USA’s Sarah Lockman/First Apple Win Pan American Games Individual Gold, Canada’s Tina Irwin/Laurencio Silver, USA’s Jennifer Baumert/Handsome Bronze

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Pan American Games dressage individual medalists Sarah Lockman of USA gold, Tina Irwin of Canada silver and Jennifer Baumert of USA bronze. Photo: FEI/Daniel Apuy, Getty images

LIMA, Peru, july 31, 2019–Sarah Lockman and First Apple won Pan American Games individual gold Wednesday with a career high result in the Intermediate 1/Grand Prix Freestyle to become the 10th American to claim the title since the continental championships were launched in 1951.

The partnership of Sarah and the nine-year-old KWPN stallion were awarded 78.980% for a musical performance that was only the second since the pair’s first CDI in California four months ago.

Sarah, 30, of Murietta, California and First Apple were top placing individual combinations in both the Prix St. Georges with 76.083% and Intermediate 1 on 75.912% to lead the Dutta Corp. United States team to silver in the Pan Ams held once every four years.

Tina Irwin and Laurencio who led Canada to team gold that qualified the nation for the Tokyo Olympics placed second in the Freestyle on 77.780%.

America’s Jennifer Baumert of Wellington, Florida on Handsome was third on 75.755%.

Sarah Lockman of the USA and First Apple who won Pan American Games individual gold and team silver. Photo: Courtesy USA Dressage

The Dominican Republic’s Yvonne Losos de Muñiz on Aquamarijn was fourth on 75.430%, the highest placing Big Tour combination. Yvonne won individual bronze at both the 2003 and 2007 Pan Ams and competed at the 2016 Olympics.

The performances by Sarah and First Apple (Vivaldi x T.C.N. Partout) were described by coach Scott Hassler as “just awesome” and the rider “so composed” in her first ever team event.

The horse was acquired at the end of 2018 by Gerry Ibanez from President Stables in the Netherlands where he had been competed by Patrick van der Meer at the World Young Horse Championships for a fourth place finish in 2017 and then Small Tour through mid-2018.

Sarah’s first international equestrian competitions were in Colorado as an eventer in 2003 and 2004 but she switched to dressage and competed in CDIs on three different horses in Southern California from 2013 before First Apple.

It took her only the first two shows on First Apple to become the top U.S. qualifier for the Pan Ams and Sarah’s first competition outside the western United States.

Before Wednesday, she had competed First Apple in only one freestyle.

For Tina Irwin, the team gold and individual silver medalist at Lima adds to her team silver on Winston at the 2011 Pan Ams in Guadalajara, Mexico.

She was successful in dropping Laurencio, a 12-year-old Oldenburg gelding, back to Prix St. Georges to help deliver a ticket for Canada to the Tokyo Olympics next year. The pair began Grand Prix in 2018 and now has the opportunity to seek to be on the squad for Tokyo.

Tina Irwin and Laurencio at the Pan American Games. © 2019 Cealy Tetley for Equestrian Canada

Naima Moreira Laliberté on Statesman, who at the age of 22 has emerged as a star of Canadian dressage with their performances here, placed sixth in the freestyle on a score of 73.565%.

This was the first senior championship–though at her age, Naima would have three more years in the Under-25 division–displayed the cool and skills coached by former Canadian four-time Olympian Ashley Holzer to set her sights on the team for Tokyo as she did to make herself a star in the North American Youth Championships.

The freestyle was head-to-head competition for both Big and Small Tour combinations with no bonus points for Grand Prix.

Results:

Pan American Games Freestyle & Individual Medals

Judges-E: Thomas Kessler-GER H: Mary Seefried-AUS C: Eddy de Wolff van Westerrode M: Brenda Minor-CAN B: Janet Foy-USA