Calgary, Alberta—Sept. 11  

“I was lucky to get away with it today; I was worried I was going to be crying all night with that time fault.”

But in the end, Kent Farrington was laughing with his time fault, because he and Uceceko were the only ones to leave all the rails in the cups and they walked away with the win in the $210,000 Tourmaline Oil Cup 1.60-meter class. It was the second win of the week for Farrington and Uceko at the Masters Tournament, which features Saturday’s $300,000 BMO Nations’ Cup and Sunday’s $1.5 Million CP International, presented by Rolex.

Kent Farrington on Uceko on the way to victory in the $210,000 Tourmaline Oil Cup. Photo by Spruce Meadows Media Services

One of the most prestigious grand prix events in the world, the CP International is part of the Rolex Grand Slam of Show Jumping, where Scott Brash of Great Britain will attempt to become the first rider to ever take the Grand Slam title. Brash already made history by winning two consecutive legs of the challenge with victories at CHI Geneva in December followed by a second victory at CHIO Aachen a few months later. An unprecedented €1 million in bonus money is on offer to any rider who can win all three grand prix events in succession.
 

Venezuela’s Leopoldo Palacios set a difficult track for the horses and riders in Friday’s $210,000 Tourmaline Oil Cup. Out of 26 entries, no one was able to clear the course without fault. The win went to Farrington and RCG Farm’s Uceko with 1 time fault in 80.66 seconds. Tiffany Foster of Canada finished second with the fastest four-fault round riding Torrey Pines and Artisan Farms’ Victor in 78.31 seconds.

“The course was very big,” Farrington remarked. “That was as big as a five-star grand prix that we jump anywhere. I also think a lot of people did not have their top horses in there. The size of the course was quite big for the Friday class, but Uceko is a legitimate grand prix horse, so I think I had the right weapon today. It was a serious course with a very tight time allowed.”
 

Elizabeth Gingras of Canada and Gingras Equestrian Ltd.’s Zilversprings placed third with 4 faults in 78.43 seconds. Brash also had one rail down with Hello Forever, owned by Lord and Lady Harry and Lady P Kirkham, to place fourth in a time of 78.52 seconds.
 

With two wins for the week, Uceko will now have a well-deserved vacation. Farrington was thrilled with the horse’s performance and praised his mount, a 14-year-old Dutch Warmblood gelding (Celano x Koriander).
 

“He is an exceptional horse and he really likes to jump on big grass fields, so I try to use him heavily in those venues,” Farrington detailed. “He is a horse that goes better when he is excited, so I try to keep him really fresh. I give him half the year off every year. He is better when he has a lot of energy, so the more atmosphere a place has, the better he goes. Where a big field or a large crowd intimidates a lot of horses, he usually goes better in that setting.”
 

Edwin Smits Makes a Dream Come True

Friday night at the Masters featured the always-exciting $75,000 ATCO Electric Circuit Six Bar competition in front of a fantastic crowd at Spruce Meadows. And for Swiss rider Edwin Smits, a victory on Rouge Pierreville was extremely emotional.

Edwin Smits celebrated his ATCO Electric Circuit Six Bar win with Rouge Pierreville. Photo by Spruce Meadows Media Services

“It is like a childhood dream come true,” he beamed. “I have never had the chance to compete at this level in a place like this. I have been here a few times as a spectator with my wife, who competed here at the Masters. Now finally in the autumn of my career, to come here and compete with the horses that I have, there are no words for what this is. The competition is amazing; all of the details, everything is perfect. We are guests here and we feel like kings. It is just amazing.”
 

Just Michael Whitaker of Great Britain and Smits battled it out in the fourth and final round after the fences had been raised three times. Whitaker jumped first aboard Emilie Machon and Michael Potter’s Valentin R, but dropped the top rail of the final fence, which was set at a staggering 1.95 meters. Smits and Rouge Pierreville followed with a perfect round to take victory.

Smits has only ridden Rouge Pierreville, a 10-year-old Selle Francais gelding (Ultimo van ter Moude x Narcos II) owned by Claire Franzoni and Daniel Desforges, for a few months. The rider explained that he saw the horse on video and immediately fell in love and asked to ride him for the owners. Despite the horse’s inexperience, he jumped flawlessly through each round Friday night and fed off the energy of the crowd as the fences got higher and higher.

