Equestrian athlete Millie Vlasov and Etos HBC shone in illustrious company at the Laiterie de Montaigu 1.40m Grand Prix Event at Bourg-en-Bresse, France, on Sunday, May 23. Vlasov placed 5th out of a field of 52 Grand Prix riders, which included competitors from Sweden, Ireland, Great Britain, Turkey, Spain, Mexico, Switzerland, Australia and France.
Vlasov took the lead in the competition early, attacking the challenging 1.40m course designed by French course designer Gregory Bodo with style and verve. She and Etos soared clear in the first round and posted an efficient jump off time of 43.53 seconds, making her the rider to beat and prompting the French announcer to declare the pair “superb!”
Ultimately the performance was strong enough to secure 5th place in the large field, with just 4 riders, including Brice Brassart (France) and Charlotte Mcauley (Sweden) able to beat Vlasov’s and Etos’ fast time. Vlasov was delighted and gave all the credit to Etos, declaring: “I’m so happy! He was amazing”.
The high placement at the Bourg-en-Bresse competition at 1.40m marked the pair’s highest achievement to date as they progress toward their goal of representing The Bahamas in Santiago, Chile, at the next Pan Am Games.
Reine Pagliaro and Beautiful Knightmare (owner: Mary Kathryn Clark) worked on increasing speed during the Broxton Bridge Endurance Race, SC. The pair finished tied for second place.
Pagliaro and Beau continue to train in all weather, even in the freezing rain last week in Georgia!
The FEI Endurance Young Rider World Championships are rapidly approaching. As the first ever to represent The Bahamas at this event, Reine Pagliaro and her mount Beautiful Knightmare (known as Beau) are training, refining, and doing all the research necessary to represent The Bahamas to the best of their ability. The competition will be held September 6-10 in Ermelo, The Netherlands.
To put it simply, Endurance is a cross-country marathon on horseback. An FEI 2* event, the Young Rider World Championships distance is 75 miles (120 km). The qualification process has been grueling: first Pagliaro and Beau had to complete a certain number of qualifying races before moving up to the International, or FEI, level. After achieving FEI status, the pair then had to finish two 120 km races which was accomplished in March 2020.
Reine rides with the Stiyu Endurance Team at Muscogee Farms in Eatonton, Georgia. The Stiyu research team has been scouting competition venues with weather and footing similar to that of The Netherlands. Luckily, the weather in middle Georgia where the pair train is almost identical to the weather in Ermelo. To ride a course with footing similar to the Worlds course, Reine and Beau headed off for the Broxton Bridge Plantation Endurance Races in South Carolina, held January 29-30, 2021.
“Endurance isn’t just running as fast as you want to,” explains Peggy Clark, owner and manager of Muscogee Farms. “That leads to injury, mental fatigue, and physical problems. Endurance racers know that you increase speed, or distance, not both. Reine and Beau have achieved the distance element many times. Now they are working on increasing the speed element.”
This was the plan at Broxton Bridge. Along with Mary Kathryn Clark, her trainer and Beau’s owner, Reine left the start line for the first loop of 15 miles (24 km) at a crisp pace. They were back at the first checkpoint in 90 minutes…a pace of 16 kph/10mph, perfectly on plan. After a thorough veterinary exam and a mandatory rest period – all regular procedures in Endurance races to ensure horse welfare – the riders were back on the trail for the last segment of their race, 16km/10 miles. It was time to kick up the speed a notch, and Reine and Beau finished the last loop in 44 minutes at a pace just over 12 mph. The pair tied for second place.
Not content with the great performance at Broxton Bridge, Reine is continuing to train every weekend with Beau, overcoming the elements as for the past weeks Georgia has been inundated with wave after wave of near-freezing rain!
Millie Vlasov and Etoc HBC went double clear in the 1.40m CSI1* at the Oliva Nova Mediterranean Equestrian Winter Bronze Tour.
Millie jumps 1.30m with her “pocket rocket” Gulliver du Chȇne.
