In the nine-day celebration of horse sport that is the annual CHIO Aachen (Germany), U.S.-based dressage rider Julio Mendoza Loor of Ecuador took the top spot in the I-West Grand Prix freestyle CDI4* class, while the U.S. contingent highlighted the event with several second-place podiums.
The Defender U.S. Eventing Team finished second to Great Britain in the SAP-Cup CCIO4*-S on Saturday, July 6—the second year in a row it has finished in that spot—while McLain Ward took second Sunday, June 7, in the Rolex Grand Prix CSI5* with Ilex, the day after the pair were named to the team for the upcoming Paris Olympic Games. Ward also finished second Wednesday, July 3, in the Turkish Airlines-Prize of Europe Grand Prix CSIO5* aboard Callas. In dressage, Steffen Peters was the best of the U.S. contingent with Suppenkasper, finishing third behind Mendoza Loor in Saturday’s CDI4* freestyle.
In team competition, the Dutta Corp. U.S. Dressage Team finished fourth in the FEI Dressage Nations Cup of Aachen CDIO5* behind winner Germany on July 4 and the NetJets U.S. Jumping Team was ninth in the Mercedes-Benz Jumping Nations Cup CSIO5* the same day.
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Photographer Shannon Brinkman was there capturing the highlights of the competition.