Six-time U.S. Olympian McLain Ward claimed top honors in the Hampton Classic Grand Prix Arena for the second consecutive day on Saturday, riding two mounts into the final round of the $70,000 CSI5* Winning Round. In the end, he earned first in a faultless time of 38.93 seconds aboard Contagious (Contagio), his 2021 Tokyo Olympic mount who helped secure team silver.
“To be honest, I was concerned about the three riders coming behind me (Mark Bluman, Darragh Kenny and Alessandra Volpi),” Ward said. “I knew we had to lay down a good round with those three coming behind us and make them chase the time. Contagious has been a longtime partner of mine and is a very fast horse, and I’m so grateful to Beechwood Stables for my partnership with him.”
Two-time Olympic veteran Samuel Parot (CHI) finished in second place with Chrystal Blue (Chacco-Blue), his and Dolores Funes’ 13-year-old Oldenburg gelding, tripping the timers in 40.72 seconds. The USA’s Adrienne Sternlicht earned third for her 41.42-second time aboard Los Angeles De La Cense (Los Angeles), Starlight Farms 1 LLC’s 10-year-old Westphalian stallion.
“To be honest, I was concerned about the three riders coming behind me (Mark Bluman, Darragh Kenny and Alessandra Volpi),” Ward said. “I knew we had to lay down a good round with those three coming behind us and make them chase the time. Contagious has been a longtime partner of mine and is a very fast horse, and I’m so grateful to Beechwood Stables for my partnership with him.”
Two-time Olympic veteran Samuel Parot (CHI) finished in second place with Chrystal Blue (Chacco-Blue), his and Dolores Funes’ 13-year-old Oldenburg gelding, tripping the timers in 40.72 seconds. The USA’s Adrienne Sternlicht earned third for her 41.42-second time aboard Los Angeles De La Cense (Los Angeles), Starlight Farms 1 LLC’s 10-year-old Westphalian stallion.