News

Ben Maher Wins Again!

Feb 11, 2013

Week five of the 2013 FTI Consulting Winter Equestrian Festival (FTI WEF), sponsored by Adequan®, concluded on Sunday afternoon with a win for Olympic gold medalist Ben Maher of Great Britain aboard his young mount Quiet Easy 4 in the $25,000 Suncast® 1.50m Championship Jumper Classic. Maher has been a dominant force in Wellington over the last two weeks with back to back grand prix wins, including last night's $82,000 Adequan CSI 2* Grand Prix. He can now add a 1.50m victory to his tally for the winter.
Olympic course designer from Great Britain, Bob Ellis, set the track for forty-two entries to show in Sunday's 1.50m classic with just four entries advancing to the jump-off. Alongside Maher, U.S. Olympic gold medalists Beezie Madden and Laura Kraut joined the jump-off roster as well as Argentinean rider Max Amaya.

 Madden and Mademoiselle were first to jump-off and had one rail down in a time of 49.775 seconds to finish third. Maher and Mrs. Phillips Quiet Easy 4 jumped next and set the unbeatable pace of 48.631 seconds with their clear round over the short course. Amaya and Avequest, LLC's Cartier jumped a clear round in 52.893 seconds to finish second. Kraut and Evita Group's Nouvelle were last to go and finished fourth with four faults in 51.185 seconds.

Maher has had several top placings with Quiet Easy since the start of the circuit, including a very close second place finish in this week's $33,000 Ruby et Violette WEF Challenge Cup Round 5. Quiet Easy had some time off in 2012 while his rider focused on the summer Olympic Games, so Maher is now bringing him back to top form and this was the pair's first win of the winter season.

Final Results: $25,000 Suncast® 1.50m Championship Jumper Classic

1. QUIET EASY 4 BEN MAHER MRS. PHILLIPS: 0/0/48.631
2. CARTIER MAX AMAYA AVEQUEST, LLC: 0/0/52.893
3. MADEMOISELLE BEEZIE MADDEN ABIGAIL WEXNER: 0/4/49.775
4. NOUVELLE LAURA KRAUT EVITA GROUP: 0/4/51.185
5. VOLTARAL PALO BLANCO ALVARO TEJADA ARRIOLA ISABEL TEJADA: 4/72.045
6. BELMONT LAURA KRAUT BEVERLY WIDDOWSON: 4/74.206
7. ANY GIVEN SUNDAY DARRAGH KENNY HAYS INVESTMENT CORP: 4/74.383
8. DOLORES BEN MAHER MRS. WANG: 4/74.818
9. DIKTATOR VAN DE BOSLANDHOEVE SHANE SWEETNAM SPY COAST FARM, LLC: 4/74.870
10. CASHA ABIGAIL MCARDLE OLD BARRRINGTON, LLC: 4/75.187
11. GAME READY CONOR SWAIL SUSAN GRANGE: 4/75.383
12. URBAN BLYTHE MARANO RIVERVIEW FARM, LLC: 4/75.930

Source: press release Jennifer Wood Media Inc.