Caroline Pamukcu wins first and second in the CCI4*-L. Photo by Cealy Tetley.
Brody Robertson, show jumping course designer for the MARS Bromont CCI, stated today that he wanted to provide a fair challenge for the horses, knowing they’d made a big effort on cross-country on Saturday. That said, though, “I don’t really change too much” whether it’s a Short or a Long format – he wants to test the horses’ and riders’ skills and how much they can ride accurately and to a plan.
His courses exerted their fair share of influence on Sunday, as they typically do here at Bromont, but our division winners rose to the top and champions were crowned throughout the day.
Caroline Pamukcu Wins CCI4*-L
Caroline Pamukcu and HSH Double Sixteen. Photo by Cealy Tetley.
The CCI4*-L division featured three former racehorses, one of which would become the eventual Bromont champion in the 11-year-old HSH Double Sixteen (owned by the Double Sixteen Partnership). The gelding raced in Ireland before starting his career with Irish eventer Leila Barker and eventually finding his way to Caroline Pamukcu.
Pamukcu historically has ridden more warmblood type horses, but while based with New Zealand Olympic rider Andrew Nicholson, she sought out a horse with a stronger Thoroughbred presence in its breeding. “[Andrew] told me, if I want to be a proper five-star rider, I need to get more blood horses,” she said. “So I called up my business partner, Kelley Hutchinson, and said ‘We need a Thoroughbred!’ And she was like ‘I have one!’” From the moment Pamukcu sat on HSH Double Sixteen, she knew he was the one.
Following a quick-footed cross-country on Saturday, Pamukcu had a rail and some time in hand with “Six” but wound up with more space. Despite two lowered rails, Pamukcu stayed atop the standings to finish on a score of 47.5. Pamukcu would also retain her second place positioning with She’s The One (owned by Mollie Hoff and Sherrie Martin), who finished the weekend on a score of 47.5.
Caroline Pamukcu and She’s The One. Photo by Cealy Tetley.
“Both of them are just fabulous horses, and I’m just so happy for the owners – they deserve it,” Pamukcu said. “They’ve been with me since day one, so it’s just great to do well for them, and do well for the horses. ‘Six’ was fabulous all weekend. There’s so much more improvement that can be done, but again, remember, they’re both 11 year olds, and I think they both have bright futures. Their cross-country rounds were immaculate. They’re just absolute machines, but again, [there’s a] lot more work [that] can be done – the dressage and the show jumping – and even with the cross-country, I can fine tune some things. But I’m so happy because I felt confident this weekend. So that’s the biggest thing – the biggest takeaway.”
Pamukcu expressed gratitude for the support of her team, including coaches like Samantha St. Jacques and Sharon White, business partner Kelley Hutchinson, grooms Chloe Teahan (who battled through the weekend after taking a hoof to the knee earlier on) and Katie Strickland, and her business manager Katie Trafton, who’s taken a lot of the mental load off by managing more of the operations at her home farm in Pennsylvania. All of this support and more, she says, allows her to fully focus both on her horses and career as well as her family – husband Deniz and daughter Blake.
Tracy Bienemann and Venezuelan River. Photo by Sally Spickard.
It’s been over a decade since Maryland-based Tracy Bienemann has competed in a CCI4*-L; in fact, her last start came right here at Bromont in 2014, but her weekend ended early with a retirement on cross-country. This long-awaited sophomore effort paid off well with the off-track Thoroughbred Venezuelan River as she earned a spot on the podium, finishing the weekend on a score of 57.9.
“Newt” is a horse who initially came onto Bienemann’s radar through a friend at the racetrack. This friend had a three-year-old who urgently needed a new home, so Bienemann showed up with a trailer, found him to be good enough to take home and work with, and brought him back to her barn. He was purchased for a dollar. But the pathway to becoming an upper-level event horse was not a straight one.
