Gladstone, NJ–May 1, 2001– 2000 Olympic Gold Medalist David O’Connor of The Plains, VA won the Rolex/United States Equestrian Team (USET) Four Star Eventing Championship held during the Rolex/Kentucky Three-Day Event, Presented by Bayer, April 26-29, 2001.

O’Connor riding Giltedge, his Olympic team horse in 1996 and 2000, owned by Jacqueline Mars, moved into first place on the final day of the competition when he completed the jumping phase of the event with a clear round and a final three-phase score of 38.6 penalties. O’Connor completed the dressage phase with a score of 37.0 penalties and added 1.6 time penalties on the cross country phase for his score of 38.6 penalties.

He also placed second in the USET Championship and third overall onboard his individual Olympic mount, Custom Made, with a final score of 47.7 penalties. Australia’s Phillip Dutton was second overall onboard Simply Red, owned by Gil Phillips and Carl Bouckaert. The two-time Olympic team Gold Medalist finished the event with a score of 41.2 to finish in second and claimed the Carimati Cup, awarded to the highest-placed foreign rider in the Rolex/Kentucky Three Day Event.

O’Connor won the Rolex/Kentucky Three Star Event in 1990 and 1995 as well. In 1995 he won the USET/CCI *** Championships at Rolex in the spring and Fair Hill International in the fall, becoming one of only three riders to capture both USET titles in the same year.

At the 2000 Olympic Games, O’Connor won individual Gold and team Bronze Medals. His illustrious career highlights also include a team Silver Medal from the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games. In 1999, he won team Gold and individual Silver Medals at the Pan American Games in Winnipeg, Canada. O’ Connor also won the Mitsubishi Motors Badminton Horse Trials CCI **** in 1997, becoming only the second American to win the event in its 49-year history.

The United States Equestrian Team is a non-profit organization that selects, trains, equips and finances equestrians of the highest possible standard to represent our country in major international competition, including the Olympic Games and the World Championships. To accomplish this the USET seeks out and nurtures the development of talented athletes - riders, drivers and horses - and provides the support and guidance they need to help them attain their fullest potential. For more information on the USET, please call (908) 234-1251, or visit USET ONLINE at www.uset.org.