Spruce Meadows North American: A Final Day to Remember

Source: Press Release

(Spruce Meadows, Calgary, AB): The Sun Life Financial Reach for Sun was contested by 35 horse/rider combinations, all looking for a final day win at the Spruce Meadows “North American” Tournament. For Brazilian, Rodrigo Pessoa, a win has been a long time coming after a drought that has lasted through the Summer Series.

The first round of the $75,000 Sun Life Financial Reach for the Sun featured 15 jumping efforts over 520 metres of track with a time allowed of 78 seconds. With a tight time allowed and some tough questions, only the nine best moved on to the jump-off round.

Riding his Olympic and World Cup mount, Rufus, Rodrigo Pessoa took off around the jump-off course. For Pessoa, 2010 has been a season on which to improve, with unlucky rails often costing him along the way.

Looking to put the bad luck behind, Pessoa made all the right moves finishing the jump-off in a time of 41.67 seconds. After his jump-off, he still had to watch Canada’s Ian Millar, Mario Deslauriers (USA), and Charlie Jayne (USA). All three of those riders are very fast and always competitive.

The luck finally went Pessoa’s way, as each of those entries pulled rails, thereby removing themselves from contention. The win was Pessoa’s first of the 2010 Spruce Meadows season. “I’m really pleased with the win and with the horse,” said Pessoa of his 12 year-old Dutch Warmblood gelding.

Rufus was on a comeback of sorts this season after suffering an injury in the summer of 2009. Pessoa started him in the 1.30 metre competitions and has slowly been moving him up, with today’s 1.50 metre being the final goal. “Our plan was to finish with this competition; everything went really well,” said Pessoa. “He’s feeling like his old self.”

With Rufus feeling better, Pessoa hopes to take the next steps in preparing him for the 2010 World Equestrian Games in Kentucky. “It’s good to finish like this - now we move on to the next faze,” said Pessoa. It was a great way for the pair to finish what has been an arduous summer. “It’s been very up and down, this morning I was excited to go home, but now I wish there was another week,” added the champion of the Sun Life Financial Reach for the Sun.

Sun Life Financial Reach for the Sun top 10
1 Rodrigo Pessoa BRA Rufus
2 Clementine Goutal USA Kelline Fonroy
3 Antonio Maurer MEX Nickel
4 Norman Dello Joio USA Scarface
5 Mario Deslauriers USA Vicomte D
6 Ian Millar CAN Star Power
7 John Anderson CAN Terrific
8 Pablo Barrios VEN G&C Lagran
9 Charlie Jayne USA Athena
10 Eric Lamaze CAN Sidoline

What happens when 25 horse/rider combinations face 23 natural obstacles, 985 metres of track, the Spruce Meadows Bank, Devil’s Dyke, Liverpools, the Table Top and the water jump? It is the 25 year-old Mercedes-Benz Classic Derby. With that much history behind a course, it’s rare to have a rookie win.

That’s just what happened when Marilyn Little-Meredith (USA) took to the ring in the final competition of the 2010 Spruce Meadows “North American” Tournament. The 28 year-old American, riding her 9 year-old Belgian Warmblood mare, Blue Curacao, left all but one rail up, finishing the course in 139.70 seconds.

It was a rookie horse and a derby veteran who came the closest to knocking Little-Meredith off top place, Canada’s Eric Lamaze and his 10 year-old Belgian Warmboold mare, Atlete Van T Heike. They finished with only one rail – however an added time fault saved a jump-off.

“I thought I was riding for third or fourth,” said Little-Meredith. “I was sitting behind Eric and he thought I was looking pretty good,” added Little-Meredith. It turned out she looked like a champion, as no one else came close to touching her. “It was a long 30 or 40 minutes of waiting,” added the champion of the Mercedes-Benz Classic Derby.

The win in the Mercedes-Benz Classic Derby also gave Little-Meredith the coveted title Spruce Meadows “North American” Champion title. With this being her first Summer Series, the future looks great.

For Lamaze, second place was enough for him to win the inaugural G&C Riders Cup, which equated to a $25,000 bonus. That, paired with his second place result in the Mercedes-Benz Classic Derby, propelled Lamaze into first place on the ‘All Time Money Won’ list at Spruce Meadows. “Every rider dreams of all these things to happen,” said Lamaze of his success. “I don’t really feel like it’s fair to take it away from Ian (Millar) though, the prize money is so much better now than it was when he was winning everything. I don’t think it will be long before someone takes it from me,” added Lamaze.

Mercedes-Benz Classic Derby top 10
1 Marilyn Little-Meredith USA Blue Curacao
2 Eric Lamaze CAN Atlete Van T Heike
3 Leslie Howard USA Lennox Lewis 2
4 Rodrigo Pessoa BRA Champ 163
5 Will Simpson USA Black Cherry
6 Jill Henselwood CAN Bottom Line
7 Ashlee Bond USA Cadett 7
8 Gary Brewster CAN Royal Viali
9 Nick Dello Joio USA Malcolm
10 Pablo Barrios VEN G&C Sinatra

The 2010 Spruce Meadows Summer Series has come to a close with a spectacular day of sport. A World Champion, Rodrigo Pessoa, returned to the top of his game, a new derby champion was crowned, and Canada’s Eric Lamaze has found his name at the top of a list. It will all continue in September with what is sure to be an amazing week.

Spruce Meadows continues their 35th Anniversary season continues in September with the $2 million, CSIO 5* “Masters” Tournament.