An enthusiastic crowd in Las Vegas cheered each rider who entered the arena at the South Point Hotel and Casino, but it was the American Peter Lutz and Robin de Ponthual that claimed the final winning praise by beating a field of 30 to claim the $100,000 Longines FEI World Cup™ Jumping North American League qualifier at CSI3* Las Vegas National.
Peter Lutz (USA) and Robin de Ponthual claim victory of the $100,000 Longines FEI World Cup™ Jumping North American League qualifier in Las Vegas (USA). (FEI/Amy McCool)
“Actually, when the riders walked the course, some told me that it looked to be more on the easy side,” Petersen Jr. said. “But I like it that way. It figured out that we had faults here and there. I liked the way it rode and that it didn’t have any disasters. It was a pretty mixed group; some very good riders and some new to this level.”
The course walk may have given a false sense of confidence to competitors as rails fell for the seasoned veterans and the young upstarts. But a competitive group of eight emerged from the first round to make for an exciting jump off in a city that lives for risks.
“The new Longines North American League is bringing up the path to the World Cup Final in leaps and bounds,” said Robert Ridland, President of Blenheim EquiSports and the United States Show Jumping Chef d’Equipe. “That’s a really big deal. If you want to make a Final very exciting and suspenseful, you have to make the journey at the same level. I think Longines is hitting a home run here in North America.”
Viva Las Vegas
Australia’s Matt Williams and Valinski S (Nijinski x Julius) were the first to go double clear in Round 1 and thus, first to go in the jump off. He noted that his strategy going into the final round was to ride on the conservative side to give his mount a positive experience, but his plan changed once in the arena and the pair set a respectable time of 34.25 seconds with no faults.
“I sort of choked to the last fence there,” Williams said. “I could have had eight strides. I was really lucky. I guess that’s what happens in Vegas, you get lucky sometimes. But my horse jumps his heart out every time. What he doesn’t have in size, he makes up for in size.”
One round later, Audrey Coulter (USA) improved on Williams’ time aboard Domino (Thunder van de Zuuthoeve x Azur Depaulstra), although her time of 33.61 seconds did not hold against Lutz’s 33.21 seconds that came second to last in the order.
“Going so early, I was really aiming for a smooth, clear round to put a little bit of pressure on the people behind me,” said Coulter, a recent graduate of Dartmouth College. “I knew that in a few places I was a little safe and left the door open. Overall, I was really happy with my result.”
“Domino is a relatively new mount for me,” Coulter added. “We got him two months ago from Jos Verlooy. I train with Jos so it’s really nice having him in the stable and getting his feedback. I think it’s really helped me to get to know [Domino] even faster.”
The international jump-off field included top talents as Verlooy (BEL), Kent Farrington (USA), Eduardo Menezes (BRA), Simon Nizri (ISR), and Lucy Davis (USA), all of whom finished behind the three leading double clears. Current world number two Farrington managed the fastest time of 32.90 seconds with Gazelle (Kashmir van Schuttershof x Indoctro), but an unlucky rail kept him from the top of the podium.
Win big or go home
Lutz’s first World Cup qualifier victory marks a new milestone for the rider who has recently transitioned from developing young horses and riders to concentrating his efforts to the top of the sport.
“I spent many years teaching students and developing horses,” Lutz said. “I had nice horses along the way, but I didn’t really have the opportunity to hold onto a horse like Robin in the past and I’m very grateful that I can now. I spent a lot of years bringing along young horses and young riders, including Audrey, who I worked with for many years. I’m really proud of them; many have gone to be great riders. At this point, I’m concentrating more on riding, taking advantage of the opportunities that I have, and I’m really happy that I can do it.”
The talented, 10-year-old Selle Francais gelding (Elf d'Or x Calypso d'Herbiers) originally came from American rider McLain Ward’s stable about a year ago. Lutz explained that he and Ward rode together as teenagers and have since developed a working relationship.
“Robin and I have been building a relationship over the past year,” Lutz said. “He’s so talented, scopey, careful, and a winner. We jumped some great classes in the spring, then really this fall, starting at the American Gold Cup, things started to go well.”
The decision to try their hand at the World Cup qualifier in Las Vegas came from the pair’s strong, 4th place finish at the earlier East Coast league event in New York in September.
“A few times this year, I was little bit conservative and tentative in the jump-off,” Lutz said. “Then I started to take a few more risks and to go a little bit faster. We did that a few times to get into the same rhythm and the same speed. Tonight, I felt like it was perfect combo of calm and fast for it all to come together.”
It’s showtime
Lutz described his mount as quiet and gentle in the barn but excited as soon as he steps into the competition arena.
“He’s even quiet in the schooling area,” Lutz said. “But when he walks into the ring, he really responds to the crowd. He really changes and comes alive. He’s two different horses in that respect. As soon as he steps into the ring, he really excels and is energized by the crowd. And there was such a great crowd here. It distracted him a little bit at first, but by the time he got into the jump-off, he was really focused.”
