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Puissance to highlight international horse show
October 12, 2006
Harry Smolders over the Puissance Wall on Friday night at the 2005 Washington International Horse Show.
Photo: © 2006 Diana de Rosa
Puissance night will be the highlight of the 2006 Washington International Horse Show later this month.
The Puissance, or horse "high-jump," starts with fences at a minimum of 4'6" in height. Fences are then raised before each round. Jumps are removed as the rounds continue, leaving a minimum of two fences on the course. Riders continue to compete over escalating heights. The winner is the horse and rider combination that clears the massive brick wall at the greatest height.
With the wall set at a staggering 7'4" (2.22m) and the crowd in a frenzy, Harrie Smolders and Verelst Quebec returned to the ring first. With ease the duo sailed over the giant wall, and the crowd erupted in anThe all-time record for the Puissance class at the Washington International Horse Show is 7' 7½" set by Anthony D'Ambrosio on Sweet N' Low in 1983. In 2005, there were close to 10,000 enthusiastic fans on hand to watch Harrie Smolders of the Netherlands top the huge wall at 7'4' to win the $25,000 Puissance on Friday night. Smolders hit the big time twice on his first trip to the Washington International Horse Show last year, winning the $25,000 Accumulator class earlier on Friday afternoon.
Last year, Smolders, along with Secret Love and Aaron Vale, and Nick Skelton on Russel, all cleared the wall at 6'11½" with ease, setting up a fourth and final jump-off.
explosion of noise, the likes of which the Verizon Center had not seen in years. Following Smolders, Vale and Skelton both just rubbed the blocks off at the maximum height, sealing the win for the young Dutchman.
"It was amazing," said Smolders jubilantly. "I went in the class with the idea of only going two rounds, but he kept going better and better. And then, what a great finish. He jumped the wall really well, He was confident and he gave me a good feeling. Then the crowd got into it and they were super," he said. "It was great sport for everybody, especially the big crowd."
"I didn't know what to expect, so I expected nothing, and I got everything," said a beaming Smolders.
Over 600 horses will be on hand for the Washington International in Washington, DC, competing for over $400,000 in prize money. Riders from Great Britain, Germany, the Netherlands, France, Brazil and Ireland are expected to participate at the show, run over six days later this month.
Fans of show jumping and equestrian sports can expect a Friday night filled with action, suspense and excitement at this year's Washington International Horse Show.