Sumner, Piller, Robinson grab Kur Gold at the 2023 North American Youth Championships

Shows

2023 North American Youth Championships

The 2023 North American Youth Championships at Flintfields Horse Park in Traverse City, MI, came to a conclusion on Sunday 13 August 2023 with junior rider Madison Sumner, young rider Mary Claire Piller, and Under 25 Grand Prix rider Claire Robinson grabbing the gold medal in the Kur to Music finals.

Junior Riders: Madison Sumner

After winning two silver medals in team and individual competition, Madison Sumner (Wellington, Fla.) and Briar, a 2007 KWPN - Friesian crossbred gelding of unknown pedigree which she co-owns with Wayne Sumner, struck gold in the freestyle. The pair posted a 73.540% to top the leaderboard in the Freestyle Competition for Juniors.

“After my final centerline, I was very proud of my test,” said Sumner. “He was with me the whole time, and I was just so grateful.”

Sumner pointed to the changes on a circle as one of the high points of her test as a difficult movement that she and Briar execute well.

“His strengths are definitely in the canter work,” said Sumner. “Definitely his changes. He has some big, expressive changes. Also his trot work, some of the extendeds and half-passes were also really good.”

Briar was imported into the USA by Wendy Petrik of Candoit Farm from Poland. His Polish owner at the time had discovered him in the Netherlands as a 3-year. Although there is no paperwork and was just KWPN registered, Briar's conformation suggest Friesian blood in his pedigree. Briar was first shown in the U.S.A. by Kelley O'Shea Duncan in 2019 and 2020 before the Sumner family bought the horse. Sumner made her national show debut on the horse in January 2021 at the Global Dressage Festival.

Sienna Rowe (Urbanna, Va.) and Lightfire Just Do It, a 2010 Westphalian gelding (by Lugato x Furst Piccolo) owned by Jason Rowe, won silver with a close second-place score of 73.320% for her freestyle to Michael Jackson’s music. In addition, Rowe and “Nike” were awarded the Amanda Johnson Award for their consistently excellent performances over the course of the week.

“We thought that [the music] fit Nike very well, because he’s a little mover,” said Rowe. “I was very glad we had a clean test because he can be a little bobble-y sometimes. I’m very happy that we won that award.”

Allison Berger (Chicago, Ill.) secured the bronze with her ride on Delacure, a 2014 Hanoverian gelding she co-owns with Marianne Berger. The pair scored a 72.915% from the judges. Berger and Delacure (by Deveraux x Brentano II) are less than one year into their partnership after the Berger family acquired the chestnut at Hof Kasselmann in Germany with the help of trainer Jan Ebeling.

“The whole freestyle was really fun,” said Berger. “I love riding to music. My favorite part was the extended canter. He’s so powerful, and I just laugh out loud every time. It’s so fun. I was really confident going in and going last in the order was nice because I had some time in the morning to prepare.”

Young Riders: Mary Claire Piller

The podium looked very familiar during the awards presentation for the Young Riders Freestyle as three athletes received their third medals of the week. All three medalists were part of the gold medal-winning Region 3 team, and all three medaled in the individual final earlier in the week.

Mary Claire Piller (Oakdale, Tenn.) and Caterina, Emily Brollier’s 2011 Hanoverian mare by Carabas x Weltmeyer, finished their hat trick, earning their third gold medal of this NAYC with a 73.540%.

“We set NAYC as kind of a light goal, just really trying to develop the mare properly, bring her up the levels in a good program, and just keep her as happy as possible bringing out as much excellence in her as we could,” said Piller. “We just tried to work on that over the last few months and just really honed in on it the past five or six months really thinking about the CDI in mind and just almost using every show we went to for qualification as a schooling, saying how can we make it better in the ring, how can we make things easier for her to do the job for me, and she has delivered 100%.”

Piller and Caterina have been building a partnership for several years to reach this point.

“We acquired ‘Karma’ back in 2020, and she had had kind of a rough start,” said Piller. “It took a while for me to get her trust. I re-started her on the lunge line and we’ve just been trying to keep her as happy as possible to move her up the levels. We never had any expectation of her even showing. I got my [USDF bronze, silver, and gold] medals with her and now bringing me to Young Riders and winning three gold medals has been such a blessing, and I feel very honored to be able to work and prepare and grow from there.”

