Las Vegas, NV—April 21, 2005—With dancing lasers and exploding fireworks, the first leg of the FEI World Cup Finals got underway with a full house in attendance. Markus Beerbaum (Germany) riding Constantin 24 rode first in the order and set a time in the speed round that went unmatched for many rounds. Others tried to beat his time of 62.70, but few could. However, Ludo Philippaerts (Belgium) on Parco found the route and the pace. His time of 61.57 took the lead and none could match it. Marcus Ehning (Germany) was the 2003 winner in Las Vegas, and he finished second with Gitania 8 in 62.62. Beerbaum’s time was good enough for third.

Rodrigo Pessoa (Brazil) on his World Cup Finals veteran Baloubet Du Rouet had the time, but a rail late in the course added four penalties to his time. He finished seventh with a 63.99. Kimberly Frey (USA) was the highest ranked American rider. Aboard Marlou, Frey finished fourth with a time of 63.12.

Philippaerts was thrilled with his finish, but also cautious. “I have had back luck in the past. I will take this day-by-day. Everything is good right now,” said Philippaerts with a smile. “All of the course was difficult and all the horses jumped well. I am very happy with my horse’s performance.”

Ehning found the third, fourth and fifth fences on the course, a big oxer off a short turn near the gate, to three forward strides to a wall, followed by a sharp bend to an oxer set on the end of the ring, very challenging. The distance to the wall (fence 4) was long, but it was a fair course. It was a good start to the competition.” Beerbaum agreed with his countryman’s assessment of the course. “The key jump was fence three. It was good fence there, and a very good course overall.” Course Designer Guilherme Jorge explained that designing in the Thomas & Mack Arena presents great challenges due to the arena’s small and odd size. “It is a challenge to builds a course for top riders. I didn’t expect this many clear rounds, but the best finished on top. I am happy that the others could handle it.”

Frey was thrilled with her finish. “I was nervous, but I believe in my horse 100%. She has the most competitive spirit of any horse I’ve ever known. She always comes through for me.”

Beerbaum was satisfied with his finish and relatively surprised to find himself ahead of his wife, Meredith Michaels Beerbaum, who rides shutterfly. Michaels Beerbaum finished a close sixth with a time of 63.30. “I only found out that I qualified for these Finals about two weeks ago when I got home from Florida. Tonight, the minute I went through the timers I knew I had a good round. As more horses went I realized I had a chance to make the top five.”

Tomorrow night the field returns for the second leg of the FEI World Cup Finals before the final selection is made for Sunday’s final competition.

The world’s top jumping and dressage horses and riders are in Las Vegas competing for the prestigious title of International Equestrian Federation (FEI) World Cup Champions in both dressage and jumping at the Thomas & Mack Center.

The FEI Budweiser World Cup Jumping Final and the FEI World Cup Dressage Final, presented by Offield Farms, are being held simultaneously for the first time in history.