North Salem, N.Y. – Sept. 15, 2019 – Saving the most exciting event for last, the 2019 American Gold Cup, presented by CaptiveOne Advisors, LLC, hosted the prestigious class that awards its namesake Sunday, as some of the globe’s most decorated horses and athletes vied for the top spot in the $210,000 Longines FEI Jumping World Cup™ – New York CSI4*-W, presented by CaptiveOne Advisors, LLC, as well as the illustrious American Gold Cup. Coming off a recent streak of notable triumphs, Beezie Madden (USA) maintained momentum by piloting Garant, her young up-and-coming superstar, to another incredible finish to emerge as the class victors. Having won the feature contest twice previously, Sunday’s victory marked Madden’s return to the winner’s circle and the third time her name will be etched into the American Gold Cup trophy.
Creating a course fit for the occasion, world-renowned designer Alan Wade (IRL) produced a 16-effort track set at 1.60m in height to be contested by the 40 entries who had qualified for the competition following their results in Friday’s $75,000 American Gold Cup Qualifier CSI4*, which was won by Shane Sweetnam (IRL) and Chaqui Z. Though the 79-second time-allowed proved to be a heartbreaker for three competitors who otherwise would have been clear, seven duos managed to master the track by leaving all the rails in the cups without time faults. Led by the USA’s Katie Dinan and Brego R’n B, penalty-free rides followed from Paul O’Shea (IRL) and Imerald van’t Voorhof, Nicki Shahinian-Simpson (USA) riding Akuna Mattata, Madden on Garant, Brian Moggre (USA) aboard MTM Vivre Le Reve, Devin Ryan (USA) with the reins on Eddie Blue and Karl Cook (USA) on Caillou. All told, the American contingent made up almost the entire pack, with only Ireland also represented by one finalist.
After a hard-fought initial round of riding, six of the seven qualified contenders opted to return, with Shahinian-Simpson electing to forego the jump-off. Shortened to only eight fences, Wade’s second design served to further whittle down the challengers, of which three ultimately produced foot-perfect trips. The early pathfinders, Dinan and Brego R’n B, owned by De heer A. Vos, set the pace for the short course with the first double-clean trip of the afternoon in 41.94 seconds. Third to return following a downed rail from O’Shea, Madden and Abigail Wexner’s 8-year-old Garant took to the ring with another American Gold Cup victory in their sights, and the pair lived up to expectations with a smart navigation around the pattern that stopped the clock in 40.89 seconds, one second faster than the previous frontrunners to propel to the top spot.
With Madden in the lead, the three final combinations each tried to eclipse her, but none would prove able to exceed her performance aboard Garant. Though Ryan and Eddie Blue turned in the swiftest ride in 39.87 seconds, the pair lowered a fence to incur 4 faults against them and keep them out of contention for the rosette. Last to take his chance, Cook piloted Signe Ostby’s Caillou to the second-best jump-off time of the prestigious class, tripping the timers in 41.25 seconds to capture the second place honors, while Dinan and Brego R’n B’s time held for the third spot on the podium.
Madden’s win Sunday upped her recent collection of high-profile victories by one, adding to a growing list of impressive performances in only the past few months. Just one week ago on Sept. 8, Madden jockeyed Darry Lou to a stunning performance that bested the elite field in the $3 Million CP ‘International’ Grand Prix, presented by Rolex, at the 2019 Spruce Meadows ‘Masters’ CSIO5*, one of only four Rolex Grand Slam of Show Jumping events. In July 2019, the veteran athlete won the Sparkassen-Youngsters-Cup at CHIO Aachen with Garant, a testament to the horse’s ever-increasing experience. No stranger to Longines FEI Jumping World Cup™ competition, the New York-based rider has now won the event three times at the American Gold Cup, with the first two coming in 1989 and 2010. In 2013 and 2018, Madden reached superior status as the Longines FEI World Cup™ Jumping Final champion riding Simon and Breitling LS, respectively.
Having consistently earned the best results to accrue the most points in competitions offering $25,000 or more in prize money throughout the course of the week, Sweetnam was awarded the coveted CaptiveOne Advisors™ $15,000 Leading Rider Bonus following the conclusion of Sunday’s activities. His preeminent accomplishment of the week came in the $75,000 American Gold Cup Qualifier CSI4*, and he also clinched superb finishes in the $71,200 Fidelity Investments® Classic CSI4* and the $35,700 Staller Welcome Stake.
