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Articles: Press Release
Kappler Wins $50,000 Bayer/USET Foundation Wellington Cup
Contact:
Contact: Marty Bauman, (508) 698-6810
uset.pr@verizon.net
Gladstone, NJ-February 10, 2004-Chris Kappler of Pittstown, NJ, rode
Kathy Kamine's Royal Kaliber to the win in the $50,000 Bayer/USET
Foundation Wellington Cup, February 8, at the Winter Equestrian Festival
(WEF) at the Palm Beach Polo Equestrian Club in Wellington, FL. A crowd
of more than 5,200 spectators gathered at the show grounds on Grand Prix
Sunday to watch two of America's best hopefuls for the 2004 Athens
Olympic Games - Kappler and McLain Ward - compete for the win.
Olaf Petersen, course designer for the 2004 Olympic Games,
set a difficult 13-obstacle first-round course for the starting field of
37 horse-and-rider combinations. Only four riders went clear in the
first round to qualify for the jump-off.
Petersen introduced two new fences for the nine-effort tiebreaker and
set a time allowed of 69 seconds. Argentinean Federerico Sztyrle, 39, of
Sagaponack, NY, led off on Who Knows Lilly owned by Sag Pond Farm, and
finished with a time of 46.28 seconds and a four-fault score, ultimately
finishing in third place. Kimberly Frey, 39, of Hume, VA, rode next, but
went off course and was eliminated, and had to settle for fourth place.
Kappler and Royal Kaliber laid down the first and only clear round of
the jump-off and finished in 44.28, which proved to be unbeatable. Last
to go, McLain Ward, 28, of Brewster, NY, riding Sapphire, a mare he owns
with Double H Farm and Missy Clark, had the second fence down and
clocked in at 44.82 for second place.
Kappler made history twice in 2003 when, on consecutive weekends, he won
the $200,000 Budweiser American Invitational and the AGA Show Jumping
Championships. He was the first ever to sweep these two events back to
back. Kappler was then one of two riders chosen subjectively for the
show jumping team representing the United States at the 2003 Pan
American Games in Santo Domingo, the Dominican Republic. This marked
the first time since 1990 that any places on a U.S. show jumping team
competing at a continental or world championship or Olympic Games went
to riders chosen subjectively. Kappler and Royal Kaliber confirmed the
strength of the Selectors' recommendation by winning the Grand Prix at
Devon in Devon, PA, at the end of May. He then went on to win a team
Gold Medal and an individual Silver Medal in the 2003 Pan American
Games. Following the Pan Am Games, Kappler and Royal Kaliber continued
their winning ways by winning the American Gold Cup in Devon, PA.
"Last year was a fabulous season for me and Royal Kaliber," Kappler
said. "I am very thankful to be paired with this wonderful horse. I am
thrilled with this victory as we start out this Olympic year. Hopefully
with a little luck, we can continue the success that we had last year."
U.S. Equestrian Inc., as the National Equestrian Federation of the U.S.,
is the regulatory body for the Olympic and World Championship sports of
dressage, driving, endurance, eventing, reining, show jumping, and
vaulting, as well as 19 other breeds and disciplines of equestrian
competition. As the country's largest multi-breed organization, the
Federation has over 80,000 members and recognizes more than 2,800
competitions nationwide each year. It governs all aspects of
competition, including educating and licensing all judges, stewards, and
technical delegates who officiate at these shows.
The vision of U.S. Equestrian is to provide leadership for equestrian
sport in the United States of America, promoting the pursuit of
excellence from the grass roots to the Olympic Games, based on a
foundation of fair, safe competition and the welfare of its horses, and
embracing this vision, to be the best national equestrian federation in
the world.
The USET Foundation fosters the highest ideals of
horsemanship and excellence in equestrian sport while promoting
international goodwill. The USET Foundation supports US Equestrian teams
by funding International High Performance programs, athletes and
coaches.
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