September 12, 2016 
The $3 Million CP International Grand Prix at the Spruce Meadows’ Masters Tournament in Calgary on Sunday was hard. Really hard.
Despite a star-studded line-up that featured no fewer than 17 Olympians, only 24 of the 38 starters managed to complete Leopoldo Palacios’s demanding course. The vast majority of them—all but seven, in fact—faulted at the triple. An oxer-vertical-vertical combination with double liverpools set directly in front of the in-gate.
It was a question 29 horse and rider combinations failed to answer. Why did it prove so challenging? Palacios isn’t sure.
“I don’t know what happened today. That was not what I expected,” said the perplexed course designer.
Palacios has used the same combination, with the same materials, and in the same position in the ring in the past without issue. He questioned whether the natural elements came into play.
“I think, in the world, show jumpers today do not jump many natural fences. This is a problem. The sport is very far from its roots. I believe that it is very important to maintain the roots of the sport. I use the natural elements every year and in different ways,” he shared.
Whether it was the liverpools, inclement weather conditions, or something else entirely, he could only say he was disappointed that it proved so problematic.
“I don’t know what happened today. I don’t know if it was the rain or the shadows. I don’t have a good explanation,” continued Palacios.
“I want to be clear that I am not happy with what happened. But at the end I think we had a very good grand prix. I think the competition today was beautiful except for the problem on the liverpools.”
To be fair, this combination was not the only fence to catch out riders. Rails fell all over the course in the first round, from the first jump to the last.
The second round proved less problematic, despite a tough track. Of the top 12 who qualified for Round II, four finished on four faults, one a time fault and four more jumped clear.
“That means I have 70% of the entry with only one pole,” stated Palacios.
Historically, the CP International has been a notoriously difficult course. In the event’s 40-year history, there have only been three jump offs. Sunday’s winner, Scott Brash (GBR), managed to produce three clear rounds aboard Ursula XII, capturing victory for the second year in a row.
He thought it was an appropriately demanding track given the caliber of the class.
“When we come to Spruce Meadows, we know what we are in for. It is the richest grand prix in the world, and it should be difficult. We know that those double of ditches are going to be in there,” said Brash.
“So yes, you do still need a special horse to be able to jump that combination. That is probably what happened today. Okay, maybe the conditions didn’t help. At the end of it, it is all very hard, but we expect it to be hard. It shouldn’t be easy.”
He noted that course designer Frank Rothenberger of the Aachen Grand Prix came under what he felt was unfair criticism earlier this year when there were no clears in the first round.
USA’s McLain Ward, the only other rider to post two fault-free rounds, called the second round “brilliant.”
“No one wants to see some spills like we saw in the triple. But also we’re having too many classes with 12, 14, 16 clear, 12 double clears in Nations Cup. Can you imagine being the three riders in the Olympic jump off who didn’t get a medal? That’s a lot of jumping,” said Ward.
“You always want to put the horsemanship first. But as Scott said, there has to be enough of a challenge that it still is a challenge.”
Ward feels that at the elite level, both horse and rider should rise to the occasion and show brilliance, not go in the ring and “just hope you don’t have an unlucky four faults.”
“That’s always a fine line and once in a while you’re going to have a situation like the triple. Maybe it slightly crosses the line. Maybe it has something to do with the conditions. I think we’re having too many competitions where it’s a given that there are 15, 16 clears and the second round is the competition,” said the three-time Olympic medalist.
“That’s not in the interests of our sport, in my opinion.”