In addition to sponsoring the titular class and the rider bonus, CaptiveOne also spearheaded the “Clear for a Cause” campaign, which ran during Sunday’s World Cup class. Every time an entry cleared both the JustWorld and CaptiveOne fences, CaptiveOne donated $250 to JustWorld International, which supports education and nutrition programs for children in need all around the world. With partner organizations in Cambodia, Guatemala, Honduras and the United States, JustWorld provides a unique opportunity for equestrians and individuals to join together and contribute to a global campaign against poverty. Thanks to the exceptional efforts by show jumping athletes, a total $7,000 was raised for the CaptiveOne Advisors “Clear for a Cause” campaign.
In the lead-up to Sunday’s main event, the M. Michael Meller Style of Riding Award was awarded to its newest recipient, Lucy Deslauriers (USA). Deslauriers was hand-selected by Meller as the 2019 honoree for exhibiting an outstanding combination of horsemanship, skill and presentation while competing at the 2019 American Gold Cup.
The American Gold Cup served as one of only seven events that comprise the East Coast division of the Longines FEI Jumping World Cup™ North American League. Athletes compete in the league at events all across North America in order to qualify for the prestigious Longines FEI Jumping World Cup™ Final, which will be held in Las Vegas, Nevada, from April 15-19, 2020.
Sunday’s exciting show jumping competition concluded the 2019 American Gold Cup, presented by CaptiveOne Advisors, LLC, at Old Salem Farm.
FROM THE WINNER’S CIRCLE
Beezie Madden – $210,000 Longines FEI Jumping World Cup™ – New York CSI4*-W, presented by CaptiveOne Advisors, LLC, winner
On her thoughts on winning:
“I have a young horse here and he has had a wonderful year. Our plan was to step him up this fall, so I went on Friday and he went so well that we decided to try him on Sunday. I wasn’t even sure I was doing this class when I came here this week, so for him to come thought like that today is amazing. A big thank you to CaptiveOne and Longines and the Morrissey family for making it all possible at Old Salem Farm.”
On her rides:
“My goal was to have a nice confident ride for my horse and not get him in trouble anywhere. He is an amazing horse and an incredible athlete. I believe in his talents so much that I wasn’t too worried. I tried to keep him quiet all the way around.”
On Garant:
“Garant is an 8-year-old owned by Abigail Wexner. We got him from Willem Greve when he was 6 years old, the fall of his 6-year-old year. We have high hopes for him. He was also the 5-year-old champion in Lanaken [at the FEI World Breeding Jumping Championships] so he is already kind of a winner and a special horse. We are just trying to bring him along really well and our goal was to give him lots of mileage this summer. He went to Spruce Meadows and he went to Aachen for his second time actually as he went there last year, too. He has a lot of experience in these field type venues, so I thought this might suit him. He did the summer tour and now he is ready to step up and do some grand prix classes. He exceeded our expectations today.”
On Garant’s strengths and specialties:
“He has a tremendous jumping talent which is not everything. He’s incredibly smart. He knows he’s not supposed to hit the fences and he seems to know how to run fast and jump high and I have no idea why. When we got him, Clark Shipley who works for us took care of him and he also took care of Authentic. He nicknamed this horse ‘Junior’ because – it has nothing to do with the way he looks or the way he jumps – his personality is a lot like Authentic. He is so intelligent and he has so much self-confidence.”
On what’s next for Garant:
“I would say this was a big step for him – our goal is to do some bigger classes and push him a little bit in the fall and then make a decision if he is one to try to shoot for the Tokyo [2020 Olympic Games] next year, but that’s a big ask for a 9-year-old. Our plan is to test him a little this fall and see if we want to aim him for that.”
On competing at the American Gold Cup:
“Since I started doing grand prix classes the American Gold Cup has been part of the circuit and it is amazing how it has been so special at so many different venues. It doesn’t seem to matter particularly where it is, it is always a special event. If you’re here it is really beautiful and also a great location for this time of year as far as scheduling and where everybody is. It’s an honor to be a part of it and to have won it more than one time. We really love being here.”
