News From Piazza di Siena, Inside The 5 Star Grand Prix at Thunderbird, and More

In today’s newsletter, here are a few things we’ll discuss:

1. The horse that’s definitely getting a promotion.

2. Andre Thieme’s wife’s biggest competition.

3. The math teacher that proved we should have paid attention in class.

But first, here’s today’s trivia:

Northern Light Gets a Promotion After Capturing Her First Five Star Victory

Canada’s Tiffany Foster previously referred to Northern Light, the Swedish Warmblood mare she co-owns with Artisan Farms, as “third” in her string of showjumpers.

Apparently the 12 year old mare didn’t approve of that ranking and gave herself a promotion by winning her first 5 star Grand Prix at Thunderbird Park… and the largest chunk of the $414,300 in prize money.

“It still hasn’t quite hit me, but I’m so happy, and I’m so happy that this happened here at Thunderbird,” Foster said. “I’ve called on her a couple of times to step up and jump some of these big 1.60-meter classes, but in general, I sort of keep her in the 1.50- to 1.55-meter slot... She’s the kind of horse who doesn’t like to jump that big every single week, because I think she has to make such a great effort.”

You can watch their winning round here:

Andre Thieme Wins The Historic Grand Prix in Piazza di Siena… and His Wife Has Competition

PSA to anyone considering marrying an equestrian: If it’s you versus the horse that your partner just won a Rolex Grand Prix on… you’re getting bumped to second place.

Andre Thieme’s wife knows this is a fact and accepts that DSP Chakaria will always be her biggest rival.

But after watching Andre and the 13 year old mare storm to victory in the Rolex Grand Prix this past weekend in Piazza di Siena, we can’t blame them.

From a field of 50 entries, Thieme and Chakaria were one of just 13 to qualify for the jump-off and they left quite an impression, finishing 2.55 seconds faster than second place winner, Jen Fredricson.

Thrilled with his mare’s performance, an emotional Thieme bravely (or foolishly?) confessed, “I have said many times that I love this horse as much as my wife, who accepts it! She’s my horse of a lifetime, I know I will never get one like her again, and I’m trying to enjoy every horse show that I have with her.”

He continued, “She has given me and my family and my groom so many special moments all around the world that I know I’m blessed with this horse!”

Still don’t believe me when I say your partner would choose the horse? Check your credit card statement and look at who they’ve spent more money on lately… I’d bet every cent of Thieme’s €125,000 prize money that it’s the horse.

Oh, and he’s also a trivia winner of the week!

Other Winners at Piazza di Siena

Just four years ago, Jessica Burke was explaining ​​polynomials to high school students and chasing down late homework assignments.

Today, she’s winning five star Grand Prixs.

Whether she was calculating angles or aerodynamics, the ex-math teacher delivered an outstanding performance this past weekend and won the CSIO5* KEP Italy Prize.

The other major winner of the week was Richard Vogel, who claimed the €110,000 Loro Piana Trophy CSIO 5* aboard Cepano Baloubet.

Speaking of the horse after the victory, Vogel said, “He’s obviously a very nice horse, I’ve had him since he was six years old and was German champion as a seven-year-old so he’s been a promising horse for some time. I’m very happy that Tracy family from the USA have bought the horse to secure it for me for the future.”

Borrowed Horse Steals The Show In Piazza di Siena 6 Bar Challenge

If you’re looking for a horse that can jump a1.95m, just call up your friends and see if they have one sitting in their backyard.

That’s exactly how John Whitaker got his mount, Green Grass, for the Piazza di Siena 6 bar challenge.

“He’s normally ridden by Paul, who bred him, I just borrow him sometimes!” said John.

The plan worked out well as the pair won the competition as one of just three combinations to clear the massive 1.95m jump.

And just in case that jump doesn’t look big enough, maybe this can put it in perspective…

He’s also a trivia winner of the week!

Then Nations Cup Becomes The Longines League of Nations

Did you just learn how all the leagues work? Congratulations! Now they’re changing.

The FEI recently announced that it is relaunching the Nations Cup as the League of Nations, and Longines was happy to step up to the plate as title sponsor.

The league, which will launch in 2024, will be open to the ten top nations in the world based on their Longines ranking. The final is programmed to offer €1.6 million in prize money.

It Might Be Too Late To Get Your Olympic Tickets… But Who You’ll Be Watching Is Still a Surprise

If you haven’t already bought your Paris Olympics tickets, you better start browsing eBay because the standard tickets for the equestrian disciplines sold out within 48 hours in the latest release.

But we still don’t know who’s competing at the Olympics just yet.

There are still 11 team spots remaining in the showjumping competition.

The European Championships offers three showjumping spots, and the Nations Cup final in Barcelona also offers a qualification opportunity.

Farms We Love

In the honor of the Piazza di Siena this past weekend, we looked for the best farms in Italy… and we dare you to find one more spectacular than this gem.

It offers three farmhouses and the “horse hospitality” area is truly spectacular. The 12 stall barn is nicer than most houses (maybe Andre Thieme will move into one these stalls if he gets kicked out of the house) and there are also plenty of paddocks and six run-in sheds.

We won’t say anything else because you won’t want to read any text after you see these pictures:

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