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Four USET Championships Awarded at Bayer/USET Festival
of Champions Presented by State Line Tack
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Gladstone,
NJ—June 22, 2003— Kristina Harrison-Naness of Burbank,
CA, aboard Kantor topped the Cosequin/USET Pan American Games
Selection Trials to secure herself a position on the squad that
will represent the United States this August in Santo Domingo,
the Dominican Republic. The Selection Trials took place as part
of the Bayer/USET Festival of Champions Presented by State Line
Tack at the USET Olympic Training Center in Gladstone, NJ.
Qualifying
for the squad along with Harrison-Naness were Carol Lavell of
Loxahatchee, FL, and Much Ado; Jan Ebeling of Moorpark, CA, with
two horses, Feleciano and Liberte; and Pierre St. Jacques of Boscawen,
NH and Lucky Tiger. Susan Dutta of Wellington, FL with West Side
Lady DC was named as alternate.
After earning a score of 72.450% in Sunday’s culminating
Freestyle, Harrison-Naness jumped to the top of the field of thirteen
horse-and-rider combinations to finish the Trials with the highest
overall score of 69.843%, giving her the 2003 USET Intermediaire
Championship.
After some technical difficulty and a loud crash which spooked
her horse just prior to entering the ring, 1992 Olympic Team Bronze
Medalist Carol Lavell and Much Ado posted a score of 70.675% in
the Freestyle to put them second place in the final standings.
The pair finished the Trials with an overall score of 69.729%.
Lavell spoke of the early part of her test saying, “In the
first part of the test, I just had to hang on to it. It crossed
my mind to retire, but then I thought you ‘gotta hang in
there kid.’”
Jan Ebeling’s two horses finished the Trials in the third
and fourth place positions. Aboard Feleciano, Ebeling earned second
place in the Freestyle with a score of 71.9%. The pair’s
performance throughout the Trials placed them third with a score
of 69.240% in the final standings. With his second ride in the
Freestyle, Liberte, Ebeling finished in sixth place with a score
of 69.525%, which gave the pair an overall score of 68.716% and
fourth place overall in the Trials. While Ebeling has two horses
qualified, he will only be able to compete on one horse at the
Games. “Both horses are so close, so strong. They’re
really so equal,” Ebeling said of the two horses.
The final rider to qualify for the Pan American Games squad, Pierre
St. Jacques finished in fifth place in the Freestyle with a score
of 69.725% aboard Lucky Tiger. This combination finished the Trials
with an overall score of 68.236% to put him in the fifth place
position overall as well.
The dressage ring at the Bayer/USET Festival of Champions also
hosted the National Disability Sports Alliance (NDSA) Championship
for Riders with a Disability, which served as the Selection Trials
for the team to represent the United States at the 2003 World
Dressage Championships for Riders with a Disability in Belgium
in September. In his first trip to the Festival, twenty-year-old,
Keith Newerla, swept the Championship by winning three blue ribbons.
“It’s my first year here. I’m the rookie,”
said Newerla who is by-passing the Championships as he will be
in college in September. “Somehow I ended up doing well.
I guess beginner’s luck.”
While
Newerla will not be traveling to Belgium to compete, the following
riders were named to the squad: Lynn Seidemann of Coppell, TX,
Barbara Grassmyer of Placerville, NC, Rebecca Hart of Erie, PA,
Robin Brueckmann of Summerfield, NC, Cynthia Ruiz of Houston,
TX, and Kathryn Groves of Winter Garden, FL.
Also
part of the weekend was the 75-Mile USET Endurance Championship
Ride, however because of arduous weather conditions, the ride
was shortened to a 65-Mile ride. Christina Rieksen of Holland
aboard Samblet topped the field of fifteen to cross through the
timers in a time of 9:38:13. Rieksen initially came to the United
States to visit top endurance rider, Valerie Kanavy, but ended
up staying longer than expected and crewed for Kanavy and cared
for her horse.
Finishing
in second place behind Rieksen and winning the USET Championship
as the top U.S. finisher was Pamela Weidel aboard Mount Adams.
This pair crossed through the timers in 9:40:31.
Mark
Leone of Franklin Lakes, NJ, aboard Pinkata de Longpre won the
highlighted event of the weekend in the show jumping ring, the
$50,000 Rolex USET Show Jumping Championship. Leone was one of
only two riders to complete the first round course fault free.
Jimmy Torano of Fort Lauderdale, FL, aboard Aguila was the other
rider to jump clear in the first round to qualify for the jump-off.
In the end, it was Leone who prevailed as the only rider able
to turn in two clear rounds.
Evan
Coluccio of Middleburg, VA, aboard Rio won the featured event
for junior and amateur-owner riders, the Bayer/USET Talent Derby
Presented by BET On Jazz, part of the Show Jumping Hall of Fame
Jumper Classic Series. Stella Manship aboard Elan Coriana finished
in second place behind Coluccio. Both riders turned in clear rounds
in the jump-off, but Coluccio stopped the timers at 42.58 seconds,
while Manship toured the course in 45.5 seconds to put her into
second place.
By
just a fraction of a point, Tom McCutcheon aboard Smartest Chic
Olena captured the win in the $75,000 USET Reining Championship.
McCutcheon finished the weekend with a combined score of 442.5.
Finishing in second place with an overall score of 442.0 to take
second place was Dell Hendricks aboard Starlights Wrangler.
Along
with top-level equestrian competition, spectators also enjoyed
days of family fun and entertainment. A wide range of gourmet
dining options as well as a country fair featuring the New Jersey
Equine Expo hosted by the New Jersey Department of Agriculture
complemented the equestrian activities taking place in three rings.
The fair featured equine demonstrations, falconry and blacksmith
demonstrations, the Jersey Fresh Horse Expo, as well as vendors
offering top-quality jewelry, souvenirs, and products for the
home as well as the stable.
Full results of the Bayer/USET Festival of Champions Presented
by State Line Tack are available on the USET website at www.uset.org.
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
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