HICKSTEAD, England--Olympic gold medalist Laura Kraut and Cherry Knoll Farm's 7-year-old Westphalian mare Greatfull won The Old Lodge International 7- and 8-Year-Old Championship, held at The All England Jumping Course in Hickstead on July 29.

Laura Kraut on Greatfull (Spidge Event Photography)"The main ring at Hickstead is one of the most difficult rings, even for older horses," Kraut said. "I was really impressed with how well Greatfull handled herself, especially with the hills and rain. She's very small, but she has a big stride and she's very brave to the jumps."

Throughout the three days of competition, which took place during the FEI Jumping Nations Cup of Great Britain, the pair faced off against 33 contenders to vie for the championship title.

Kraut and Greatfull took home the win after jumping a total of five clear rounds.

 

IN INCLEMENT weather during the final round on Sunday, July 29, they crossed the finish line with a speedy second round time of 39.52 seconds to solidify their championhip win.

Greatfull's proud owner, Margaret Duprey of Cherry Knoll Farm of Unionville, Pa.,, was at Hickstead to see the stellar performance at The All England Jumping Course.

"It was a really nice win for Greatfull, and even nicer that Margaret was there to see it!" Kraut said. "When Cedric was nearing retirement, Margaret and I discussed starting a new generation. It's impossible to follow Cedric but she's quite talented. I really like training young horses and I find a lot of satisfaction bringing them along."

"Hickstead is such a special place to have a horse show," Duprey said. "It was very exciting to have Greatfull do so well in the young horse championship, and I was thrilled to be there to cheer them on. We are very proud of this achievement. Hopefully it's only the first accomplishment of many to come as she continues to develop into a top competitor at the international level."