Adrienne Sternlicht Stars in $340,000 RBC Grand Prix
Ottawa, Ontario – It was Adrienne Sternlicht’s day at the RBC Ottawa International show jumping tournament at Wesley Clover Parks in Ottawa, ON. Having won the US $35,000 Grand Prix CSI2*, presented by Mark Motors Group, in the morning, Sternlicht returned to the grass field to claim victory in the grand finale, the US $340,000 Grand Prix CSI5*, presented by RBC.
Equestrian is the only Olympic sport where male and female athletes compete against each other, and the women certainly proved they could hold their own in the RBC Grand Prix. A total of 24 riders took on the challenging five-star track set by Brazilian course designer Marina Azevedo. Sternlicht, Great Britain’s Jessica Mendoza and Elena Haas of the United States were the only three riders who posted clear rounds to advance to the jump-off.
Mendoza was the first to return for the shortened jump-off track, setting the early standard with four faults in a time of 38.08 riding Summerhouse, her 10-year-old Zangersheide gelding (Induparts Guidam Sohn x VDL Indoctro). Haas was next to challenge with Claude, her 13-year-old Westphalian gelding (Captain Jack 44 x Cefalo). When she also dropped a rail in a slower time of 39.02 seconds, the door was wide open for Sternlicht as the final challenger. Knowing exactly what she needed to do to win, Sternlicht left all the jumps in place and claimed victory riding Origa vh Zuid-Pajottenland, an 11-year-old Belgian Warmblood gelding owned by Starlight Farms 1 LLC.
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