The Las Vegas National is the last of the 2015 season for Lutz and Robin. Together, they’ll fly home to New York where they can rest before starting back up in Florida in January.
“I flew with the horses, which was so exciting,” Lutz said. “We flew to Los Angeles then drove here. It’s been a great journey, and this couldn’t be a better ending. It’s the first year that I’m consistently showing at the World Cup level, and I’m thrilled.”
Results
1. Robin de Ponthual (Peter Lutz), USA, 0 faults/33.21 seconds (JO);
2. Domino (Audrey Coulter), USA, 0/33.61 (JO);
3. Valinski S (Matt Williams), AUS, 0/34.25 (JO);
4. Sunshine (Jos Verlooy), BEL, 0/34.30 (JO);
5. Gazelle (Kent Farrington), USA, 4/32.90 (JO); 6. Quintol (Eduardo Menezes), BRA, 4/34.67 (JO);
7. E Muze Yek (Simon Nizri), ISR, 4/35.39 (JO);
8. Barron (Lucy Davis), USA, 4/39.25 (JO).
Full results: http://bit.ly/1kxKJW5
Facts and Figures
In the first round, eight horses went clear, five had 4 faults, five had 8, one had 12, two had 13, one had 16, one had 20, one had 30, five were eliminated and one retired.
The course designer was Olaf Petersen Jr. (GER).
The first round was contested over 13 obstacles with 16 jumping efforts. The jump-off round had seven obstacles with eight efforts. The maximum height was set at 1.60 meters.Eight nations were represented in the class: Australia (2 riders), Austria (1 rider), Belgium (1 rider), Brazil (1 rider), France (1 rider), Germany (1 rider), Israel (1 rider) and the United States (22 riders).
Quotes
Olaf Petersen Jr. (GER): “We [course designers] are always told to raise the level, in general, especially on the West Coast. We have to put to the specs. It doesn’t help anyone who qualifies who then doesn’t get good results [at the World Cup Final]. It’s of course difficult enough, but on the other hand, we still want to have a jump off.”
Robert Ridland (USA), President of Blenheim EquiSports and United States Show Jumping Chef d’Equipe: “More than anything, the Longines FEI World Cup™ Jumping North American League has upped everybody’s game. There are less World Cup qualifiers than there were previously so it’s increased the quality and made the World Cup qualifiers more intense. There’s been a remarkable difference in the caliber of the World Cup classes in the United States this year. It’s a great thing for the sport.”
Audrey Coulter (USA): “I took a little bit of time off because of school but now that I’ve graduated, I’m just completely focusing on riding. I would like to go to the World Cup Final this year, to be on more US teams and just see where it takes me. I think I have a great group of horses right now so I’m excited about all of them and to see where it goes.”
Peter Lutz (USA): “I saw Audrey go, and she rode really well, went beautifully. I saw where she left out some strides to the third jump. I think I did one less to the last jump. I think that’s where I may have beat her.”
About Las Vegas National Horse Show
The Las Vegas National, managed by Blenheim EquiSports, is a nationally-recognized horse show held annually at the South Point Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas. Blenheim EquiSports is an equestrian event management company based in San Juan Capistrano, California, that produces equestrian events in three locations: San Juan Capistrano, Del Mar and Las Vegas. This includes USEF "Premier" and "National" rated hunter-jumper shows featuring multiple grand prix events, a Longines FEI World Cup™ Jumping North American League event, USHJA International Hunter Derbies, Pony Finals, Medal Finals and more.
Official fan site - www.feiworldcup.com/NAL
The FEI has developed an official fan microsite for the Longines FEI World Cup™ Jumping North American League, enabling fans to find all the latest information for this brand new series under one digital umbrella.
Fans can keep close tabs on the athletes competing in this exciting series as they do their utmost to qualify for the Longines FEI World Cup™ Jumping Final in Gothenburg, Sweden, on 23-26 Marc h 2016.
Tickets can be purchased through the fan site, with event-specific information uploaded regularly by the organisers of the events in this series for fan enjoyment.
Longines FEI World Cup™ Jumping North American League
A total of 14 athletes from the new North American League will qualify for the prestigious Longines FEI World Cup™ Jumping Final.
The top seven athletes from the East Coast US, top three from West Coast US and the two best-placed athletes from Canada and Mexico will qualify for the Final, alongside winners of the 13 other leagues from around the world.
The North American League boasts a minimum of US $2.4 million prize money across the series, and offers the best Jumping athletes from North America and around the world the chance to qualify for the jackpot of more than US $1.4 million (€1.3 million) on offer annually at the Final.
The new league was launched by Beezie Madden, the most decorated US female equestrian athlete of all time, American Gold Cup winner and FEI Solidarity Ambassador Jessica Springsteen, and Hannah Selleck, team and individual gold medalist at young rider level and one of the sport’s up-and-coming stars. Full launch release here: https://goo.gl/kCIsyW