. It proved to be a trickier track than the courses of the previous two days, with D’Ambrosio beginning to slowly turn up the heat as we entered the third day of the tournament. The ATCO Challenge was also the first course of the week to feature the open water obstacle, though D’Ambrosio utilized the smaller of the two open water features available to him in the International Ring.
Notable names in the jump-off included Tiffany Foster (CAN) and former world #1 ranked rider Kent Farrington (USA), though in the end it was Australian Olympian Katie Laurie who claimed first place with a fast jump-off time of 39.68 seconds. Foster came in a close second with a time of 40.09 seconds, and Farrington in third with 40.56 seconds.
This was Laurie’s first-ever win in the International Ring, leaving her with a taste of what a victory in this historic ring feels like, and excitement for what the remainder of the September Series has in store for her and her horses.
Tiffany Foster (CAN) and Brighton Take First Place in the RBC Capital Markets Cup
The RBC Capital Markets Cup is always a thrilling competition for riders to partake in, and this year’s edition was no exception. Thirty-six horse/rider combinations took to the International Ring this afternoon to take on the competition that has seen the likes of McLain Ward (USA) and Darragh Kenny (IRL) win in previous years.
This year’s course, designed by Anthony D’Ambrosio (USA), consisted of 12 obstacles (15 jumping efforts), and a time allowed of 80 seconds. After the first round, 6 riders, including Tiffany Foster (CAN), Ben Asselin (CAN), and Jordan Coyle (IRL) moved on to the jump-off. For the second day in a row, it was a Canadian rider who emerged victorious from the ring; Tiffany Foster aboard the ever-reliable gelding, the 15-year-old Brighton.
The pair were second-to-last to go in the jump-off, and faced the difficult task of beating Katherine Strauss’ (USA) clear round with a time of 41.69 seconds. Foster managed to beat Strauss with a time of 40.54 seconds, leaving final rider Ben Asselin as the only one who had a chance of defeating her score. Asselin’s clean round at 44.84 seconds was enough to earn him a fifth-place finish, leaving Foster at the top.
“A showjumper needs to have heart to jump at Spruce Meadows,” Foster said in the press conference following her win. “I think that over time, depending on what your life goals are… you end up aiming for, looking for horses that you know are going to jump well at Spruce Meadows, and I hope that these three weeks will prove that I have chosen wisely.”
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