“He was so naughty and dangerous as a baby horse that it took me three years to decide to spend money on a recognized event for him,” Bienemann laughed. “And when I finally did all of the base work, all the foundation really paid off. He’s been spectacular to show since he started showing when he was about six. He moved up to Advanced at nine, and we’ve had our setbacks here and there – his nerves can still get the best of him – but it’s been all about the journey and just developing our confidence in each other – and confidence is all he really needed.”
Lauren Nicholsen and Landmark’s Jungle’s Gold. Photo by Cealy Tetley.
Phillip Dutton Seals the Deal in CCI4*-S
Phillip Dutton and Denim. Photo by Cealy Tetley.
Denim was very much in style Sunday afternoon as Phillip Dutton secured the CCI4*-S victory thanks to a clear show jumping round and a finishing score of 44.5 Dutton had opted to bring Denim here for the Short run to take advantage of the horse’s fitness and earn a solid prep for the remainder of the season (which could include selection to the U.S. eventing team heading to World Championships in August).
“Denim usually show jumps really well. If there’s any trouble, it’s usually my fault,” Dutton laughed. “So it was good. It’s great to be here in this big ring.” Dutton takes home his sixth career victory at Bromont, illustrating the presence he’s had at Bromont throughout his career. “We love Sue Ockendon, and everything that she brings to the sport. It’s a great venue, a real cross-country-based event, and so you’ve got to have a good jumping horse that can gallop, which is just overall what sport’s about. So we enjoy coming up here to Bromont – great restaurants as well!”
Dutton was joined on the podium by fellow U.S. Olympian and FEI Eventing World #5 Boyd Martin, who jumped a clear round inside the time with the Fetiche Des Rouges Syndicate’s Fetiche Des Rouges to finish second on a score of 50.7. Canadian Olympic rider piloted her World Championships hopeful Fluorescent Adolescent (owned by Makayla Rydzik) to third place on a score of 53.1.
Colleen Loach Secures Second Consecutive MARS Bromont Victory with Chiaro Z Excalibur
Colleen Loach and Chiaro Z Excalibur. Photo by Cealy Tetley.
It was a repeat victory for Canadian Olympian Colleen Loach, who won the CCI2*-L at MARS Bromont in 2025 and now takes home the trophy in the CCI3*-L with the now-8-year-old Chiaro Z Excalibur, who is owned by Peter Barry. The pair jumped a clear round inside the time to finish the weekend on a 42.1. This was also Loach’s sixth career win at Bromont.
“He jumped amazing,” Loach described. “This horse just keeps getting better and better as time goes on, and he just kind of goes in the ring or on the cross-country or the dressage ring and does his job. He’s got a great mind. He’s a pleasure to work with. I think he’s going to be a great horse for the future – very promising. So it’s up to me to keep that going in the right direction.”
Loach is local to Bromont – she can sleep in her own bed, as a perk – and makes it a point to compete here as often as she can. “It’s my hometown event, and I think it is a pretty special event, in general. A lot of people like coming here. It’s got a low-key atmosphere, but it’s a top-class event, and it’s nice because a lot of my friends and family can come and watch. I get to sleep in my own bed at home. The horses don’t have to travel a long way, so [there are] just so many pluses.”
The remainder of the top three in the CCI3*-L remained unchanged after show jumping, with Ariel Grald finishing second with Annie Eldridge’s Obalix (46.3) and Arden Wildasin in third with her own Dalegra (49.8). Carlin Keefe was also the best U25 rider in the division with her off-track Thoroughbred Point Nemo; the pair were also participants in this year’s MARS Bromont Rising program.
Lucienne Bellissimo Secures CCI2*-L Win
Lucienne Bellissimo and Dyri. Photo by Cealy Tetley.
Lucienne Bellissimo topped off her weekend with a win in the CCI2*-L aboard Horse Scout Eventing’s Dyri, earning the lowest finishing score of the event with a 26.1 and ending on her dressage score.
“I’m really pleased,” Bellissimo said. “It was exactly what I came here to do, which is to try and get his brain in as happy and relaxed a space as possible. It was great to have a chance to do a dressage test without changes in it!”