Karl Cook – second place
On his day:
“My day was great and I was super happy with it. It was my first time here and it feels really good. I love riding on the field because it is big and open and my horse thrives on that ride and this type of course. It was great and I am so happy that I came and being second to Beezie [Madden] – it’s not really like I am second.”
On coming to the East Coast:
“We will see with this horse, if we qualify, if we end up going [to the Longines FEI Jumping™ World Cup Final]. Because the World Cup Finals is in Las Vegas is a different animal, but we will make that decision later. I came out here because it fit in my schedule and also my wife [Kaley Cuoco] was working in New York this week so she would be here. It was great.”
On his round:
“I think what I am happiest about out there with the slope of the arena is that it adds a completely different element. It adds an amplified element to the riding because you have a slope going uphill or downhill and Alan Wade does a great job dealing with that so he doesn’t trap people. When you go downhill and you have a turn it changes how you approach that turn which is super interesting and it’s fun to have another element to work on.”
On the American Gold Cup:
“Our sport is really and old sport and such a traditional sport and when you are able to come to places that have that tradition, it is really special and makes you sit up and makes you also think about the past and think about everything that it has taken to get the sport here. It is really cool.”
Katie Dinan – third place
On her round:
“I was thrilled with my horse today! I jumped him here in the spring shows in May and it was our first time jumping the grand prix together and he was second out of the big grand prix in the spring so I had a really good feeling about coming here for Gold Cup.”
On competing at the American Gold Cup:
“My family lives five minutes away from this horse show and Old Salem is where I did my first horse show ever so I always work it into my schedule. I think it’s wonderful that the [American] Gold Cup has been at Old Salem for the last few years and it’s done a great thing for this place and the event. I’m always super happy to be here and to be at the press conference with Karl [Cook] and Beezie [Madden], a personal hero of mine, is always a treat.”
Matt Morrissey – Assistant Show Manager of Morrissey Management Group
On the event:
“The weather was a lot better than last year. We showed every day on the field this week. We had great results today and Alan [Wade] always does an amazing job course designing here for us. We had good competition – Beezie wins her third [American] Gold Cup so it is great!”
Wayne Jenkins – Founder and Managing Member for CaptiveOne Advisors LLC
On sponsorship with the 2019 American Gold Cup:
“I am thrilled to be part of [the American Gold Cup]. It was our first year with Gold Cup and Morrissey Management is an amazing group to work with. We had a number of people as guests and they walked the course and got into the sport – I think that’s what we’re trying to do is promote the sport and be involved in the sport. Thank you for the opportunity and thank you Matt [Morrissey] for allowing us to join you.”
RESULTS
$210,000 Longines FEI Jumping World Cup™ – New York CSI4*-W, presented by CaptiveOne Advisors, LLC
Place / Horse / Athlete / Country / Owner / R1 Faults | Time / R2 Faults | Time
1. Garant / Beezie Madden / USA / Abigail S Wexner / 0 | 76.57 / 0 | 40.89
2. Caillou / Karl Cook / USA / Signe Ostby / 0 | 74.19 / 0 | 41.25
3. Brego R’n B / Katherine A. Dinan / USA / De heer A. Vos / 0 | 77.60 / 0 | 41.94
4. Eddie Blue / Devin Ryan / USA / LL Show Jumpers, LLC / 0 | 74.48 / 4 | 39.87
5. Imerald van ‘t Voorhof / Paul O’Shea / IRL / Tequestrian Farms, LLC / 0 | 76.45 / 4 | 42.22
6. MTM Vivre le Reve / Brian Moggre / USA / Major Wager LLC / 0 | 73.92 / 4 | 53.65
7. Akuna Mattata / Nicole Shahinian-Simpson / USA /Carol Rosenstein & Silver Raven Farms / 0 | 74.2 / WD
8. Quibelle / Georgina Bloomberg / USA / Gotham Enterprizes LLC / 1 | 79.02
9. Loughnavatta Indigo / Jonathan Corrigan / IRL / Horse Orchard LLC / 1 | 80.18
10. Dubai / Vasco Flores / PUR / SHL Farm / 1 | 81.32
11. Hester / Lucy Deslauriers / USA / Lisa T Deslauriers / 4 | 72.11
12. Carlchen W / Alex Granato / USA / Page Tredennick / 4 | 72.52
For full results, please click here.
For more information, please visit theamericangoldcup.com.