Winning the ATCO Energy CIrcuit Six Bar was one of the biggest victories of Edwin Smits’ career. Photo by Spruce Meadows Media Services

“The key [to the six bar] is that you need a horse that does not want to touch the poles and wants to jump very big and very high,” Smits explained “This horse has so much scope. He is such a powerhouse. The first day here he was a little green, but he is really learning and I think this is a really big step in his career. I think he is going to go very high in this sport.

“I think the crowd gives an extra energy to the horses as well,” Smits added. “As riders, it gives us an enormous boost, but for the horses also. They feel the adrenaline go up and they give you even more.”

In addition, Smits had help from show jumper Jessica Kürten Friday night. Kürten currently holds the record for the six bar at Spruce Meadows after clearing 2.12 meters, and gave her friend some sound advice heading into the arena.
 

“She said to just go in and fight. Fight and jump it,” Smits declared with a smile.

With his six bar win, Smits has now qualified for Sunday’s $1.5 Million CP International, presented by Rolex. The qualification also takes some of the pressure off as the rider returns to compete for Switzerland in Saturday’s $300,000 BMO Nations’ Cup. His mount for each of the weekend’s major events will be Copain du Perchet CH, but Smits praised Rouge Pierreville for helping to make his dream of competing in the world’s greatest grand prix come true. The horse will now have a nice break before flying back to Europe.
 

Final Results: $210,000 Tourmaline Oil Cup 1.60m

1. $70,000 UCEKO Dutch Warmblood / G / 14 Celano x Koriander
KENT FARRINGTON (USA) WELLINGTON, FL RCG Farm: 1/80.66

2. $42,000 VICTOR Dutch Warmblood / G / 13 Elmshorn x Grandeur
TIFFANY FOSTER (CAN) SCHOMBERG, ON Torrey Pines & Artisan Farms: 4/78.31

3. $31,500 ZILVERSPRINGS Dutch Warmblood / G / 11 Unknown x Unknown
ELIZABETH GINGRAS (CAN) EDMONTON, AB B Gingras Equestrian Ltd: 4/78.43

4. $21,000 HELLO FOREVER Oldenburg / G / 9 For Pleasure x Nimmerador
SCOTT BRASH (GBR) GREAT BRITAIN Lord and Lady Harris & Lady P Kirkham: 4/78.52

5. $12,250 EMILIE DE DIAMANT AS Belgian Sport Horse / M / 11 Diamant de Semilly x Flipper d Elle
JACK HARDIN TOWELL JR. (USA) CAMDEN, SC Jennifer Gates: 5/80.28

6. $9,400 OTELLO DU SOLEIL Selle Francais / S / 13 Alligator Fontaine x Papillon Rouge
ROMAIN DUGUET (SUI) BERN Christiana Duguet: 5/80.50

7. $6,200 CHIVAS Z Zangersheide / G / 16 Cumano x Lord Gotthard
RICHARD SPOONER (USA) AGUA DULCE, CA Richard Spooner: 5/83.86

8. $5,250 H&M FOREVER D ARCO Belgian Warmblood / S / 10 Darco x Tenor Manciais
NICOLA PHILIPPAERTS (BEL) GRUITRODE Ludo Philippaerts & Frans Lens: 8/78.60

9. $4,100 COCO BONGO Rheinlander / S / 10 PRH Caretino x Calido
ERIC LAMAZE (CAN) SCHOMBERG, ON Artisan Farms, LLC: 9/81.05

10. $4,100 RISSOA DAG BOIS MARGOT Selle Francais / S / 10 Quincy x Artichaud
PEDRO VENISS (BRA) LASNE SAS Haras Bois Margot: 9/81.72

11. $2,100 RUBIS DE PREUILLY Selle Francais / S / 10 Diamant de Semilly x Lord
CEDRIC ANGOT (FRA) GAMBAIS Societe Fermiene de Preuilly: 10/84.02

12. $2,100 ATLANTIS Zangersheide / G / 12 Unknown x Unknown
SAMUEL PAROT (CHI) WELLINGTON, FL Samuel Parot: 12/77.45