Lauren Sprieser has her sights set on the big prize of international grand prix with her Fourth Level Open winner, the Elvis Syndicate LLC’s C Cadeau. The pair scored 73.843%, giving themselves 2.5% breathing room over the reserve champions Brittany Burson and Leonardo Z.

Photo – Lauren Sprieser’s C Cadeau earned the Fourth Level Open Championship with 73.843% — 2.5% clear of the reserve combination. (Sue Stickle Photography)

“He was reserve in the Prix St Georges with more enthusiasm in the canter than was required, but it’s a taste of the grand prix horse of the future,” said Sprieser, who trains with Ali Brock. “It’s not imminent, but he’s touching all of the pieces. He has a tremendous ability for collection.”

Sprieser, who is based in Marshall, VA, has had the eight-year-old Danish gelding by Blue Hors St, Schufro for two years after finding him in Denmark but has shown him only sparingly.

Next Big Thing

“When we sold Elvis, who was reserve champion here two years ago in the freestyle, we were looking for the next big thing — and I think we found it,” she enthused. “This is my seventh show with him so it’s still a new competition partnership. The showing is certainly fun, but the training happens at home. Still, it’s a pleasure to show this horse anywhere but this show is special because I have four of my syndicate members here. It’s been such an amazing, joyous thing to put together such a cool community of people that I get to share this journey with.”

Competition concludes on Sunday, November 10, with the final 10 championship titles to be decided, from Training Level to Prix St. Georges. Follow the action via the USDF Facebook page and the US Dressage Finals website, plus live online streaming of all the action from the Alltech Arena on USEF Network. To learn more about the US Dressage Finals presented by Adequan® and read daily news, visit the official US Dressage Finals event website. Start times and results can be found on www.horseshowoffice.com.