Kayenne Z shines with silver in the Rolex Grand Prix of Calgary

With the five-star competition at Spruce Meadows in Calgary, Canada, last weekend, one of the most iconic and prestigious competitions of the year was once again upon us. Calgary has been part of the famed Rolex Grand Slam for many years and the CPKC 'International' Grand Prix, Presented By Rolex, is traditionally regarded as the most heavily doped Grand Prix of the season. Consequently, this third Rolex Grand Prix of the year was the absolute highlight of the weekend and in it there was a starring role for a Z horse.

The Spruce Meadows 'Masters' celebrated its 50th anniversary this year and that was again accompanied by a lot of atmosphere and, above all, absolute top-class sport. For the Rolex Grand Prix on Sunday afternoon, Venezuelan course designer Leopoldo Palacios and his team had once again designed a particularly challenging course. Of the thirty-six combinations that took their chances, eleven managed to clear the 14-hurdle course and thus qualify for the second round.

That second round, however, proved to be of an even higher calibre. Of the twelve combinations - the 11 clear from the first round plus one combination with only one penalty point for time - none managed to put down another flawless round. In the end, there were two combinations who finished with a total of four penalty points over both rounds and had to decide in a jump-off between them who went home with the gold and who with the silver. One of them was American rider Kyle King with the 10-year-old mare Kayenne Z, a daughter of Kannan and Canezaro who was bred in Belgium by Kristof Engelen and with whom King also managed to finish ^6th in the 1.55m class on Wednesday. King and Kayenne Z managed to put the winning time on the scoreboard in 46.09 seconds in that decisive jump-off, but due to a fault on the way they had to settle for second place.

The day before, Calgary was all about the prestigious BMO Nations Cup, in which some Z-horses managed to impress again. American rider Laura Kraut delivered two clear rounds with her 10-year-old stallion Trés Bien Z (Toulon x Nabab de Rêve - Breeder: S.T. Dingen) and thus played a key role in the US team's ^3rd. But Irish rider Tom Wachman and the also 10-year-old stallion Tabasco de Toxandria Z (Thunder van de Zuuthoeve x Cento Lano - Breeder: Werner Dierckx) also provided a flawless report in this Nations Cup. They finished with Irish team just off the podium in ^4th place.

Moreover, on Thursday Laura Kraut and Trés Bien Z had also jumped into the picture with a podium place in the 1.50m class with Winning Round. In both the first round and the decisive round they did not make a mistake and with a finishing time of 48.63 seconds they secured third place. One step higher on the podium were Mexican rider Eugenio Garza Perez and the 17-year-old gelding Victer Finn DH Z (Va Vite x Stakkato - Breeder: De Dwerse Hagen BVBA). They crossed the finish line in 48.09 seconds in that Winning Round, which in turn earned them a brilliant^2nd place.

During the opening day on Wednesday, we also saw two Z-horses shine with a podium place. In the 1.50m class against the clock, the silver went to Dutch rider Sanne Thijssen with the 12-year-old mare Cupcake Z (Chacco Blue x Caretano Z - Breeder: Sandra van den Broek-Wilmes), while bronze was claimed by Canadian rider Kara Chad with the 9-year-old mare Corinna Z (Cornet Obolensky x Kannan - Breeder: Ridge Farms Stone).They made it to the finishing line in 57.47 seconds and 58.66 seconds respectively.

Finally, we also saw two Z-horses in the top ten of the standings during the 1.50m class on Sunday morning. So there was an ^8th place for Dutch rider Harrie Smolders and the 9-year-old grey gelding Devino Vd Weretherbach Z (De Flor 111 Z x Calvin Z - Breeder: Heinz Lentz) and a ^9th place for Belgian rider Olivier Philippaerts with the also 9-year-old grey stallion Nobel Van De Vrombautshoeve Z (Nabab de Rêve x Corrado I - Breeder: Stal Boelens). They both managed to jump a flawless round.