January 22, 2017 
First time at the Winter Equestrian Festival. First night class riding under the lights. First victory!
It was an evening of firsts for Enrique Gonzalez’s Chacna. The ten-year-old Hanoverian mare won Saturday night’s $86,000 Marshall & Sterling Insurance Grand Prix CSI 2* at the 2017 Winter Equestrian Festival (WEF) in Wellington, FL. U.S.
“The last year has been really good. She learned a lot, and she improved a lot,” said the Mexican Olympian.
“Now I think she is ready to really compete at this level. She has never shown here, and she has never shown in a night class in an open place like this. I really wanted her to go tonight to be ready for the coming weeks.”
It was also an evening of firsts for Gonzalez.
Of the eight horse and rider combinations to advance to the jump off, Gonzalez posted the first double clear round in 40.36 seconds to claim his first grand prix win at Palm Beach International Equestrian Center. He last competed at WEF in 2011.
“We are here for the whole season, so it is definitely a very nice way to start, and hopefully we can keep it up,” said Gonzalez.
Come April, the 52-year-old rider may be adding his first FEI World Cup Final to the list. He is currently leading the West Coast standings and is qualified to compete in Omaha.
Olympians Margie Engle and Laura Kraut rounded out the top three in the $86,000 Marshall & Sterling Insurance Grand Prix. Engle took second aboard Indigo. Kraut, third riding Nouvelle.
