Fuchs Wins Once Again in Speed Challenge at WEF
Equestrian News Release

Fuchs Wins Once Again in €20,000 Speed Stake on La Toya III, Chapot Rushes to Victory with Cilthe Z in $6,000 1.40m Acorn Hill Farm Speed Challenge

Madison and Alexa Weeks Lead the Way in $10,000 Show Jumping Hall of Fame High Amateur-Owner Jumper Classic

Wellington, FL – March 16, 2007 – The CN Worldwide Wellington Finale, CSI-5* continued today with three classes in the Internationale Arena. Alexa Weeks piloted Madison to their first win in the $10,000 Show Jumping Hall of Fame (SJHOF) High Amateur-Owner Jumper Classic. Markus Fuchs (SUI) won his fourth class at the Winter Equestrian Festival (WEF), this time on La Toya III in the €20,000 Speed Stake. Wrapping up the day, Laura Chapot and Cilthe Z raced to victory in the Acorn Hill Farm 1.40m Speed Challenge.

Fuchs has had a successful first season in Florida with his two talented mares. La Toya III, a 12-year-old Belgian Warmblood mare owned by Adolfo Juri, won the Sunday grand prix in week six of WEF. Fuchs has had a long, thriving career with La Toya III. “My sponsor bought her as a six year old, so this is our seventh season. I know her really well and she knows me. She has a lot of quality, a bit hot, but she wins quite a lot in grand prix. She’s always good enough for a surprise,” he smiled.

While La Toya III is usually his mount in the big grand prix classes and Nations’ Cup competitions in Europe, Fuchs decided to let her go fast in today’s speed class. “Normally, I don’t let her run like this. Yesterday, I had one down in the big class and was a little bit disappointed,” he explained. Fuchs watched second place finisher Conor Swail (IRE) and Nepomuk complete the course in 59.54 seconds and knew he would have to be quick for the win. “Either I would win or I would have one down,” he remarked. “I left strides out. I didn’t expect to win by two seconds. I thought I was a little bit faster, but that was a surprise.” Fuchs and La Toya III crossed the finish line in 57.46 seconds.

Fuchs must watch La Toya III to make sure that she does not get too worked up before she enters the show ring. “She has an unbelievable quality, but I have to watch her temper in the big classes,” he acknowledged. “Sometimes I have her too hot. If I jump too much in the warm-up, it’s too much. I always cool her down, walk around for five or six, jump two jumps and then I go in. She’s still a good horse though.”

Fuchs plans to fly home on Sunday and will compete in smaller shows and national competitions through April. “Now after this show, La Toya gets a break for a couple weeks and won’t compete until the beginning of May,” he added.

Laura Chapot is another top grand prix rider that has had an amazing winter circuit. In today’s $6,000 1.40m Acorn Hill Farm Speed Challenge, she and Cilthe Z, who is owned by Mary Chapot and Harry Vogel, garnered their fourth win together. Chapot has ridden the eight-year-old Warmblood mare since last summer and has steadily moved her up through the circuit.

“We started the first day here in the Young Jumpers. We progressed to 1.35m and then started the third week in the 1.40m,” Chapot explained. “I’ve been really surprised at how easily she’s done it. She’s such a young horse, but she’s really brave. She’s just taken every step in stride and made the move quite easily.”

In today’s class, Chapot said that “CZ” went well, despite the “questionable footing,” and added, “She’s actually quite sure-footed and very careful. I was really, really pleased with the way she handled the course out there.”

Chapot rode out of the fifth position in the order and set the time to beat at 63.810 seconds. The only one to come close with a clear round was second place finisher Cara Raether on Quilano de Kalvarie, who posted a time of 63.870 seconds. “I went early in the class, so I just tried to really let her go her speed. She’s already quite fast. I don’t normally have to push her too fast. I’m usually just trying to slow her down. I just let her do that and let everyone else chase me,” Chapot said with a smile.

Alexa Weeks has reunited with her Dutch Warmblood mare Madison this winter and they capped off the season with a win in the $10,000 SJHOF High Amateur-Owner Jumper Classic. Weeks and Madison flew around the jump-off course to finish in 34.362 seconds, just ahead of Omona AW and Carolyn Kelly, who posted a time of 34.664 seconds.

The highlight of the CN Worldwide Wellington Finale, CSI-5* will be tomorrow’s €300,000 CN Worldwide Florida Open Grand Prix. The top 50 qualifiers will start at noon, and the best 15 from there will advance to the final round at 3:30 p.m.

Results of 104 Medium Tour Speed Stake CSI

CN Worldwide Wellington Finale CSI 5*

March 14th - 18, 2007

T/A: 77.00

1 2765 LA TOYA III MARKUS FUCHS 0.00 57.46

JURI ADOLFO

2 3512 NEPOMUK CONOR SWAIL 0.00 59.54

CONOR SWAIL

3 2620 ACE RICHARD SPOONER 0.00 61.16

S & B LLC CORP.

