Aachen, Germany – The Land Rover U.S. Eventing Team finished fifth overall after two days of competition at CHIO Aachen in the SAP CCIO4*-S, completing on a final team score of 158.4 penalties. Both the dressage and jumping phases finished yesterday, with cross-country as the highlight phase of the day on Saturday. The team was led by Chef d’Equipe Bobby Costello.

“There were some really good moments for us to take away from this competition as a team and as individuals,” said Costello. “I was pleased with how some of the pieces came together, but I also don’t believe any of us feel satisfied with the overall result and are going to look to continue improving and delivering better results for our program and our country, especially as we get closer to September and the World Championships. I would like to thank the athletes, owners and support crew for their genuine dedication and hard work over the past few days.”

Will Coleman (Gordonsville, Va.) and Off The Record were the trailblazers for the team, navigating through the track designed by Rüdiger Schwarz (GER). The course featured 34 jumping efforts in total with an optimum time of seven minutes. Coleman and Off The Record tackled the many difficult questions and combinations on course with ease, ultimately crossing through the finish with just two time faults to add to complete on a final score of 34.50, finishing as the highest-placed U.S. combination in sixth place overall. Will also guided Chin Tonic HS, a 2012 Holsteiner gelding owned by Hyperion Stud, to another top ten finish, securing tenth overall in their first apperance together at CHIO Aachen. 

The second combination out on course was Sydney Elliott (Bossier City, La.) aboard QC Diamantaire, a 2010 Oldenburg gelding owned by Carol Stephens. The pair finished as the second-highest U.S. team combination in 17th place after adding 7.60-time faults to their overnight score of 41.6 to complete on a 49.20. Both Meghan O’Donoghue (Round Hill, VA.) Palm Crescent, a 2006 Thoroughbred gelding, and teammate Buck Davidson (Unionville, Pa.) and Carlevo, a 2007 Holsteiner gelding owned by Katherine O’Brien, each fell victim to runouts around the difficult track and terrain, with O’Donoghue adding 64.4 penalties for a final score of 97.20, and Davidson completing with 44.80 additional penalties to finish on 74.70.

Results
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