USET Announces US Team for CSIO Wellington

Gladstone, New Jersey—February 14, 2002—The United States Equestrian Team (USET) has announced the US Team that will compete in the CSIO – Wellington, March 6-10 during the Cosequin Wellington Finale at the Cosequin Winter Equestrian Festival at the Palm Beach Polo Equestrian Club in Wellington, FL.

The four riders were chosen based on their ranking on the USET Computer List as of January 25, 2002. They are: Margie Engle of Wellington, FL; Laura Kraut of Oconomowoc, WI; McLain Ward of Brewster, NY; and Beezie Madden of Cazenovia, NY. The alternate is Kim Frey of Hume, VA. Leslie Howard of Westport, CT, ranked first on the Jan. 25th USET Computer List has indicated that, due to a prior commitment, she is unable to participate on the team at CSIO Wellington.

Engle, a seven-time AGA Rider of the Year and veteran of the 2000 Olympic Games, had a stellar 2001. She competed in her 10th World Cup Final and won five prestigious grand prix classes, including the $75,000 Tommy Bahama Florida Open, the $50,000 Budweiser Grand Prix of Lake Placid and the $50,000 I Love New York Grand Prix. She also captured the $100,000 Cosequin Invitational Grand Prix in Culpeper, VA and the $150,000 Prudential Financial Grand Prix, presented by David Yurman at the Hampton Classic in Bridgehampton, NY.

Another veteran of the 2000 Olympic Games, Kraut won the $100,000 US Open Jumper Championship in Wellington, FL in 2001. She also won the $75,000 American Jumping Classic in Ohio in August and took the top prize in the Budweiser Grand Prix de Penn National in October, finishing the season as reserve champion in the AGA Rider of the Year standings.

The youngest rider to surpass $1 million in prize money, Ward won the $100,000 Budweiser Upperville Jumper Classic in Upperville, VA and the $50,000 Sussex County Grand Prix in Augusta, NJ in 2001. He also placed second in the $100,000 Rolex USET Show Jumping Championship in Gladstone, NJ and the $150,000 Prudential Financial Grand Prix at the Hampton Classic.

Among Madden’s many prestigious career wins is her victory in the 2000 Valkenswaard Grand Prix in The Netherlands, which made her only the second American to ever win a Pulsar Crown event. In 2001, she won the $25,000 Lexington Classic Grand Prix and placed third in the Grand Prix of Aachen in Germany.

Named to the 2001 USET Developing Rider Tour, Frey helped the United States win seven classes at CSIO Drammen in Norway, including the Samsung Nations Cup. She had many top finishes in the US as well in 2001, including the $100,000 Moore Cadillac Grand Prix in The Plains, VA and the $60,000 American Gold Cup Grand Prix in Devon, PA.

Wellington is only the fifth location in the United States to be selected to host a Nations Cup since the first Nations Cup was held in London in 1909. It will be the first outdoor Nations Cup ever held in the US. In a Nations Cup competition, participants of Olympic caliber are chosen to ride for their country’s team. The event is expected to attract teams from Argentina, Canada, Ireland and the United States.

The United States Equestrian Team is a non-profit organization that selects, trains, equips and finances equestrians of the highest possible standard to represent our country in major international competition, including the Olympic Games and the World Championships. To accomplish this, the USET seeks out and nurtures the development of talented athletes - riders, drivers and horses - and provides the support and guidance they need to help them attain their fullest potential. For more information on the USET, please call (908) 234-1251, or visit USET ONLINE at www.uset.org