Kat Fuqua (Atlanta, Ga.) and her own Dreamgirl, a 2008 KWPN mare (by Spielberg x Goodtimes), added a silver medal to their team gold and individual bronze from earlier in the week. They scored a 72.390% with their new freestyle, which is set to music by Tears for Fears.

Fuqua, Piller, William on the YR Kur podium

“After our European tour, we realized that in my old freestyle, the degree of difficulty wasn’t as high as it could be,” said Fuqua. “It was a little bit too slow moving and didn’t show off Dreamgirl’s ability enough. I’m a big fan of Tears for Fears and so is my whole family, so we thought that would be a good kind of neutral music to choose since everyone kind of knows it.”

Fuqua said that Dreamgirl is a steadfast partner who always tries her best.

“She doesn’t give up on you or ever try to be bad. She’s always on my side,” said Fuqua. “I think for next year we’re planning to do the Prix St. Georges I-1 small tour because she really shines in the I-1.”

Celsiana William (Ocala, Fla.) and her 2013 Oldenburg mare, Prima Ballerina (by Bon Bravour x Donnerhall), added a bronze medal to their collection with a 72.390% in the freestyle. The NAYC was the pair's first international show in their career. Prima Ballerina is bred by Britta Budeus-Wiegert out of her famous Perle mare. Her 2015 filly by Bon Bravour (Prima Ballerina) sold to California as a filly.

“I did the choreography myself, and I decided to start with the canter work because she tends to get hotter as the test goes on,” said William. “We’ve had some problems with that over the years, and I wanted to make sure that the canter work was nice and calm and controlled. Then, I could just let her shine in the trot work and be as fancy as she wants.”

Under 25: Claire Robinson

The Under 25 competition already concluded on Saturday evening 12 August with the Under 25 freestyle finals.

Eight combinations competed in the inaugural U25 championships and they performed their freestyles for the judging panel, and for many of them, it was an early experience in their Grand Prix career. Claire Robinson of Canada was the final entry on the order, and with Glamour Boy, a 2011 KWPN gelding (by Bojengel x Jazz) owned by Carol Robinson, she put down the best test of the evening, earning a 71.090% from the judges and the gold medal.

“I’ve not ridden this freestyle too many times, and of course every time you learn something a little bit new about the pattern and how you’re riding it,” said Robinson. “When I finally came to that final halt, I just looked back and was like, ‘I think that was everything. I think it all happened!’ It was a really good feeling on that final centerline where I knew he was with me, and I felt that I had had him with me for the whole test. It was really awesome.”

Robinson’s freestyle is set to music from Hamilton, which she chose to fit her horse.

“We had to find something that would really suit him. He’s sort of a tall, elegant horse, and I really loved the music,” she said. “This is a horse that I finished to the level myself, so I’m a little bit green at the level and he’s a little bit green at the level. I just really wanted [a floorplan] I felt like could play to his strengths a little bit, and where I could really produce a clean test and that worked out today.”

Alexander Dawson of U.S. Region 2 earned a 69.185% from the judges to take home the silver medal. Dawson rode Freedom, a 2007 Oldenburg stallion owned (by Frank Sinatra x Walk on Top) by Barbara Caldwell.

“My trainer Patty (Patricia Becker) brought him up from a young age, and she trained his father,” said Dawson. “He really has a lot of history going back in Region 2, with Barbara Cadwell breeding multiple of the stallions and the mares on his dam’s side. He’s a really cool horse and super intelligent. Every horse I ride from here on out is going to be compared to him, and just his understanding and really wanting a fair, consistent partnership. It’s a real pleasure to ride him and I’m honored that I had the opportunity to.”

Dawson’s freestyle test was designed for Freedom when he was a developing horse.

Dawson, Robinson, Hewitt on the U25 Kur podium

“We borrowed it for the event,” said Dawson. “We went through it a few times in the two weeks leading up to it, and I’m really glad it all came together in the ring instead of just in the warmup.”

The winner of individual gold on Friday, Emily Hewitt from Region 3 earned the bronze medal in the freestyle, posting a 67.985% with Fidens, a 2010 KWPN gelding owned (by Tango x United) by her sister, Hannah.

“Fidens is actually Hannah’s horse that she’s had since he was five, and so since this was my last year [of U25 eligibility], she provided me this opportunity to take him out, get to know him, and really allow for me to be here,” said Hewitt. “I feel like [having a U25 division at NAYC] adds a different level of seriousness and competitiveness, and when it comes to showing at Grand Prix, I think showing without a whip and in front of five judges really makes you grow as a rider.”