MBNA Foxhall Cup Hosts "A Day In The Country"

Atlanta (March 13, 2002) –The MBNA Foxhall Cup, the National Championship of Eventing takes place on April 18 – 21, 2002 at Foxhall Farm in Atlanta, GA. The Cup, in its third year, is blossoming into a series of activities designed to introduce people to the joy of country life.

On March 10, MBNA Foxhall Cup Chairman Jim Richards, a U.S. Equestrian Team (USET) Ambassador, welcomed the press and their families to Foxhall Farm for “A Day in the Country”, a media preview of the 2002 MBNA Foxhall Cup and Foxhall Flower Show.

During the Day in the Country, Jules Anderson, an outstanding dressage rider and well-known coach, performed a dressage exhibition set to Credence Clearwater Revival’s Blood, Sweat, and Tears , after a catered barbecue buffet. Guests were then invited to view the cross-country course with Captain Mark Phillips, coach of the USET Eventing squad and designer of the Foxhall course. Captain Phillips assumed his USET post as Chef d’Equipe and Technical Advisor for Eventing in March, 1993. Furthermore, press were allowed to conduct one-on-one interviews with:

• Jim Richards: Founder and Chairman of Foxhall Events, LLC
• Gail Mobley: Executive Director of the MBNA Foxhall Cup
• Caroline Leake: Executive Director of the Foxhall Flower Show
• Captain Mark Phillips: Course Designer, USET Chef d’ Equipe
• Shelley Lambert: Competition Manager and Executive Director of Horse Trails, Inc.
• Jules Anderson: a dressage rider and well-known coach
• Jennifer Millar: Technical Delegate for the MBNA Foxhall Cup

The inaugural Foxhall Flower Show also participated in the media preview event, by debuting a model layout of the event and by showing examples of the types of flowers being exhibited. Children of the press painted clay pots as a “make and take” gift from the Foxhall Flower Show. Everyone who attended received a MBNA Foxhall Cup gift bag.

In addition to hosting the “Day in the Country”, Richards is also host of “Le Soiree du Cheval,” an intimate dinner and auction where guests will have the opportunity to share horse stories with top USET riders. In a spirit of fun, guests at the April 10 gala will be asked to wear “equestrian-accented” attire.

The Day in the Country is an introduction to the MBNA Foxhall Cup CCI***, the first of five 2002 selection trials for USET riders hoping to qualify to represent the United States at the Eventing World Championships to be contested at the World Equestrian Games in Spain in September. The World Equestrian Games are held every four years and, other than the Olympics, are the world’s most important equestrian competition. For the first time this year, seven world championships will be decided at the World Games: eventing, dressage, show jumping, endurance, driving, vaulting, and – for the first time ever – reining.

The MBNA Foxhall Cup will also host a dressage competition featuring Olympic-level athletes. The Grand Prix test will be on Friday, April 19, the second day of the Cup’s dressage competition. The musical freestyle will be on Sunday, April 21, prior to the conclusion of the stadium jumping phase of the eventing championship. A purse of $20,000 will be awarded to the winners of these dressage events.

The first-ever Foxhall Flower Show, presented by The Home Depot, will be held April 18 – 21 in conjunction with the equestrian events. Modeled after the breath-taking Chelsea Gardens Flower Show in London, the show is the largest open-air flower show in the Southeastern United States. Sure to become a springtime tradition, the show will feature competitions with total prize money of $100,000.

The MBNA Foxhall Cup is a unique way for horse-lovers to see top dressage competition as well as watching the nation’s top eventing riders competing for the honor of representing the United States at the World Equestrian Games. For more information about the MBNA Foxhall Cup, including how to order tickets, please visit www.foxhallcup.com.