SHOW JUMPING DAILY
Lucy Deslauriers Clinches Phase One of Randolph College/USEF Junior Jumper Championship at Pennsylvania National Horse Show
Friday, October 10, 2014
Posted by Nicky Graf Ussher, Classic Communications
PENNSYLVANIA NATIONAL HORSE SHOW
Harrisburg, PA - October 9, 2014 - It was an exciting start to the Randolph College/USEF Junior Jumper Championship as the Individual Phase 1 took place tonight. Horses and riders galloped around the 12-fence course trying to get a clear round in the fastest time and win their share of the $7,500 prize money.
Lucy Deslauriers, of New York, NY, was last to go of 32 competitors and steered Lisa Deslauriers' HESTER expertly around the course, which produced a clear round with the fastest time of 59.839 seconds. Deslauriers has been riding the 9 year-old gelding for a year and a half and took over the ride from her father and trainer Mario Deslauriers, a well-known international show jumper.
"I'm so excited to win!" said the 15 year-old Deslauriers, who was already making her game plan for tomorrow's Phase 2, which is a team competition. "I think I'll be a little bit slower, not so hurried and fast, but keeping it smooth between the fences for a clear round. I'm pretty comfortable going into tomorrow's round with teammates, because I rode with a lot of them this summer."
Emily R. Sheveland of Delafield, WI, and her own LYLA held the lead for most of the competition after their clear round, but were relegated to second place with a time of 62.464. Third place went to Kelli Crucioitti and her horse CHAMONIX H who also jumped clear, but crossed the timers in 65.004 seconds.
The scores obtained by each competitor tonight will be converted into points by multiplying the time of each competitor by the coefficient of 0.50. The competitor with the lowest number of points after this conversion will be given zero penalties, the other competitors being credited with the number of penalties representing the difference in points between each of them and the leading rider.
The Pennsylvania National Horse Show (PNHS) is one of the largest indoor horse shows in the U.S., hosting horses and competitors from across the country with 20,000 spectators attending from the Mid-Atlantic region. With over 1,400 qualified horses competing for $485,000 in prize money, the show features national Hunter and Jumper competition and is the site of the Pessoa/USEF National Hunter Seat Medal Final, the Randolph College/USEF National Junior Jumper Championships, North American League (NAL) National Finals and the $85,000 Grand Prix de Penn National.
In addition to world-class equestrian competition, the horse show offers a unique shopping experience with boutique vendors showcasing one-of-a-kind, equine inspired products including jewelry, fun fashion and accessories.
The 10-day event is being held from October 9th to 18th at the Pennsylvania Farm Show Complex in Harrisburg, PA. Proceeds from the event benefit community equine and youth programs. Since its inception in 1945, the Pennsylvania National Horse Show Foundation has donated nearly $2 million to charitable entities.
Live coverage of the competition, scoring results and more details on the show are all available at www.PAnational.org.
