Lexington, KY – May 19, 2023 – Friday was all about the kids at the Kentucky Horse Park during the Kentucky Spring Classic Horse Show. The Walnut Ring played host to several Low Junior, Amateur and Childrens jumper divisions, highlighted by a jam-packed Children’s Jumper 1.10m class full of up and coming talent. Nineteen horse-and-rider combinations dawned on the course designed by Guilherme Jorge (BRA), eager to put forth a solid clear round and claim a coveted blue ribbon.
The class was set to a Table II, Sec 2(d) format: a one round competition based particularly on the riders ability to run a clear round. The young riders had to implement all the skills they had learned up to this point to maneuver the track and guide their partners over the fences with precision. The tactiful track encouraged riders to command and execute a good stride of their mounts and proper riding techniques in the saddle. This class was an opportunity for them to continue to build on their young careers and fine-tune any inconsistencies.
The Jorge-designed course that featured fourteen obstacles, ten of which were oxers, did not phase the group of athletes. The talented class saw fifteen of the eighteen entries post clear rounds to add blue ribbons to their Kentucky Spring Classic Horse Show resume. The partnerships with clear rounds included: Alina Zappone and King Van Het Keizershof, Jesse Kruszynski and Wonderboy Marckhoeve, Collin Sweetnam and Just Noble, Daniela Casline and Isotropic Cilius R, Nora Bivins and Aruba, RJ Maya and Ianuman, Laila Murad and Alfonsine Manciaise, Allie Rae Hayes and Miss Svea, Maddie Figgie and Very Much In Love, Ella Norman and Just A Dream, Sarah Silver and Dirham FZ Z, Collin Sweetnam and Cobolt, Addy Osgood and Cardinale 23, Addy Osgood and Flying C, and Lacy Lee Crannell and Locarno.
Although accuracy and precision were the name of the game Friday afternoon, three combinations stood out amongst the pack, incorporating speed into their rounds as well. The top three times in the class went to Ella Norman and Just A Dream, Laila Murad and Alfonsine Manciaise, and Sarah Silver and Dirham FZ Z respectively.
Jumper competition on the grounds of the Kentucky Horse Park will come to a head tomorrow, Saturday May 19, for the $145,100 Mary Rena Murphy Grand Prix CSI3* in the famed Rolex Stadium. Sunday, May 20, will wrap up competition in the 2023 Kentucky Spring Classic Horse Show.
