February 1, 2005 – Wellington, Florida – Canada’s Cheryl Meisner opened the 2005 competition season by celebrating her first Grand Prix victory at the Gold Coast Opener Festival held January 21 to 23 in Wellington, Florida.

The 23-year-old native of Halifax, Nova Scotia, won the Open Grand Prix Special with a score of 62.160% riding Hesperos, an eleven-year-old German Trakehner gelding that was purchased last fall in Spain by her sponsor, Lobster Point Farms. While they have only been partnered together for three months, Meisner and Hesperos have quickly formed a strong bond.

“It was only our fourth show together, and it was the first test we rode in competition that had no mistakes,” explained Meisner, who says the horse’s greatest strength is his tempi changes, a movement that gives the illusion that the horse is skipping. “I was really excited when I finished!”

“At the show, he was quiet and very relaxed,” continued Meisner. “He seemed to enjoy being around so many other horses in such a busy environment. My goal with Hesperos is to successfully compete at the Grand Prix level and feel confident in taking him back to Europe.”

Meisner trains with Bert Rutten of the Netherlands, considered one of the top dressage trainers in the world. After spending April to November of last year based with Rutten, Meisner plans to return to the Netherlands following the Florida circuit to continue training in the hopes of qualifying as a member of the Canadian Dressage Team for the 2006 World Equestrian Games in Aachen, Germany.

Having only made her debut at the Olympic level of Grand Prix last season, Meisner is quickly becoming one of Canada’s top international contenders. Incredibly, Meisner has only been training in the equestrian sport of dressage for the past three years and is one of the youngest Canadian athletes competing at the grand prix level.