Wellington, Fla. – Feb. 7, 2019 – Following the CDI5* Grand Prix to qualify for the Grand Prix Special, Canadian rider Brittany Fraser-Beaulieu pulled out all the stops on her gelding All In to earn first place in the Grand Prix for the Freestyle. This was Fraser-Beaulieu’s first FEI 5* win on the 14-year-old gelding that she has been showing at the FEI level since 2016. The Dutch Warmblood by Tango earned an overall score of 71.304 percent in their test out of a total of six entries.
Second place was awarded to Katherine Bateson Chandler, an American that splits her time between the United States and Europe. Her mount Alcazar is a 14-year-old Dutch Warmblood gelding owned by Jane Clark. The pair earned a score of 70.696 percent under the instruction of her trainer, Carl Hester, that is visiting for the week.
Yvonne Losos De Muniz rounded out the top three with a score of 69.696 percent on her very own gelding, Foco Loco W. This was the 14-year-old Belgian Warmbloods first 5* Grand Prix in addition to being his second show back since March of 2018 after Losos De Muniz injured her shoulder, keeping her out of the tack for nearly eight months.
The division will continue Friday, Feb. 8, at the Adequan Global Dressage Festival at 8:30 p.m. for the Grand Prix Freestyle.
RESULTS: CDI5* Grand Prix (for Grand Prix Freestyle)
Place / Rider / Country / Horse / Score
1. Brittany Fraser-Beaulieu / CAN / All In / 71.304
2. Katherine Bateson Chandler / USA / Alcazar / 70.696
3. Yvonne Losos De Muniz / DOM / Foco Loco W / 69.696
4. Jill Irving / CAN / Degas 12 / 68.891
5. Christoph Koschel / GER / Ballentines 10 / 67.891
6. Jessica Jo Tate / USA / Faberge / 67.087
FROM THE WINNER’S CIRCLE
Brittany Fraser-Beaulieu — CDI5* Grand Prix (for the Freestyle) winner
On her test:
“I was really pleased with my test today. This year I wanted to take the time to perfect some movements that I have been struggling with in the last couple of years. This year I am not going to Pan Ams because I am pregnant, so I wanted to really focus on nit-picking the movements apart to see where I can get more points and it has been paying off. The last show and this show have probably been my best Grand Prix’s that I have ever had, so I am really thankful for that. The first part was pretty strong. The trot and the half-passes were great, my piaffe is getting better, the changes were also much better. The whole thing seemed easier. He is a big horse that takes a lot of energy to get through the Grand Prix. Everything is starting to be a little bit easier, which is just nice. I think what I really loved about today was that everything flowed.”
On the Pan American Games:
“I feel a little sad missing them this year because I love to compete and I love representing Canada but at the same time, he [All In] is 14 and I know that isn’t that old, but I really want to go to Tokyo. For the last three years, I have been showing him and he has been campaigning a lot. To do the whole season here and then go to Europe, it is a lot on the horses. I think he is ready for a little bit of a rest and hopefully, he will be totally on his game for Tokyo next year.”
On her pregnancy:
“I am due June 18th. This might be my last show. I feel fine and my doctor says I’m fine! I am going to take it as it comes. I would love to do Nations Cup but I can’t say yes or no yet. I am just taking it one step at a time and I feel really good. I’m a little out of breath but other than that I feel good.”
On her freestyle:
“I think my highest score in my Freestyle is a 77 and I would love to beat that score. I really love riding my freestyle and coming out here on Friday night with the atmosphere is really a fun time. I would like to beat my 77, but we will see.”
Katherine Bateson-Chandler – second place
On Alcazar:
“He [Alcazar] felt really good coming out. I had done two shows in a row because I wanted to get a show in before the 5*. I really wanted to do the 5* and now he is going to get a big break. I may do the Nations Cup, maybe not, and then I will save him for Europe. I just don’t want to do a lot with him this season. It gets really hot here and I think it can be really hard on horses. I have made the mistake of overdoing things so I am being very strict about not overdoing him. He had a small injury at the end of last season so I gave him a very long time to rehab because at that point there was nothing else to do competition wise. Now, he has come back and he feels better than he has ever felt.”
On her program:
“I have him on a really strict program with his training but I don’t overtrain. I train probably two hours a week or less than that in the arena and then he is either on the track, the AquaTred, or hacking. That has worked really well for him. He wanted to be quite hot today, which he goes back and forth from being. I am going to make sure I give him a little ride in the morning and see how electric he is feeling and make sure that I have him in just the right spot to give everyone a run for their money that night I hope!”
On her trainer, Carl Hester:
“It is always lovely to have Carl here because he is a good friend as well as an amazing trainer. It is lovely to have that moral support. I am very lucky that I have a lot of support in general from a lot of people, but it is great to have Carl here. Hearing those words in my ear and hearing that voice just gives me a little bit more confidence. I tried to get him here twice but the other time won’t work out, which is fine. It is just lovely to get him here for many reasons. I am planning to go to Europe at the end of April with him and then our goal is to do Aachen.”
On competing with Brittany Fraser-Beaulieu:
“A funny thing about Brittany and I is our horses are the same age, I think we did our first Intermediate I at the same show on the national side and we did our first Grand Prix on the national side at the same time. I ride with Ashley when Carl is not here, and it is just fun! I always group our two horses together because they did their first international at the same time and came up on the same trajectory. Now, they are sort of going head-to-head at these shows, I think it is fun to see them both coming into their prime.”
Yvonne Losos De Muniz – third place
On her performance:
“The test today was actually better than I was expecting. I am not 100 percent back in shape yet [from injuring her shoulder] and he [Foco Loco W] is so big and such a big mover that sometimes I am just trying to stay in the saddle. He is there and ready to go but I am being a little greedy jumping into the ring so fast. I do need to get into a little better of shape but I am really happy with the way he is going. I need to catch up with him now. He is there and we are starting a little slow for me to get back into the swing of it. He comes up in the ring so I am going to have to hang on even harder tomorrow. I am excited! We are just going to take it slow and let me catch up with him physically.”