Stephanie Bourassa Wins Show Jumping Season Opener at Wesley Clover Parks
Stephanie Bourassa won the $15,000 Julia MacAngus Memorial Grand Prix on Saturday, May 17, to kick off the show jumping season at Wesley Clover Parks in Ottawa, ON.
Bourassa, 27, of Laval, QC, was one of two competitors to jump clear over the track set by Canadian course designer Jedd Smith of Chelmsford, ON, in the All-Weather Ring. Alexandra Mitchell, 29, of Mallorytown, ON, had already posted a clear round riding Casallco Aurora and Bourassa ensured there was a jump-off when she also went clear aboard Guss de Kegane.
Mitchell was the first to return for the jump-off and had the second fence down, giving her a final score of four faults in a time of 44.86 seconds. Bourassa knew exactly what she had to do to win but when the first fence fell, she had to balance her speed with leaving the remaining jumps in place. When no other rails came down, she crossed the timers in 44.79 seconds to claim victory.
“My strategy was to do a nice, efficient clear round, so I had to change the strategy a little bit when I had the first jump down,” explained Bourassa, who trains with John Kerr in Mirabel, QC. “Alex is one of my best friends so it’s always good fun to be with your best friend in the jump-off.”
Bourassa’s winning partner was Guss de Kegane, her nine-year-old Selle Français gelding (Berdenn de Kergane x OK du Rozel).
“Guss is the best,” said Bourassa, who imported the horse last year from France. “He’s just a good guy and always comes out the same. He was really good today. He loves Ottawa.”
Bourassa feels the same way, saying, “I love it here. We come here for almost all the shows they run. It’s a nice venue, always well-organized, and the people are so nice. We try to come here as much as we can.”
As the runner-up, Mitchell is also a fan of Wesley Clover Parks. Mitchell imported Casallco Aurora, her eight-year-old Irish Sport Horse gelding (Casallco x Lim), after spotting him competing in the six-year-old young horse classes in Ireland. The pair developed their partnership at Wesley Clover Parks last year by competing in the Maplebrook Farm Young Series and clinching the overall seven-year-old title at the end of the season.
A total of five horse-rider combinations missed making the jump-off after incurring four faults. Paul Halpern of Saint Anne des Plaines, QC, was the fastest of the four-faulters to place third riding M. The pair finished the first round in 75.33 seconds, well under the 81-second time allowed.
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