Thurday, August 7, 2003

U.S. Dressage Team Wins Gold Medal At The 2003 Pan American Games In Santo Domingo
By Charlene Strickland for DressageDaily.com

The Ultimate Can-Am Challenge

August 7, 2003 - "It's not a walk in the park," said Jan Ebeling about the way the U.S. squeaked by Canada, the first day of equestrian competition, at The Pan American Games in Santo Domingo. At the end of Day 1, Canada's all-female team had almost 3 points lead over the two U.S. female riders, Kristina Harrison-Naness and Carol Lavell.

On Day 2, Pierre St Jacques logged the highest score of either country, switching the lead to the U.S. As the fourth U.S. rider, Ebeling cranked up the pressure on Canada with the highest U.S. score, and the U.S. won with 206.55 compared to Canada's 206.30.

Photo by terrimiller.com

The initial U.S. rider in the Prix St. Georges was Harrison-Naness on Kantor. The steamy tropical heat affected her during the test, and she dismounted red-faced and dripping with sweat.

"LA has been more humid for us lately, but it's no comparison to here!" she reported after cooling off. "We ride him in the heat of the day to prepare, but you need to experience this heat."

She rode "Scooby" while carrying a silver dollar as a lucky charm. The coin had helped her top the field at Gladstone--in Santo Domingo, its luck only held her in first place for the first 10 rides of the team competition. Canadian Ashley Holzer's score nabbed first place, and she held it the rest of Day 1.