JustWorld Rider Representative Eric Lamaze Wins in Wellington

February 26, 2005 – Wellington, Florida – JustWorld International Rider Representative Eric Lamaze enjoyed victory two days in a row at the CSI*** Wellington Masters running February 23-27 at the 2005 Winter Equestrian Festival in Wellington, FL.

Hot off a victory in Wednesday’s 1.45m competition riding Pulque, Lamaze returned to the Internationale Arena on Thursday to claim the $25,000 WEF Challenge Cup Series V with Tempete v/h Lindehof. Despite being the first of 61 riders to tackle the course set by Olympic designer Leopoldo Palacios of Venezuela, Lamaze posted a clear round to advance to the eight-horse jump-off where he was again clear in a time of 43.36 seconds. None who followed were able to catch his time, leaving Lamaze in the winner’s circle with Tempete v/h Lindehof, a nine-year-old black Belgian Warmblood gelding by Darco.

“Tempete showed the first two weeks of the Winter Equestrian Festival and then had two weeks off, so he was fresh and jumped really well,” said Lamaze, 36, who hails from Schomberg, Canada, and was the first alternate for the 2004 Athens Olympics with Tempete v/h Lindehof. “The course was hard enough; the time was short and there was a difficult line to finish. I thought my time was beatable in the jump-off even though I had made Tempete go fast enough to take some chances, and it ended up that no one could catch me. With a win here, as well as winning on Wednesday with Pulque and also being second in Saturday’s $20,000 1.50m Classic with Hickstead, it has been a good week.”

In addition to winning the $25,000 WEF Challenge Cup Series V class with Tempete v/h Lindehof for owner Ashland Stables Inc., Lamaze also advanced to the jump-off with the nine-year-old Belgian Warmblood mare, Laurain Z, finishing seventh overall. If called on to defend Canada’s victory in the Samsung Nations’ Cup on Friday, March 11, Lamaze will choose between the two horses, just as he has his choice of horses to ride in the 2005 Budweiser World Cup Final in Las Vegas, NV, from April 20-24.

Lamaze became a Rider Representative for JustWorld International last winter in Wellington, FL, but, instead of donating a portion of his prize money as most riders choose to do, Lamaze makes one large annual donation, assuring his contribution to the not-for-profit, humanitarian organization founded to prepare and empower students to become visionary leaders and work for social justice by assisting orphans and underprivileged children.

“I believe in the cause and I think that it is a positive for any rider associated with it,” says Lamaze, who has represented Canada at the past three consecutive World Equestrian Games. “Show jumping is providing us with a good life, and I think that what Jessica is doing is commendable. We are more fortunate in many ways, but it is also important to remember that the horse community contains many hard working people.”

Lamaze’s win continues a string of success for JustWorld International Rider Representatives at the 2005 Winter Equestrian Festival. Ireland’s Kevin Babington and Carling King enjoyed a second place finish in the $60,000 Idle Dice Classic Grand Prix on February 20, the same result Cayce Harrison had one week earlier when she was the runner-up in the $50,000 Kilkenny Internationale Cup Grand Prix riding Coeur.

“With a contribution of $20,000 in January, Eric helped us to kick off the 2005 season with renewed energy and enthusiasm,” noted JustWorld International Executive Director Jessica Newman. “Now he is on a roll, following the lead of fellow ambassadors Kevin Babington and Cayce Harrison who have both enjoyed great grand prix results in recent weeks. I am not sure if the secret of our success is that the JustWorld International Advisory Board selects naturally talented athletes to be our Rider Representatives, or if it is because all of our rider ambassadors have that little extra spark and motivation to win, knowing that their prize money will help to support JustWorld International programs for orphans, street kids and underprivileged children in the developing countries where we work. Either way, I am very happy to see everyone excelling and contributing to the success of JustWorld International.”

JustWorld International Rider Representatives include Angela Covert of Canada, Kevin Babington of Ireland, Christophe Barbeau of Switzerland, Marcus Fuchs of Switzerland, Herve Godignon of France, Imke Hofschroer of Germany, Eric Lamaze of Canada, Rutherford Latham of Spain, Olivier Guillon of France, Candice King of the United States, Titi Mills of Honduras, Eric Navet of France, Ludo Philippaerts of Belgium, Ray Texel of the United States and Gregory Wathelet of Belgium. Through various initiatives, including donating a portion of their prize money or giving clinics to benefit JustWorld International, riders are able to support the organization’s projects and programs.

Founded in 2002, JustWorld International offers fellowship programs for students from around the globe to learn leadership skills and acquire the tools necessary to make a positive difference in the world. With three project sites located in Cambodia, Honduras and Senegal, students are working for change in a wide variety of environments on behalf of JustWorld International. For more information on JustWorld International, please visit www.justworldinternational.org.