Source:  News Release

Warding off the Competition

(Calgary, Alberta:)  The sun shone down on Family Fun Night at Spruce Meadows. It was a huge success with 3000 hot dogs, courtesy of real Canadian Superstore, consumed and countless cups of fine Pepsi products. The crowds were treated to exciting competition in the ATCO Midstream Challenge with riders from five nations moving forward to the jump off. Out of 37 who started, 16 moved forward to the jump off. McLain Ward (USA) aboard Coco, a 10 year-old warmblood gelding, was the ultimate winner. “It’s great to be undefeated at Spruce Meadows with this horse. I haven’t had him very long and each time we compete he feels more confident, he reminds me of Goldika.”

McLain Ward aboard Coco, winner of the Atco Midstream challenge  Photo credit: Mike Sturk

The RBC Capital Markets Winning Round was an exciting finale to this evenings’ competitions. The top eight riders from the first round moved forward to the second. It was a who’s who of National and Olympic riders and International Ring newcomer Samantha Buirs, a young rider from Langley, BC, who made it forward to the second round. Ultimately, Eric Lamaze added to his Rolex FEI World Ranking points and his Number One Rider ranking by winning on his speed specialist Coriana van Klapscheut; his sixth international win and his second at Spruce Meadows with this 9 year-old Belgian warmblood mare. “The Winning Round format is used a lot in Europe and in this particular competition, going at the end of the first round is good strategy. You can even have faults in the first round and qualify if you’re lucky.” explained Lamaze.

Eric Lamaze, winner of the RBC Capital Markets Winning Round  Photo credit: Mike Sturk

Competitions continue tomorrow at the Spruce Meadows “National” tournament, highlighted by the TRANSCANADA Parcours de Chasse and the CN Reliability Grand Prix.