Bellissimo hopes to aim the 14-year-old Holsteiner gelding by Diarado at the US Equestrian Open of Eventing Final at Morven Park in October and used this weekend to help build the horse’s confidence to go back up the levels. Even at the two-star level, she knew the weekend would present a proper challenge.
“Bromont’s terrain is so beautiful and rolling and challenging, and although some people might wonder why I’ve put him into the two-star long, it still rides like an Intermediate,” she continued. “He’s a very careful horse – he’s not a horse who’s going to do it for you, so it’s really important for me that he can have a look and not have to give 100% every time. So that’s what we came here for. And today in the show jumping, Dyri couldn’t have felt any better. He felt himself, he felt happy. It was a brilliant arena to bring him into – lots of space where you have to keep traveling to try and keep your canter in front of you. I’m just keep trying to, inch by inch, improve things with him, because I genuinely believe he’s a phenomenal horse that can hopefully get another big result.”
The podium in this division also remained unchanged, with Phillip Dutton finishing second on Caroline Moran’s Darwinn (31.1) and Boyd Martin finishing third with Tamy Pollard’s Buba D’Mues (32.0).
Adelyn Rinehart Caps Off U25 CCI2*-L Weekend with a Win
Adelyn Rinehart and Corona Life. Photo by Cealy Tetley.
University student Adelyn Rinehart built off of her third place finish in the U25 CCI2*-L last year with Corona Life to take home the winner’s ribbon this weekend. The pair demonstrated the continued education and partnership they’ve been cultivating in the past 12 months and finished very nearly on their dressage score with just one second of time added on cross-country and no penalties added in Sunday’s show jumping.
“It looked like a pretty big tough track, but honestly, I just took a big deep breath, and I just trusted all the training that I’ve done in preparation to get here, and we put down a really good round,” Rinehart said of her clear show jumping ride today. “I’m super happy with it and it was a great way to complete such an awesome week of competition.”
“It’s a whole other year of training and preparation at this level, and we’re kind of nearing that move up, so we both came here and put our best foot forward,” Rinehart said of the build-up to this win. “We got a feel for the track last year, so way more confident going into it this year. I think it’s so helpful to have that behind us the first year I was here.”
Olivia Dutton moved up to second place with Evie Dutton and Caroline Moran’s Dresden (50.5) and MARS Bromont Rising participant Sarah Newman finished up third and highest of the grant recipients with her own Hang Time (52.1).
Phillip and Olivia Dutton share a moment in the CCI2*-L victory gallop. Photo by Cealy Tetley.
“It was an awesome week, a super educational week,” Newman said of her experience with MARS Bromont Rising. “All the education – and definitely before dressage, having the lecture from [dressage judge] Peter Gray – helped me a lot going into the test, knowing exactly what the judges were looking for. I decided to apply for Bromont Rising because it was a huge educational opportunity.”
Dr. Bridgett Mcintosh, Vice President of MARS Equestrian, was equally pleased to be on-site at Bromont for the first time to support the program, which added several educational sessions to the schedule this year including a cardiovascular seminar with Antech and Sound, nutritional assessments from Buckeye Nutrition and a social license session with Emily Gilbert and Mike Winter, among many others.
“MARS Equestrian is so proud to support not only Bromont, but the Bromont Rising program. We know we wouldn’t have this sport if we didn’t have young riders who were so dedicated to doing the right thing,” Mcintosh said.
MARS Bromont CCI and the Bromont Equestrian Park extends its gratitude to all competitors and support teams, officials, volunteers, staff and all who attended the special 50th Olympic anniversary event. We look forward to welcoming you back both June 12-14 for Little/Petit Bromont as well as in 2027 for the MARS Bromont CCI.
MARS Bromont CCI4*-L (CAN): [Website] [Scoring] [Live Stream Replays – ClipMyHorse.TV] [Live Stream Replays – Bromont YouTube] [EN’s Coverage]
