Darragh Kerins Wins $35,000 Ox Ridge Grand Prix To Close the 73rd Annual Ox Ridge Charity Horse Show

DARIEN, CT – June 17, 2002 – The sun came out for the last day of the 73rd annual Ox Ridge Charity Horse Show in Darien, CT and Darragh Kerins of Ireland beat a field of 28 entries in the $35,000 Ox Ridge Grand Prix.

The Grand Prix course consisted of 13 fences and was designed by Anthony D’Ambrosio of Mount Kisco, New York.

After the first round, only 5 horses had clean rounds. McLain Ward of Brewster, NY had two entries for the jump-off and was first and second to go. Galant was his first ride. He had one knockdown, scoring 4 jumping faults with a time of 44.415 seconds. He came back on Alegro and had two knockdowns for 8 faults and a time of 46.034 seconds which ultimately earned him fourth place.

Next to go was Kerins on his 14-year-old Irishbred gelding, Notre Dame. Kerins had a no-fault ride and a time of 46.499 seconds to take the lead. Callan Solem, riding Allison, was next. She had 12 faults and a time of 48.078, which earned her fifth place. Last to go was Canadian Olympic veteran Mario Deslauriers with Amica. One fence came down and his score of four faults and time of 46.247 seconds put him in third place behind Kerins and Ward.

After finishing second on Galant, Ward said, “Kerins has been knocking on my door the last couple of weeks! He deserved to win today.” When asked about the course, Ward said, “The footing was great but the fences were huge! It was a difficult course for this Grand Prix.”

The $35,000 Ox Ridge Grand Prix, one of the nation's largest and most prestigious competitions, is the highlight of the Ox Ridge Charity Horse Show, which drew approximately 1300 horses this year.

Sponsors for the 2002 Ox Ridge Charity Horse Show include Bevals LTD, Brooks Community Newspapers, CL. Adams, Der Dau, Great Horse Designs, House of Needlepoint, Indo-Chic Imports, Kool 96.7 FM, Lucky Lawn Inc., Pharmacia Animal Care, Reuters, Scudder Private Investment Counsel, and Watson Wyatt Worldwide.

A portion of the proceeds from the 2002 Ox Ridge Charity Horse Show benefits The Center For Hope, a counseling and support center for children and adults, located in Darien.

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