Articles: Horse News
Laura Kraut and Belmont Capture First Place Finish at Casas Novas in the
Gran Premio Telefonica
Laura Kraut showed Belmont to his first Grand Prix win in the Gran Premio
Telefonica at Casas Novas in A Coruñ, Spain, on Sunday, July 29,
2012. Kraut and Belmont pictured at the Winter Equestrian Festival in March
2012. Photo By: Kenneth Kraus/PhelpsSports.com
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A Coruña, Spain - August 3, 2012 - Laura Kraut guided several top
mounts to the CSI 4* at Casas Novas, winning the Gran Premio Telefonica on
the final day with Belmont, owned by Mrs. B. Widdowson. She exhibited the
11-year-old bay gelding to the first place finish in a stunning time of
44.25 seconds, beating some of the worlds best. Casa Novas got underway from
July 27 -29, 2012, with Kraut picking up the top placing throughout the
three-day show jumping competition.
On the final day of the CSI 4* Casas Novas, Kraut entered the ring as the
39th rider out of the field of 46 entrants. She posted a fantastic effort
over the first round course, and then guided Belmont to a seemingly flawless
first place finish over the challenging second round.
Javier Trenor of Spain designed the demanding course with obstacles that
challenged both horse and rider alike. It consisted of bending lines,
unrelated distances, a triple bar, an oxer-vertical-oxer triple combination
and a liver pool. The second course demanded a speedy delivery as riders
maneuvered the quick turns and raced against the clock. Kraut guided Belmont
to the first place finish with a double-clear effort in 44.25 seconds to
claim the top award.
"I'm so pleased with Belmont's performance this week. The Grand Prix course
had its challenges, which Belmont handled beautifully," Kraut
remarked. "He's very brave and has a fantastic jump. We have developed a
nice partnership and I am so excited he's won his first Grand Prix. "
Earlier in the competition, Kraut earned the seventh place finish with
Belmont in the Trofeo Prosegur on Friday afternoon. The pair rode to a
double-clear effort, and posted a fantastic time of 36.34 seconds. Although
they were bested that day, Kraut admitted that she was thrilled with the
ride.
"I wanted to save Belmont for the Grand Prix on Sunday so I just planned to
have a conservative round on Friday," Kraut explained. "He was great, and
posted a nice double clear which gave us a good deal of confidence for
Sunday."
Kraut also took good awards aboard Woodstock O, owned by Joan Kalman/Freedom
Group in the speed and handiness jumping class, the Trofeo Azkar. They rode
to a top finish with a time of 66.49 seconds. She also guided the brown mare
Nouvelle, owned by the Evita Group, to a spot in the top 12 with a clear
effort in the Trofeo La Caixa in 64.51 seconds.
It is apparent that even though Kraut's top mount Cedric, owned by Cherry
Knoll Farm, is refreshing prior to the upcoming Dublin Horse Show in
mid-August, Kraut is on par and leaving nothing to chance as she continues
to dominate her European tour.
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