FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 29, 2007 
Woodside,
Calif., May 25-27 – Woodside Horse Trials’ advanced division served
as a “mandatory outing” for West Coast candidates for this summer’s
Pan Games, and U.S. Equestrian Federation officials were there to watch them.
Capt. Mark Phillips (the U.S. eventing team’s Chef d’Equipe),
four members of the USEF Eventing Selection Committee, and two team veterinarians
were at Woodside to evaluate the riders’ and horses’ performances and
soundness. The group was evaluating three horse-rider combinations who’d
previously qualified for the Pan Am Games: Gina Miles on McKinlaigh, Sara
Mittleider on El Primero, and Tiana Coudray on King Street. Miles
and Mittleider were given permission to not run their horses in the cross-country
phase as Miles had ridden McKinlaigh to a top-placing performance at the
Badminton CCI**** (England) in early May and Mittleider had ridden El Primero
to a top-placing performance at the Rolex Kentucky CCI**** in late April. Coudray
withdrew King Street before show jumping, even though she’d moved to the
top of the leader board after a quick cross-country round. Phillips
said he was pleased with the performances of McKinlaigh and El Primero, especially
since they’d had a couple weeks of vacation following Rolex Kentucky and
Badminton. “I don’t think either of them are peaking at the moment,
but we don’t want them to do that for another month or so,” said Phillips,
since the Pan Am Games don’t begin in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, until July
18. “This was a chance for the Selection Committee to evaluate their progress
at this moment.” The eight horse-rider combinations from which the
four team members and three individual riders will be chosen is to be announced
by June 11, following the second mandatory outing, run in conjunction with the
Jersey Fresh CCI*** (N.J.) on June 1-4. All told, seven riders completed
the advanced division, from 15 starters. Amy Tryon withdrew dressage winner
Poggio II after a steady cross-country round to fly him across the country on
Sunday morning to compete at the Jersey Fresh CCI, his first major competition
since winning the individual bronze medal at the 2006 World Equestrian Games.
Tryon said she was running him there to be sure he was fully qualified
for the 2008 Olympics. With steadily consistent riding in all three phases,
Kelly Prather, of Bodega, Calif., rode Ballinakill Glory to the blue ribbon
in the advanced division at the Woodside Horse Trials. Her score (48.4) put her
12 points ahead of second-placed Jolie Sexson, of Martinez, Calif., on
Killian O’Connor and 12.4 penalties ahead of third-placed Dawn White,
of Auburn, Wash., on Vapor Trail. Edited Press Release by Heather
Bailey. If you have questions regarding the 2007 Pan American Games
Team, please contact Joanie Morris, 859-225-2052 or by email: jmorris@usef.org.
-ENDS- As the National Governing Body (NGB) of Equestrian
Sport, the United States Equestrian Federation®, Inc. (USEF) is the regulatory
body for 28 breeds and disciplines, including our country’s international
teams competing in the disciplines of dressage, driving, endurance, eventing,
para-equestrian, reining, show jumping and vaulting. With over 89,000 members,
it is the country’s largest multi-breed organization and annually license
more than 2,800 competitions nationwide. The USEF governs all aspects of competition,
including education and licensing of all judges, stewards, and technical delegates
who officiate shows. Vision Statement: The vision of United States
Equestrian Federation® is to provide leadership for equestrian sport in the
United States of America, promoting the pursuit
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