Germany's Christian Heineking won the $130,000 Burlington Capital Group Omaha Grand Prix for the fourth time in five years
riding NKH Selena (c) Lili Weik Photography
International Omaha is produced by the Omaha Equestrian Foundation (OEF) at the CenturyLink Center in Omaha, Nebraska, site of the 2017 Longines FEI World Cup™ Jumping Final and the FEI World Cup™ Dressage Final.
Heineking rode two of the eight horses that reached the jump-off by riding without penalty over the 15-effort first-round course designed by Alan Wade of Ireland who will be the course designer for next year's Longines FEI World Cup™ Final in Omaha. He was the second to return for the nine-effort tiebreaker course and he rode his 11-year-old, Oldenburg mare to a clean round in 40.16 seconds which proved to be the only clean round in the jump-off giving him the win.
"I never expected that my ride would be the only clean round but since I had another horse, I decided to go all out," Heineking said. "This is her fourth FEI win but this one is special because Omaha really feels like home to me."
Finishing second with the fastest four-fault ride in the jump-off was Heineking's countryman Christoph Schroeder who finished in 42.04 seconds on Catungee, a 10-year-old Holsteiner gelding. Brandie Holloway of Topeka, Kansas was third with four faults and a time of 42.37 seconds on Lucky Strike, also a 10-year-old, Holsteiner gelding.
"This is one of the nicest horse shows I've ever been to," said Schroeder. "It has a real European feel, the footing is great, the management is excellent and there is a very special atmosphere. You look at all the riders and everyone has a really good time."
Holloway echoed Schroeder's thoughts on the International Omaha. "I absolutely love it here," she said. "Lisa (Roskens) puts so much into it and she has built something really special. The crowds are amazing and it's very exciting to compete here."
Tickets for the 2017 FEI World Cup™ Finals are available now on line at www.InternationalOmaha.com, www.OmahaWorldCup2017.com or www.ticketmaster.com, by phone at 800-745-3000 or at the
Christian Heineking of Germany and NKH Selena (c) Lili Weik Photography
Full results of the Grand Prix and all International Omaha classes are available at the International Omaha website at www.InternationalOmaha.com.
About the Omaha Equestrian Foundation
The Omaha Equestrian Foundation (OEF) is a certified 501(c)(3) not-for-profit foundation.
The focus of the foundation is to foster and develop international caliber athletes within the equestrian sport as well as supporting and educating the community. Since 2013, The Omaha Equestrian Foundation has donated tickets to local charities and created field trips for over 1,000 elementary school students, veterans and local military families.
For more information about the Omaha Equestrian Foundation, visit www.OmahaEquestrian.com or call 402-444-1630.
About the FEI World Cup™ Finals
First held in 1986, the FEI World Cup™ Dressage Final features the world's best dressage horses and riders. A total of 31 Finals have been held through 2016, and the United States has won the championship twice - in 2003 (Debbie McDonald with Brentina) and 2009 (Steffen Peters with Ravel). The Final has been held in the U.S. in Los Angeles (1995) and Las Vegas (2005, 2007, 2009, 2015).
Started in 1979, the FEI World Cup™ Jumping Final is an annual international showdown among the world's best show jumping horses and riders. In the 38 Finals held through 2016, Germany (10) and the United States (9) have emerged with the most titles. Previous FEI World Cup™ Jumping Finals held in the United States include Baltimore (1980), Tampa (1989), Del Mar, CA (1992) and Las Vegas (2000, 2003, 2005, 2007, 2009, 2015).