William Coleman and Diabolo Take Plantation Field International

A clear cross-country clinched the win for US Olympic Eventing Team member William Coleman and Diabolo, a 12-year-old Holsteiner gelding (Diarado x Roulett M) owned by the Diabolo Group, in the $40,000 Brooke USA CCI4-S at the Plantation Field International Three-Day Event. Coleman and Diabolo took the lead in dressage and held on through the end, adding just 3.6 time faults for a final score of 27.5. Coleman said that it felt like a good preparation for the Maryland Five-Star next month, which will be the horse’s first run at that level.

Coleman said, “He was very ready to go today – I actually had a hard time getting him in the start box. But he loves his job, so I can’t be annoyed that he gets a bit hyper; once he gets out there, he settles very quickly. He’s just a lovely horse. He jumped around today very well, I wasn’t really pressing him for time, but he was full of running all the way to the end.”

The $40,000 prize money was thanks to a generous $25,000 donation from an anonymous donor in the name of the charity Brooke USA. The winner also received a certificate for a €2400 discount off of a €30,000 or more purchase at the Goresbridge Go for Gold select event horse sale in Ireland in November, as well as a number of other prizes.

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Standing second after yesterday’s show jumping, Boyd Martin and Tsetserleg TSF, a 17-year-old Trakehner gelding (Windfall 2 x Thabana) owned by the Turner family, also jumped clear but a slow and conservative ride, which added 26.4 time faults to their score and dropped them to 12th place overall.

This opened the door for Ariel Grald, who won the CCI4-S at this event in 2023, to move up from 8th to second place overall riding Annie Eldridge’s Isla de Coco (U-Lotti x Gardus Nimbus), a ten-year-old Holsteiner mare, after going clear and also adding just 3.6 time faults.

“I think this is an important event in the calendar,” said Grald. “We’re ramping up for our long events in the fall and this one ticks all the boxes to prepare for that.”

Comparing the cross country course to last year she said, “I think the track was similar to last year but it asked different questions, and that is where [cross-country course designer] Derek diGrazia is a genius: he uses the terrain very well, and I felt like this was a good fitness run. Isla de Coco is doing her first four-star long at Morven Park, and I felt like it was important to make her run up and down the hills here. Derek set a great track, it had really good questions and I feel like the horses were able to read it well.”

Irish rider Michael Nolan piloted Carrabeg Hulla Balou, a nine-year-old Irish Sport Horse gelding (Balou Du Rouet x Vella Flavour) owned by Susan Martin, around clear and with 6.4 time faults to finish in third place – a standing that they held from start to finish.

“It was good to get my horse’s dressage more consistent, and it was good to get a clear cross-country round because we needed the qualification,” he said. “I’m an FEI ‘C’ rider, so I have to do two to qualify and then hopefully do something bigger next year.” He also rode a couple of horses at the two-star level this weekend.

Nolan has been in the US for ten years working for Robin Walker in Michigan, after moving over from his home in County Wexford. Walker bought Carrabeg Hulla Balou as a three-year-old in Ireland, and Nolan brought him up the levels. Martin purchased him this spring and he has continued riding the horse, known at home as “Louie”.

While he may be a new face at this big event, he said that the other upper-level riders have been friendly and welcoming since he moved to the US, and he feels that they are more friends than competitors.

Nolan said that he plans to give Louie another CCI4-S run at Morven Park (VA) in a couple of weeks, then move up to a Long-Format CCI4-star at TerraNova (FL) in November.

Top 10-Canadians in the CCI4*-S were Colleen Loach and FE Golden Eye (5th); Hanna Hansen and Lovely Assistant (8th) and Jessica Phoenix with Fluorescent Adolescent (10th).

Complete results here.