Steffen Peters Named Athlete of Month by US Olympic Committee
16 years ago StraightArrow Comments Off on Steffen Peters Named Athlete of Month by US Olympic Committee
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo., May 7–Steffen Peters, the newly crowned Rolex FEI World Cup champion, on Thursday was named United States Olympic Committee Athlete of the Month, the first dressage rider to win the award.
Peters of San Diego Calif. was honored for the victory on Ravel, owned by Akiko Yamazaki, at the Thomas & Mack Arena in Las Vegas in April. The pair were awarded the highest score of their career together in the Freestyle of 84.95 per cent. They won the Grand Prix two days earlier, their best test to that time.
In becoming only the second American ever to win the title–Debbie McDonald and Brentina did so–and the only time in the U.S., Peters and Ravel beat the world’s two most celebrated dressage riders of the past decade, Anky van Grunsven of The Netherlands and Germany’s Isabel Werth.
“We are so proud of what Steffen and Ravel accomplished in Las Vegas,” said Gil Merrick Assistant Executive Director of Sport Programs for the United States Equestrian Federation. “It is a huge honor to have one of our athletes recognized as the USOC Athlete of the Month. The most exciting part about Steffen and Ravel is that they continue to improve at every competition. We look forward to what the future holds for this fantastic combination.”
Also honored in April were Hockey Player Caitlin Cahow, and the US Women’s National Hockey Team. Monthly, a male, female and team are awarded these honors by the USOC
