Eight-time Canadian Olympian Ian Millar gives a riding lesson to BMO Financial Group contest winner, Krista Rivet of Oshawa, Ontario, on Friday, September 7, during the 2007 Spruce Meadows "Masters" Tournament. Photo by Cealy Tetley, www.tetleyphoto.com

September 7, 2007 – Calgary, Alberta – Show jumping fan Krista Rivet of Oshawa, Ontario, rode with Canadian show jumping legend Ian Millar on Friday after winning the BMO Financial Group Spruce Meadows contest that included a riding lesson with the eight-time Olympian.

The 18-year-old's name was selected from among 65,793 entries received from across the country. BMO launched the contest in 2005 as part of its long-standing support of show jumping in Canada and to coincide with the BMO Nations’ Cup at Spruce Meadows, AB. A trip for two to this year’s Spruce Meadows “Masters” Tournament, including two seats in the BMO Skybox during the $350,000 BMO Nations’ Cup on Saturday, September 8, was also part of the grand prize.

When Rivet received the news that she had won the contest, she could hardly contain her excitement. "It was hard to believe at first," said the young woman who began taking weekly riding lessons five years ago at a local stable. "It is pretty amazing. Ian is my riding hero."

Although Rivet has just begun her studies at the University of Guelph, where she is majoring in English, she doesn't mind taking a short break to visit Spruce Meadows in person, having watched the "Masters" Tournament on television for many years.

As the founding sponsor of Spruce Meadows, BMO Financial Group has a long and proud history of supporting equestrian sport in Canada. Since 1977, BMO has sponsored the BMO Nations’ Cup at Spruce Meadows. This year’s $350,000 BMO Nations’ Cup brings together teams from Canada, Great Britain, Germany, the Netherlands, Switzerland and the United States to compete in the richest team show jumping event in the world on Saturday, September 8.

BMO Financial Group employs more than 2,300 people in Alberta who provide personal, commercial and corporate customers, with expertise in many areas, including agriculture, oil and gas, corporate banking, international finance and wealth management. BMO Bank of Montreal has 106 branches in Alberta, of which 23 are In-Store branches in Canada Safeway.