Wilmington, Ohio – The $10,000 Welcome Stake kicked off show jumping action Thursday evening at WEC Ohio Winter Classic 14. Twelve challengers made their way down the tunnel to tackle Joseph Carnicom’s (USA) technically set track and ride for the top prize. Cooper Beisel (USA) ultimately led the pack as he raced to the finish with Azealia (Quintero x Salma) and earned his first welcome win of his career.
The young amateur rider, training at David Beisel Stables in Goshen, Ohio, gave the audience a glimpse of what his future show jumping career has in store as he bested a field of professionals.
Beisel commented on the evening’s track, “I thought the course was great tonight, I loved it! There were enough straight lines and not too many bending lines with unrelated numbers that it was too technical. This course suited her [Azealia] perfectly. Both turns in the course that were the hardest for most people fit my horse well since she turns well to the right. There weren’t any hard left turns which really helped me.”
Beisel entered as the third to last to go and needed to best Leann Kelly (USA) of Winslow Farm in Valenica, New York, and her quick 13-year-old Hanoverian gelding, Graf Joe (Graf Top x Aline), as they held the lead with a jump-off time of 31.978 seconds.
The 15-year-old Holsteiner mare, Azealia, never fails to impress the crowd with her careful form and incomparable speed. With Beisel in the irons, the duo wasted no time around the short course and galloped down the last line for a time of 31.379 seconds, ultimately pushing Kelly into second place and moving into the lead.
Devin Milan (USA) piloted Karlina T (Cabrio Van De Heffinck x Goberlina T) to third place. Immediately following Beisel, Milan of Ann Arbor, Michigan, had a quick time to beat. The seven-year-old KWPN mare was in top form but landed a time of 32.621 seconds to round out the podium.
$10,000 Welcome Stake Results:
1 Azealia, Cooper Beisel, David Beisel | 0 | 31.379
2 Graf Joe, Leann Kelly, Sarah Hunter | 0 |31.978
3 Karlina T, Devin Milan, Garo Kazan | 0 | 32.621
4 VDL Maverick, Luis Saenz, Amanda Harris | 0 | 32.937
5 Oaks Cassanova, Samuel Overton, Samuel Overton | 0 | 34.199
6 Diaz Barbotiere, Izzy Beisel, Izzy Beisel | 4 | 46.259
7 Conquest, Devin Milan, Garo Kazan | 4 | 71.376
8 Zenvo 11, Miguel Ventura, Kelly Jarrell | 8 | 71.251
9 Carissima, Sam Pegg, Donna Leetz | 8 | 73.437
10 Class, Sam Pegg, Ten Sixty Stables | 8 | 77.915
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Results can be found at wec.net.
All horse show images are provided by Winslow Photography and can be purchased onsite at WEC – Wilmington or online through their website.