Melanie’s Blog

A Walk in the Park… Central Park that is!

  The Central Park Horse Show got underway tonight for the Jumpers with a speed class.  All horses were required to show to be eligible for the Grand Prix tomorrow. This is probably a good thing as the ring is quite an eye opener with the NYC skyline in the...

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Off to the Gold Cup

Off to the Gold Cup

I am headed to the Old Salem Farm in North Salem, New York, for the American Gold Cup/Longines World Cup Qualifier on Sunday, September 18. Looking forward to watching the competition and commentating for NBC Sports which will air the next day on September 19. And...

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Biggest Star on the Biggest Stage

  Nick Skelton on his stellar horse Big Star led off the 6 way jump off for Gold and never looked back.  Riding a well calculated fast clear, he couldn’t be caught.  Peder Fredricson with his ever improving 10 yr old All In earned Silver with a slower clear....

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My Home During the Rio Olympics

I am here at the NBC Sports Group center in Stamford, Connecticut, where 60% of the Olympic sports are announced.  All video from Rio is transmitted by fiber optic cables to this 200,000 square foot facility, where it is edited and broadcast over the NBC channels and...

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USA Snags Silver

The US Team minus their dependable anchor, Beezie Madden, won Silver today in Team Jumping.  Beezie's horse Cortes was injured and could not continue. That meant there would be no drop score so Kent, Lucy and McLain had to deliver…  and they did!  Only 2 penalties...

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Tied at the Top

Wow... what a day of show jumping!  After Round 1 of Team Jumping, 4 teams - USA, NED, BRA and GER  - are tied on zero.  France is in 5th with 1 time fault which is killer for them.   After the competition I spoke with Bill Steinkraus (Gold Medalist in 1968) and he...

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Duel in Dressage

As a fitting finish for Individual Dressage, Great Britain’s Charlotte Dujardin and Valegro were crowned back-to-back Olympic Champions. Their fierce rivals, Germany’s Isabelle Werth and Wiehegold OLD, rode last in the order but had to settle for Silver.  Teammate...

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Day 7 – Bathed in Bronze

Kudos to the US Dressage Team of Allison Brock, Kasey Perry-Glass, Steffen Peters and Laura Graves for stellar performances in Rio to capture the Bronze medal behind Germany and Great Britain!  Laura’s poised but pressure packed ride aboard her beloved Verdades...

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US Hopes for Team Bronze

As Day II of Team Dressage Grand Prix wrapped up, six countries are in a tight race for the medals.  Germany leads with Great Britain holding the second spot and USA in third ahead of the Netherlands, Sweden and Denmark. Tomorrow’s scores for the Special will be...

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Olympic Dressage Debuts

Two of the American ladies on the US team made their Olympic debuts in style today in Rio.  Ali Brock with her wonderful stallion Rosevelt (Rosie) scored 72.686 to put her in a tie for seventh.  Kasey Perry-Glass showed off Dublet’s soft and beautiful flying changes...

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Phillip flies the flag for Team USA!

Kudos and cheers for Phillip Dutton and Mighty Nice winning the Eventing Individual Bronze medal for the USA!  Heavy favorite Michael Jung and Sam won back-to-back Gold, and surprise Silver medalist was Astier Nicolas of France.  In Team Eventing, France surprised...

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Day 3 – A Costly Cross Country for Many

Wow - what a day!  The cross country phase has definitely proven to be influential for Eventing in Rio.  The course was punishing and relentless with 18 horse/rider combinations out of 65 eliminated or retired.  Total shakeup among the Team and Individual standings...

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Day 2 of Rio

I wish I had some exciting photos to share but the truth is I am seeing what everyone else is seeing on their computer or TV screen as the picture below attests :). The second day of Eventing dressage did not go a whole lot better than the first day for the USA.  The...

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