15-year-old Emanuel Andrade of Venezuela claimed the Low Junior/Amateur-Owner Jumper Championship title riding Black Pearl at the Atlanta Summer Classic II in Conyers, Georgia (Flashpoint Photography)
Hot off his fourth place finish in the recent FEI World Jumping Challenge held in Caracas, Venezuela, Andrade returned to the United States for the second week of competition at the Atlanta Summer Classic. With a win earlier in the week and a second place finish in the $5,000 NAL 1.25m Junior/Amateur-Owner Jumper Classic, Andrade took home the championship title with Black Pearl. The black Argentinean Warmblood mare also won a Six-Year-Old Young Jumper qualifying class during the Atlanta Summer Classic.
In the High Junior/Amateur-Owner division, Andrade took the Reserve Championship title riding Costa, and also enjoyed a second place finish in the $10,000 NAL High Junior/Amateur-Owner Classic with Tiny Tim.
Stepping up to the top level of the sport despite his young age, Andrade was the lead-off rider in Saturday night’s $35,000 Outback Steakhouse Grand Prix. Riding La Fe Forli, a 10-year-old bay gelding bred in Argentina, Andrade turned in a fast four fault effort to place fifth overall.
“Emanuel was the first rider on course and had a beautiful round; he rode really well,” said Andrade’s trainer Angel Karolyi, who operates Hollow Creek Farm in Aiken, South Carolina, with business partner Andrea King. “Being first in the order, he didn’t have the advantage of knowing how the course was going to ride, but I thought he managed it beautifully. He was unlucky to have the plank down which came down a lot; the horses didn’t see it well and it was easy to knock down.”
Coach Karolyi, who also hails from Venezuela, enjoyed a top 10 finish of his own in the $35,000 Outback Steakhouse Grand Prix, incurring eight faults over the course with Boccaccio, owned by Hollow Creek Farm. Karolyi and Boccaccio only began competing together in December of 2011, with their first major victory coming on New Year’s Eve in the $25,000 New Year Grand Prix held in Wellington, Florida. In March, the pair were members of the Venezuelan team for the $75,000 G&C Nations’ Cup, also held in Wellington.
“I had two unlucky verticals down with Boccaccio, but I am very pleased with him; he is really growing into himself,” said Karolyi of the 11-year-old grey Belgian Warmblood gelding sired by Kent Farrington’s well-known grand prix mount, Up Chiqui. “He is now jumping the combinations well, which he was still having a little bit of trouble with in Florida. He’s come a long way in the past six months and now has some good rounds under his belt. He’s gaining mileage and experience, and I am getting to know him better. He’s jumping really well, and I’m looking forward to the next six months of the year with him.”
Karolyi also enjoyed a fun victory in the $3,500 Ride and Run charity event held Saturday night prior to the start of the $35,000 Outback Steakhouse Grand Prix. Riding Willy Wonka, Karolyi was responsible for clearing nine jumps in the fastest time possible before Lorcan Gallagher, a 21-year-old Irishman currently training with Hollow Creek Farm, had the arduous task of running with a wheel barrow. The pair proved to be a winning combination, clocking in with the fastest combined time.
The next stop on the summer tour for Hollow Creek Farm and its riders will be the Kentucky Summer Classic Horse Shows held in July and August at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, KY.
For more information on Hollow Creek Farm, a large training business focusing on both horses and riders, please visit www.hollowcreekfarms.com.