Beth Underhill
Photo Credit: Cealy Tetley
Canadian Olympian Beth Underhill of Schomberg, ON, captured the coveted $125,000 Henry Equestrian Canadian Show Jumping Championship over two days of competition in front of packed stands on Nov. 2, 2019 at the Royal Horse Show in Toronto, ON. Starting strong, she and Sandy Lupton’s Count Me In (Count Grannus x Sherlock Holmes) navigated clear through 14 efforts to finish second in the initial speed round on Nov. 1. Underhill returned with the 12-year-old Hanoverian gelding on Nov. 2 for the $100,000 Henry Equestrian Canadian Show Jumping Championships – Round 2. After soaring through a clear jump-off, they proved to be the only combination to complete three foot-perfect rounds to secure the title.
Sierra Mark
Photo Credit: Cealy Tetley
Sierra Mark of Augusta, ON, won the 2019 National 1.40m Junior/Amateur Jumping Championship, presented by Dominion Regalia, on Nov. 3 at the Royal Horse Show. She and Heat Wave 3E (sired by Jamestown) stayed consistent over three rounds of competition, starting with fourth place in the $2,500 Junior/Amateur 1.40m Welcome Stake on Nov. 2. From there, Mark and her 16-year-old Canadian Sport Horse mare quietly yet confidently asserted their presence with fifth place in the $2,500 Junior/Amateur 1.40m Speed Stake the following morning. In the afternoon, they placed third in the $2,500 Junior/Amateur 1.40m Royal Stake to end on a total score of nine points across the division, and secure the national championship title.
Isabelle Lapierre
Photo Credit: Cealy Tetley
Isabelle Lapierre of Levis, QC successfully defended her 2018 title by winning the 2019 Canadian Hunter Derby Series National Championship on Nov. 5 at the Royal Horse Show. She and her up-and-coming partner, Lamaze OBF, an eight-year-old Bavarian Warmblood gelding (Iceburg x Heartbreaker) owned by Margot Clarke-Smith, started strong in the two-part Championship, placing second in the $15,000 Braeburn Farms Canadian Hunter Derby on Nov. 3 on a score of 102. They sealed the deal in the $25,000 Knightwood Canadian Hunter Derby on Nov. 5, racking up a score of 100.5.
Sabrina Von Buttlar
Photo Credit: Cealy Tetley
Sabrina Von Buttlar of Stouffville, ON earned an emotional win in the 2019 Jump Canada Medal National Final to cap off her junior career on Nov. 5 at the Royal Horse Show. Riding her long-time partner, the 19-year-old gelding Cinco, Von Buttlar conquered a jumping phase, flat phase and a final jumping test to rise to the top.
Eric Lamaze
Photo Credit: Jump Media
2008 Olympic champion, Eric Lamaze of Wellington, FL, made his presence felt at the Royal Horse Show straight out of the gate by winning the first class of the international show jumping division, the $37,000 McKee Family International Challenge, on Nov. 6. Riding his 2016 Rio Olympic bronze medal partner, the 16-year-old Hanoverian mare owned by Artisan Farms LLC & Torrey Pines Stable, Fine Lady 5 (Forsyth FRH x Drosselklang II), Lamaze rocketed to the top of the leaderboard, taking victory in the speed class with a time of 47.90 seconds to edge out fellow Canadian, Erynn Ballard, who stopped the clock in 49.43 seconds riding Judge hof ter Zeedycke.
At the end of the week, it was no surprise that Lamaze took home the Leading International Rider and Leading Canadian Rider titles, both presented by GroupBy, while Fine Lady 5 received the Leading Canadian Horse Award, presented by Lothlorien.
Rayne Dubois
Photo Credit: Cealy Tetley
Following two days and three rounds of stiff competition, Rayne Dubois of Ottawa, ON had a Royal Horse Show debut to remember after taking the 2019 Running Fox CET Medal National Final title on Nov. 7 in Toronto, ON. Riding Ferraro K, a 17-year-old Danish Warmblood gelding sired by Olympic Ferro and owned by the Brookstreet Stables Corporation, she first entered the Coca-Cola Coliseum on Nov. 6 for the Flat & Gymnastic Phase, ultimately earning a score of 87. The following day Dubois achieved even greater success, topping the leaderboard in the Jumping Phase after a foot-perfect performance that scored 87. An impressive test over the final shortened course secured the prestigious equitation title for Deubois.
Tiffany Foster
The beautiful, warm weather of Wellington, FL, seemed to inspire Tiffany Foster of North Vancouver, BC, as she rode for the win in the CSI 4* competition on Nov. 27. She and Vienna (Valentino x Lordanos), an eight-year-old Hanoverian mare owned by Artisan Farms LLC, sailed through the jump-off clear in 32.84 seconds to beat out Belgium’s Jonas Vervoot and Cicomein VDL, who couldn’t catch the Canadian Olympian with her time of 33.45 seconds.