4 2273 MADONNA KATHERINE MIRACLE 0.00 62.15

OVERLOOK FARM INC.

5 2168 NADIA GEORGINA BLOOMBERG 0.00 62.58

GOTHAM ENTERPRIZES

6 232 RIO CORDE WILLIAM LOWRY 0.00 63.09

WINSOR FARM SALES

7 2241 HIDDEN CREEK'S WAPINO MARGIE ENGLE 0.00 63.35

HIDDEN CREEK FARM

8 2763 GOLDEX JACKSON REED STEPHEN 0.00 64.27

MRS. P TORDOFF

9 3080 MAHON POINT MICHAEL MORRISSEY 0.00 64.71

MCLAIN WARD

10 1961 LOUISIANA SLOANE COLES 0.00 65.76

JULIE COLES

11 3432 LE PRESTIGE ST LOIS LAURA KRAUT 0.00 67.78

FREEDOM GROUP

12 3561 VICTORIA DE ZELLIK KEEAN WHITE 0.00 67.98

GREENER PASTURES



Results of 1005 Acorn Hill 1.40 Speed Challenge, II Sec. 1 (NAL)

CN Worldwide Wellington Finale CSI 5*

March 14th - 18, 2007

T/A: 78.00

1 1301 CILTHE Z LAURA CHAPOT 0.00 63.810

MARY CHAPOT

2 3368 QUILANO DE KALVARIE CARA RAETHER 0.00 63.870

TRELAWNY FARM

3 2460 SANTA TERESITA SALAMANCA JAIME GUERRA 0.00 66.163

SANTA TERESITA

4 168 NTEC DANCE & JUMP CHRISTIAN HEINEKING 0.00 68.637

KAI HANDT

5 1036 LOREAL DES FORETS ISABELLE LAPIERRE 0.00 69.450

LA CHAUDIERE

6 460 CORINA EMMY TROMP 0.00 70.084

BEYAERT FARM INC

7 2175 STAR APPLE GEORGINA BLOOMBERG 0.00 70.214

GOTHAM ENTERPRIZES

8 831 F-5 MIRANDA FISCHER 0.00 71.274

MIRANDA FISCHER

9 1870 PRACHT FREDERIC LUNEBOURG 0.00 75.050

MARLEY GOODMAN

10 1520 OLYMPIC CLOVER ALISSA KINSEY 0.00 75.218

ALISSA KINSEY

11 1265 UNICA ANGELA COVERT-LAWREN 0.00 77.063

EASTWOOD GROUP

12 2949 KAISER DE LA COUR EMILY WILLIAMS 1.00 78.604

MILLCREEK STABLES

Results of SJHOF Amateur Owner Jumper Classic

CN Worldwide Wellington Finale CSI 5*

March 14th - 18, 2007

T/A: 84.00 T/A: 43.00

1 281 MADISON ALEXA WEEKS 0.00 76.851 0.00 34.362

ALEXA WEEKS

2 2635 OMONA A W CAROLYN KELLY 0.00 80.839 0.00 34.664

LULU EQUESTRN ENT

3 285 SUBLIEM WHITNEY WEEKS 0.00 80.780 0.00 35.166

WHITNEY WEEKS

4 323 KACHINA LOUIS JACOBS 0.00 80.902 4.00 36.229

DEERIDGE FARM

5 937 LINDA Z TRACEY WEINBERG 0.00 81.747 4.00 36.341

TRACEY WEINBERG

6 2625 KARTOUCHE VD WATERING ANDREW WELLES 0.00 79.952 4.00 37.449

ANDREW WELLES

7 146 MASTER MAN KELLY SOLEAU 0.00 82.816 8.00 39.126

BRIDGE BROOK ARMS

8 1524 CALLIDA MELISSA MARCOTTE 1.00 84.368

MELISSA MARCOTTE

9 2305 KADENA R PAIGE JOHNSON 4.00 75.490

SALAMANDER FARM

10 2299 LA MARTINEE PAIGE JOHNSON 4.00 78.139

SALAMANDER FARM

11 2014 SIRIUS TIMOTHY HOOKER 4.00 78.529

TIMOTHY HOOKER

12 951 OZALIAT ERIC SASSMANNSHAUSEN 4.00 78.636

JANET SASSMANSHAUSEN

Photo Credit: Laura Chapot and Cilthe Z, winners of the $6,000 1.40m Acorn Hill Farm Speed Challenge at the Winter Equestrian Festival. Photo © 2007 Peter Llewellyn/PMG Pictures.