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Ludo Philippaerts Gambles and Wins Las Vegas Stakes


“Ludo Philippaerts guides Tauber v/h Kapelhof to victory in the $25,000 Las Vegas Stakes, the opening event of the $1 million Las Vegas World Invitational of Show Jumping.”
Photo Credit - Peter Llewellyn, Split Seconds
October 14, 2005 – Las Vegas, Nevada – Ludo Philippaerts of Belgium claimed victory in the opening event of the inaugural $1 million Las Vegas World Invitational taking place Friday, October 14, and Saturday, October 15, at the Thomas and Mack Center in Las Vegas, NV.

Designated as a CSI5* event by the International Equestrian Federation (FEI), the two-day competition features the top 25 riders in the world invited to compete for a rare purse of $1 million dollars, making it one of the richest show jumping events in equestrian sports.

Philippaerts, 20th in the order of go in the $25,000 Las Vegas Stakes, wasted no time over the 11-obstacle speed course set by course designer Olaf Petersen of Germany. His winning time of 45.77 seconds was almost two seconds faster than second-place finisher Marcus Ehning.

“I am very pleased with the start of the event,” said Philippaerts, who was riding Tauber v/h Kapelhof, a nine-year-old black Belgian Warmblood stallion sired by his former Olympic mount, Darco. “This horse is a speed expert and recently won two good classes in Aachen and Calgary.”

Ehning, only the fourth rider to tackle the course, had taken the early lead with a time of 47.43 seconds riding Gelha’s Junior, a 13-year-old Holsteiner gelding. Currently ranked number one in the world, Ehning had to settle for second place in the Las Vegas Stakes. But a victory in the Thomas and Mack Center is not outside Ehning’s grasp as he won the World Cup Final here in 2003.

Georgina Bloomberg proudly represented the United States by being the highest-placed American competitor. The daughter of the Mayor of New York City, Bloomberg clocked in at a time of 47.73 seconds to finish third riding Nadia, a 10-year-old Dutch Warmblood mare she has been partnered with for three years.

The top 16 riders in the $25,000 Las Vegas Stakes will compete in Friday evening’s $50,000 Knockout which sees riders race each other over identical courses until only two riders remain. Friday’s other featured event is the $75,000 Let It Ride, a traditional grand prix where all riders that jump clear in the first round advance to the jump-off.

Competition takes place from 7:30 to 10:30 p.m. on Friday and Saturday, and concludes with the spectacular $750,000 Las Vegas World Invitational Grand Prix. For the first time in the United States, fans can wager on the outcome of the $750,000 Las Vegas World Invitational Grand Prix on Saturday evening. The Las Vegas Hilton SuperBook® has set the odds, and World Cup Champion Meredith Michaels-Beerbaum, a California native now representing Germany, is the current favorite to emerge victorious at 2 to1.

CBS Sports will broadcast the Las Vegas World Invitational on New Year’s Eve, December 31. For more information on the CSI5* Las Vegas Invitational, including full results and to purchase tickets, please visit www.lasvegasworldinvitational.com.

 

 
Starting Gate Communications is one of the world’s largest full-service public relations companies specializing in equestrian sport, particularly the three Olympic disciplines of dressage, show jumping and three day eventing. With a wide variety of promotional services offered, Starting Gate Communications can spread the news about everything from horse show results to breeding information to product development. Simply put, if your business includes the horse industry, we will get you the recognition you deserve.
 

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