The Split Rock Jumping Tour hosted its first ever Longines FEI World Cup™ qualifier last year at the Brave Horse Show Park in Johnstown, Ohio. This year, some of the biggest names in the sport are back and hoping to qualify for the 2020 Longines FEI World Cup™ Final in Las Vegas next April.
The event kicked off with the horse inspection on Wednesday, October 2. Eighty-five horses were presented in anticipation of the week’s three FEI classes: The $36,000 Horseflight 1.45m CS13*-W FEI Speed Cup (Thursday, October, 3); the $40,000 CS13*-W 1.50m Welcome (Friday, October 4) and of course, the $135,000 Longines FEI Jumping World Cup™ Columbus CS13*-W Presented by CaptiveOne (Sunday, October 6).
 Photo FEI:Winslow Photography.jpg)
Last year, Eugenio Garza Perez (MEX) riding Victer Finn Dh Z in the horse’s World Cup qualifying debut bested the field and clinched victory. While Garza Perez while not be back to defend his title this year, there is no shortage of elite riders that will be aiming for top honors. Among them are last year’s third-place finisher Kelli Cruciotti, 2018 WEG gold medalists Adrienne Sternlicht and Devin Ryan and 2018 Longines FEI World Cup™ Final winner Beezie Madden. Other notable Americans include Kent Farrington, Margie Engle, Alex Granato, Brian Moggre, Lucy Deslauriers and Charlie Jacobs, to name a few. There is also a healthy international contingent including Canadian riders Mario Deslauriers, Erynn Ballard and Ali Ramsay, as well as Harrie Smolders (NED) Liubov Kochetova (RUS) Rowan Willis (AUS).
Helpful Links
How to Watch
If you can’t make it in person to cheer on your favorite riders, you can still follow along with the all the action during the show. Most classes will be broadcast on the webcast here. Sunday’s World Cup class will be shown live on the subscription-based FEITV.
About the 2019 Split Rock Jumping Tour
The 2019 Split Rock Jumping Tour features six FEI shows at five world-class venues including the Kentucky Horse Park and Split Rock Farm in Lexington, Kentucky; Sonoma Horse Park in Sonoma, California; Brave Horse Show Park in Columbus, Ohio; and HIPICO Santa Fe in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Additional information is available online at the Split Rock Jumping Tour website at www.SplitRockJumpingTour.com or by calling 859-252-3247.
About the North American League
The Longines FEI Jumping World Cup™ North American League, now in its fifth year, consists of 14 venues in three countries – the United States, Mexico and Canada. Each venue hosts qualifiers to determine the North American riders who will compete at the Longines FEI Jumping World Cup™ Final (April 15-19) in Las Vegas, Nevada. The NAL, which offers $2.4 million in prize money, is one of 16 leagues that form the global FEI Jumping World Cup™ series, which has been in existence since 1978.
Follow Practical Horseman’s coverage of the NAL series on social media with the hashtags: #FEIWorldCup #JumpToGreatness #Longines.