There was no brushing off the rust for equestrian athlete Millie Vlasov as she began the 2021 show season with a successful weekend of showing at the Oliva Nova Mediterranean Equestrian Tour in Valencia, Spain.
Vlasov competed in the Oliva Met Bronze Tour at the CSI 1* level with two of her horses, Gulliver du Chȇne and Etos HBC.
Vlasov was pleased with the performance of both horses. Gulliver, whom she affectionately calls her “pocket rocket” because of his small size and fast speed, completed clear rounds all weekend and was just out of the ribbons in the 1.30m class, finishing 13th out of 34 competitors. Competing at an even higher level with Etos HBC, Vlasov was thrilled go double clear over a 1.40m course, completing her jump off in a time of 37.78 seconds. “He was so good. I’m so happy!”, said Vlasov.
As a result of the pair’s strong performance, this coming week Vlasov will aim to ride Etos HBC over more challenging courses at Oliva, possibly competing at the 1.45m level in a CSI2* Grand Prix Silver Tour competition.
CONGRATULATIONS!!!! to Peyton Wong, voted one of The Nassau Guardian’s Top 10 Junior Female Athletes of the Year.
CONGRATULATIONS!!!! to Mila Sands, who finished out of the top 10 but received votes for special mention.
And finally, CONGRATULATIONS!!!! to Millie Vlasov, The Nassau Guardian’s 2nd-ranked Senior Female Athlete of the Year. Millie was edged out of the top spot by only 1 vote!
Equestrian Bahamas is proud to announce that Millie Vlasov has made the list of Finalists for the Ministry of Youth, Sports & Culture 2020 Sports Champion Award!
Bahamians all over the world thrilled to hear our National Anthem playing for the first time ever in an international equestrian arena, after Millie’s CSI 1* win aboard Beaumont M/V at St. Tropez earlier this year.
The nomination for the 2020 Sports Champion Award is a tremendous honour not only for Millie but also for Equestrian Sport in the The Bahamas. Please show your support for Millie and for Equestrian by casting your vote today!
Equestrian athlete Peyton Wong hasn’t allowed COVID-19 or the Freshman blues to get in the way of pursuing her training.
The Queens College graduate began her freshman year at the University of Tampa this fall and will ride for the UTampa Equestrian Team under trainer Karey McGee. Wong is a Business major, currently studying International Business and Marketing.
Wong is no stranger to success in the show ring. In high school she rode her horse Shadowfax to multiple victories in Jumper classes under trainer Kimberly Johnson of Camperdown Equestrian Centre. A three-time Finalist for the Equestrian Bahamas Junior Sportsmanship Award, she also captained the Queens College Interscholastic Equestrian Team and represented Team Bahamas at the IEA International Invitational in Conyers, Georgia last February.
Wong looks forward to taking her riding to the next level. Although competitions are currently suspended, she focuses on remaining show-ready by training with her team at a riding facility about 30 minutes away from the University of Tampa campus.
“The plan for this semester is to take the time and train since shows are cancelled,” said Wong. “In the spring semester we will be having 10 shows where we will be traveling all over Florida, some parts of Georgia and maybe Alabama depending on the shows.”
The UTampa Spartans compete in Region 5, Zone 5, of the Intercollegiate Horse Shows Association (IHSA). This highly competitive Zone encompasses colleges and universities across Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Tennessee and Texas.
Congratulations to Anna Camille Vlasov and her horse Beaumont M/V on their victory this weekend in the CSI 1* 1.30m Grand Prix competition at the Jumping du Golfe de St. Tropez HUBSIDE Event in St. Tropez, France!
A victory at the CSI 1* Grand Prix level marks a significant milestone for Equestrian Sport in The Bahamas. The success of our riders abroad reflects not only the talent and dedication of our athletes, but also the foundational quality and technical relevance of our local instructional programs.
Equestrian Bahamas remains committed to supporting Bahamian riders at every level of the sport. Congratulations again to Millie…we send our best wishes to her and to all our Bahamian riders who are doing great things abroad!
