Tanner Korotkin (USA), 21, made his debut in Canada a memorable one with a victory in the CSI5* Welcome on opening day of Major League Show Jumping (MLSJ) at Thunderbird Show Park in Langley, BC. The Wellington, FL, native piloted a new mount, President van Koekshof (2013 Belgian Warmblood gelding by President), from a starting field of 79 contenders for owners Presidential Partners.
The win comes ahead of a full week of CSI5* and 2* competition at MLSJ's premiere event of the 2022 season. Korotkin is a rookie member of the Spy Coast Spies alongside team manager Shane Sweetnam (IRL), Jordan Coyle (IRL), Lacey Gilbertson (USA), Margie Goldstein-Engle (USA) and Ashley Vogel (USA).
Alexis Sokolov (USA) was runner-up to Korotkin by fractions of a second aboard Fasole du Seigneur. Ireland's Conor Swail rounded out the top three riding Nadal Hero for owner Mannan Farm.
"This is my first time at Thunderbird, my first time in Canada and I love it! I'm really looking forward to [the Major League season]. I think it's really good for our sport, and it brings in a new crowd. [President van Koekshof] is a newer horse. I've only had him for about two months now, and he's still 9 years old. We just cruised around; he was jumping great. He's in great form for the rest of the week and it was super round. We have high hopes for him to do some very big classes in the future. For right now we'll keep him in the speed classes, but he's got all the scope in the world and all the talent in the world, so we're just going to keep going with him and see what happens."