Colleen Loach and Qorry Blue D'Argouges. Photo by Leslie Threlkeld.
All around the world Olympic eventing team announcements are being dropped, but Canada is biding its time with the big reveal. A statement yesterday from Equine Canada indicates that the team will be officially announced on July 14.
From the news release, “The Countdown Is On to July 14, 2016“:
July 14, 2016 is set to become an important day in the history of EC. Three significant events will take place on that day:
Official launch of the new EC brand and name
Official launch of the new EC website
Official announcement of the Canadian Equestrian Team for the 2016 Rio Olympics
You may be last but you’re not least, Team Canada!
The Canadian Olympic hopefuls, who discovered that they were officially Canadian Olympic hopefuls after the FEI’s Nominated Entry List was released to the public last week:
The Olympic Nominated Entry List for Canada, via the FEI
The announcement will take place a few days after the Land Rover Great Meadow International, a mandatory final outing for the U.S. team and the inaugural FEI Nations Cup in North America.
What does Great Meadow mean to Team Canada, if anything? The FEI released the Olympic Nominated Entry List to the public on Great Meadow’s closing date, when only four Canadians appeared on the entry status: Colleen Loach, Selena O’Hanlon, Jessica Phoenix and Waylon Roberts.
Four more nominated Canadians — Lisa Marie Fergusson, Kyle Carter, Holly Jacks-Smither and Rachel McDonough — have since appeared on the Great Meadow wait list. (View Great Meadow entries and wait list here.) If an indecisive Equine Canada is using GMI as a an 11th-hour Olympic audition, it’s less-than-ideal timing for the waitlisted latecomers who may have been hoping for a last-minute shot at dazzling team selectors.
(It’s worth a reminder here also that two strong Canadian Olympic nominees, Kathryn Robinson and Rebecca Howard, are based in the UK.)
Once the team is named on July 14, Team Canada will have about two weeks to get its ducks in a row before putting their horses on a plane to Rio. Team USA is flying out of Miami on July 29, a week before the Games start and two weeks in advance of the eventing competition, which takes place Aug. 5-9. We expect that the North American-based Team Canada contingent will be on a similar timetable.
In the meantime, here’s an at-a-glance look at the Canadian Olympic nominees and their results in the events Equine Canada dubbed “key competitions” toward selection:
Feb. 25-26: Barroca d’Alva CCI3* (Alochete, POR)
March 24-27: Carolina International CIC3* (Raeford, NC)
April 6-10: The Fork CIC3* (Norwood, NC)
April 27-May 1: Rolex Kentucky CCI4* (Lexington, KY)
May 11-15: Jersey Fresh CCI3*/CIC3* (Allentown, NJ)
June 9-12: Bromont CCI3*/CIC3* (Bromont, QC)
June 16-19: Luhmühlen CCI4*/CIC3* (Luhmühlen, GER)
The nominated entries and their results in the “key competitions,” listed in alphabetical order:
Kyle Carter / FR’s Trust Fund: 35th Carolina CIC3* (75.4), 15th Fork CIC3* (64.7)
Lisa Marie Fergusson / Honor Me: 25th Fork CIC3* (71.3), 47th Rolex CCI4* (116.6), WD XC Carolina CIC3*
Rebecca Howard / Riddle Master : 11th Luhmühlen CIC3* (61.5)
Holly Jacks-Smither / More Inspiration: 12th Bromont CCI3* (71.5), EL dressage Carolina CIC3*, EL XC-FR Jersey CCI3*
Colleen Loach / Quorry Blue d’Argouges: 7th at Jersey Fresh (56.2), 2nd Bromont CIC3* (52.9)
Selena O’Hanlon / Foxwood High: 12th Carolina CIC3* (62.5), 11th Fork (55.2), 7th Bromont CIC3* (70.3), WD XC Rolex CCI4*
Rachel McDonough / Irish Rhythm: 32nd The Fork CIC3* (78.7), 4th Bromont CCI3* (59.3), EL XC-RF Carolina CIC3*
Jessica Phoenix / Abbey GS: 8th Jersey Fresh CIC3* (74.7), EL XC-HF Bromont CIC3*, WD SJ Fork CIC3*, WD XC Rolex CCI4*
Jessica Phoenix / A Little Romance: 20th Fork CIC3* (63.0), 6th Jersey Fresh CIC3* (72.7), WD XC Rolex CCI4*, WD XC Bromont CIC3*
Jessica Phoenix / Bentley’s Best: 3rd Jersey CCI3* (49.2), 38th Jersey Fresh CIC3* (89.3), RET XC Carolina CIC3*, WD XC Bromont CIC3*
Jessica Phoenix / Pavarotti: 16th Fork CIC3* (58.4), 11th Jersey Fresh CCI3* (62.7), WD XC Carolina CIC3*, WD XC Rolex CCI4*, WD XC Bromont CIC3*
Waylon Roberts / Kelecyn Cognac: 44th Carolina CIC3* (91.7), 24th Fork CIC3* (69.7), 9th Bromont CCI3* (68.2)
Kathryn Robinson / Let It Bee: 7th Barroca CCI3* (72.8), 9th Luhmühlen CIC3* (58.2)
Until July 14 … “the countdown is on!”
Go Eventing.
Note: This post has been edited from its original form.
