Wellington, Fla. – March 13, 2019 – One of the highlight events of the Adequan Global Dressage Festival, the Nations Cup, kicked off during Week 10 with the CDI-U25 Intermediate II 16-25. Nine youth riders from three countries took to the stadium to compete for the U-25 team championship. Teams from the United States, Canada and Spain consisted of two or three riders, with the top two scores counting for each team’s total score.
While Spain rode away with the win at the 2018 competition, riders from the United States gave consistent performances to place themselves one point above the silver medal team from Canada. The U.S. riders were Lauren Asher, Natalie Pai and Kerrigan Gluch and their total score was 138.559.
Twenty-two-year old Lauren Asher and West Side, a 16-year-old KWPN gelding (Florett As–Marina, Equador), were the highest scoring American pair in the class with a 70.471 percent, a personal best score for the combination. Asher, who is from Denver, Colorado, and West Side only made their international debut together this year and they won Week 7’s CDI-U25 Grand Prix Freestyle.
Natalie Pai, who currently ranks 6th in the FEI Dressage World Youth U25 Ranking, added a score of 68.088 percent to solidify the win for the American team aboard Melanie Pai’s Unlimited (Jazz–Clairudith, Winckenburgh). Pai, 21 from Middleburg, Virginia, has had the ride on the 18-year-old KWPN gelding since 2017 and they represented the U.S. in the European Tour last year. Most recently, the combination won the U25 division of the 2019 Florida Youth International Championship.
Kerrigan Gluch, 22 of Mount Pleasant, Michigan, and Hampton Green Farm’s Bolero CXLVIII (Utrerano VII–Felina XVIII, Urano II), received a 66.853 percent. Gluch also represented the U.S. in the European Tour on the 15-year-old PRE stallion in 2018 and the duo won the CDI-U25 Intermediate II 16-25 during the fifth week of the season.
Stepping up onto the podium with a silver team medal was Team Canada I with a total score of 137.882. Their team was made up of Naima Moreira Laliberte, Laurence Blais Tetreault and Tanya Strasser-Shostak. Laliberte earned a 71.706 percent, the highest score of the Intermediate II 16-25 class with I Do Kiss, a 13-year-old Swedish Warmblood stallion.
The bronze medal was awarded to Team Canada II, which consisted of Vanessa Creech-Terauds and Megan Shea, with a total score of 118.441 percent.
The individual competition for the CDIO-U25 will start Thursday, March 14 with the FEI U25 Grand Prix at 3 p.m and will continue on Friday with the FEI U25 Grand Prix Freestyle at 1:40 p.m.
Results: FEI Nations Cup Intermediate II 16-25
Rider / Country / Horse / Total Score
1. Naima Moreira Laliberte / CAN / I Do Kiss / 71.706
2. Lauren Asher / USA / West Side / 70.471
3. Natalie Pai / USA / Unlimited / 68.088
4. Kerrigan Gluch / USA / Bolero CXLVIII / 66.853
5. Laurence Blais Tetreault / CAN / Utah / 66.176
6. Vanessa Creech-Terauds / CAN / Hallmark 3 / 64.059
7. Tanya Strasser-Shostak / CAN / Deja Vu Tyme / 62.206
8. Paula Matute Guimon / ESP / Walentino / 62.206
9. Megan Shea / CAN / K 2 / 54.382
FROM THE WINNERS CIRCLE
Lauren Asher – United States team gold medalist
On the opportunity to ride on a Nations Cup Team:
“I’m really thrilled with my ride and to have the opportunity to be here. Thank you to the USET Foundation for making it possible for all of us to show, Charlotte Bredahl for being a great chef d’equipe, and to my awesome teammates. To have a personal best is really just the icing on the cake today. It is always nice and fun to be on a team that has togetherness and support for each other where we only lift each other up, which is special.”
On her test:
“I had a good feeling going into the competition all week and then to have my horse be there for me, especially on a big day like this, was great. The best movement in my eyes was the piaffe at A. It was so fantastic and such a nice feeling too. Always when you have a good feeling and a good score, it is really special.”
Natalie Pai – United States team gold medalist
On competing as team:
“This is my second year doing the Nations Cup. It’s always super fun being able to be on a team and be a part of something. As always, thank you to United States Equestrian Team and everyone that makes this possible and run smoothly for us.”
On her test:
“He was a little bit spooky today which is a little bit uncharacteristic as of lately. I actually didn’t realize this was a personal record for this season. That is great though considering he was really really spooky and strong in a lot of it, but that is awesome! The fact that we still had so many bobbles with a great score, we’re pretty optimistic for the future.”
Kerrigan Gluch – United States team gold medalist
On her test:
“I thought today was the best test I’ve had with him in the show ring. Every movement he was with me. He is a very honest guy, but then he was even a little extra, which is something that is extremely awesome to feel. I thought our changes were super today. He gets a little excited in them and today he settled down and had some nice changes.”
