Tamie Smith and Mai Baum. Photo by Tilly Berendt.
We’re very sad to share the news that Tamie Smith and hot favorite Mai Baum, 2023 CCI5* winners at the Defender Kentucky Three-Day Event, will not be contesting this week’s CCI4*-S competition as planned, following an unfortunate incident at home that slightly derailed the gelding’s preparation for the competition.
“We arrived in the amazing state of Kentucky and [are] excited for a great week ahead with the Young Guns!” writes Tamie in a post on her social media channels. “Sadly, Mai Baum will be sitting out this Kentucky 4S and resting up for an exciting summer. They say timing is everything and while I was away competing some of my other horses last weekend, Lexus was a bit wild & feeling exuberant and pulled away from his handler and tweaked himself. He wasn’t 100 percent in time to make the trip across the country to Kentucky and we have elected to withdraw him from the Defender 3-Day Event.”
The CCI4*-S at Kentucky is set to be a significant event in the Paris selection infrastructure for the US Eventing Team, with many of the sport’s heaviest hitters lining up in this, rather than the feature five-star, class.
“It can be difficult to withdraw your horse from a key competition, especially leading up to this summer, however, this decision is in his long-term best interest and the one thing we’ve never wavered from is our commitment not to compromise the well-being of any horse,” continues Tamie, who won with Mai Baum in their prep event at Galway Downs CCI4*-S this spring. “I look forward to seeing everyone in the Blue Grass state; and, although I know Lexus will certainly miss seeing all of his fans, he has been given strict orders to behave himself until I return home.”
While we won’t have the treat of seeing the Ahearn family’s eighteen-year-old superstar in action, there’s still two exciting shots in it for Tamie: she’ll ride Danito, who was second at the MARS Maryland Five-Star in 2022, and nine-year-old Kynan, who’s never finished lower than seventh in an FEI event, in the CCI4*-S. Plus, you can still represent Team Lexus this week – just head to the USEA booth at the Horse Park to pick up your Mai Baum x Strides for Equality baseball cap, which will help fund the Mai Baum SEE Scholarship to help increase diversity in the sport.
EN’s coverage of the Defender Kentucky Three-Day Event is presented by Kentucky Performance Products, your one-stop shop for science-backed nutritional support for all types of horses. Click here to learn more about Kentucky Performance Products.
Defender Kentucky Three-Day Event: [Website] [Tickets] [Entries/Drawn Order]
