ATLANTA, GEORGIA--May 7, 2000--Tiffani Loudon of Blythewood, SC rode penalty-free over the tough show jumping course Sunday to win the inaugural MBNA Foxhall Cup three-day event, a U.S. Equestrian Team selection trial for the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games.

Loudon, 24, and her mount, Makabi, jumped cleanly and quickly to finish on their first day score of 42.6 penalties which they carried in from the opening dressage phase and maintained with a clean cross country ride on Saturday. That allowed them to hold their edge over second-place finisher Phillip Dutton of Australia, a 1996 Olympic team Gold Medalist, and many of the United States' top hopefuls for this year's Sydney Olympic Games. Dutton finished with a score of 49.4 penalties on his horse House Doctor. Dutton also finished fourth with his other mount, Rough Cut, with a score of 56.2.

Finishing third was 1999 Pan American Games team Gold Medalist Abigail Lufkin of Middleburg, VA, with a score of 55.4 penalties on Hannigan. Lindsay Wagner of Kaysville, UT and her mount, Utah Jazz, finished fifth. U.S. Equestrian Team veteran and 14-time U.S. Combined Training Association Rider of the Year Bruce Davidson, Sr. placed sixth.

"It really hasn't hit me yet that I won an Olympic trial," said Loudon who won $55,000 of the $205,000 purse for her win. "It's very exciting."

"Makabi ran well all weekend," Loudon commented about her bay, 14 year-old Thoroughbred gelding. "He didn't put a foot wrong or miss a beat."

In addition to serving as a U.S. Equestrian Team Olympic trial, the MBNA Foxhall Cup was also the American Horse Shows Association National Eventing Championship and the U.S. Equestrian Team Spring Three-Star Championship.

The inaugural MBNA Foxhall Cup was well-received by the riders. "We were looked after very well," stated Dutton. "This event is just going to grow and grow."

"This week we proved that this sport is marketable," commented MBNA Foxhall Cup Chairman Jim Richards. "We had tremendous sponsor participation in our first year, and we are grateful to all of them."

Results - $205,000 MBNA Foxhall Cup
U.S. Equestrian Team Olympic Trial
Atlanta, Georgia
Place/Horse/Rider/Hometown/Final Score/Purse
1./Makabi/Tiffani Loudon/Blythewood, SC/42.6/$55,000
2./House Doctor/Phillip Dutton/Australia/49.2/$30,000
3./Hannigan/Abigail Lufkin/Middleburg, VA/55.4/$20,000
4./Rough Cut/Phillip Dutton/Australia/56.2/$17,000
5./Utah Jazz/Lindsay Wagner/Kaysville, UT/58.4/$13,000
6./Apparition/Bruce Davidson, Sr./Unionville, PA/58.8/$11,000
7./R.G. Renegade/Darren M. Chiacchia/Springville, NY/59.0/$10,000
8./Giltedge/David O'Connor/The Plains, VA/59.8/$9,000
9./Allegro/Michael Godfrey/Pottersville, NJ/60.4/$8,000
10./Star Bright/Phyllis Dawson/Purcellville, VA/66.0/$7,000

For further information and tickets, please call (404)572-7220.

Related Links
www.foxhallcup.com