Wellington, Fla. – The Dutta Corp. U.S. Dressage Team started their 2020 Nations Cup campaign with a top finish in the Stillpoint Farm FEI Dressage Nations Cup USA CDIO3* on Thursday, March 12. Chef d’Equipe Debbie McDonald led the team of Katherine Bateson-Chandler with Alcazar, Adrienne Lyle with Harmony’s Duval, Anna Marek with Dee Clair, and Steffen Peters with Suppenkasper, who tallied a total team score of 439.992.
Team Canada followed the USA with a total score of 436.034 for silver, and Denmark took bronze with a 424.501. The top three scores from each team in Wednesday’s FEI Grand Prix and FEI Prix St. Georges tests and the top three scores from Thursday’s FEI Grand Prix Special and FEI Intermediate I tests were added together to determine the overall team results. The Dutta Corp. U.S. Dressage Team fielded four combinations at Big Tour, adding a 1.5% coefficient to their individual scores in both the FEI Grand Prix and FEI Grand Prix Special.
The Stillpoint Farm FEI Dressage Nations Cup USA CDIO3* is the first leg of the FEI Dressage Nations Cup series and the only FEI Dressage Nations Cup hosted on U.S. soil as part of Adequan® Global Dressage Festival's Week 10 competition.
“I was really happy with the way all four riders stepped up today. Yesterday, they had a few [mistakes], but they all knew what they needed to do, and they delivered. Having a Nations Cup [at AGDF] has been a great boost for us. It gives opportunities to others that may have not [existed]. It drives interest in the Nations Cups in general because everybody wants to be on a Nations Cup team,” said Debbie McDonald, Chef d’Equipe and Technical Advisor for U.S. Dressage. “This was a great team. We had a new [rider, Anna Marek] come on board. It was wonderful for her to be with others who have [competed] on teams. It was fun to watch her blossom, and I have high hopes for her in the future.”
Four-time Olympian Peters (San Diego, Calif.) and Suppenkasper added to their list of standout performances at AGDF this season. On Wednesday, he and the 12-year old KWPN gelding owned by Four Winds Farm earned a 77.370% to lead the competitive field. In their first Nations Cup together, fellow Olympian Lyle (Wellington, Fla.) aboard Harmony’s Duval, Duval Partner’s LLC 12-year-old Hanoverian gelding, secured a 70.478%. Marek, (Dunnellon, Fla.) who made her Nations Cup debut after winning the 2019 USEF Grand Prix Dressage Reserve National Championship with Dee Clair, guided the 12-year-old Dutch Warmblood mare owned by Diane Morrison to a 69.283%. Team veteran Bateson-Chandler (Wellington, Fla.) and Alcazar, Jane Clark’s 15-year-old Dutch Warmblood gelding, finished with a score of 69.065%.
The U.S. held a narrow lead over Canada following the FEI Grand Prix competition and collectively improved their scores during Thursday’s FEI Grand Prix Special to ultimately ensure the team’s victory. Peters and Suppenkasper remained on form, earning a class-high score of 77.585%, while Lyle and Harmony’s Duval received a 74.053%. Bateson-Chandler piloted Alcazar to a 71.223%, while Marek and Dee Clair received a 69.436% from the judging panel.
All four combinations will contest the FEI Grand Prix Freestyle CDIO3* for individual honors during AGDF’s “Friday Night Stars” event.
Complete Results
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