Even if you’re not a gambler, per se, Conor Swail is as good a bet as any you could make in a jump-off round.
In the last decade, the rider for Ireland has taken home a total of 36 international grands prix wins at all levels, ranking him seventh in the world according to Jumpr. When you narrow that window to the last 365 days, Swail’s ranking jumps to no. 2.
Even a betting person might be surprised to learn, though, that for all his practice climbing those two big steps to the top of the podium, even Swail was overcome with emotion after taking home the CSI5* 1.60m ATCO Queen Elizabeth Cup with Count Me In on Saturday, July 6 at Spruce Meadows in Alberta, Canada.
“Honestly, what that horse has done for me is just incredible. The highlight reel for me is basically him in my career,” Swail said of the 17-year-old Hanoverian gelding who came onto his string three years ago.
On Saturday, the pair’s jump-off time of 39.29 seconds gave Swail the edge over Canada’s Amy Millar with Truman on 40.85 seconds. The USA’s Nick Dello Joio was third aboard Cornet’s Cambridge with one rail down (36.79 seconds).
“[Count Me In] went through a little bad patch last year where we weren’t that comfortable jumping bigger,” Swail explained. “And then, we’ve just built him back up nicely. And honestly, he feels as good as ever.”
Count Me In has earned more than $1,381,000 in prize money and seven grand prix wins with Swail—among them Longines FEI World Cup qualifiers in Fort Worth, Texas; the Washington International Horse Show; and Las Vegas.
On Swail’s string, he comes second only to Vital Chance De La Rogue’s 10 grand prix victories, but Count Me In tops the charts with 26 wins overall. In other words, the gelding has always been competitive, and his stats, like his rider’s, have been climbing in the last 365 days.
In six rounds at 1.55m-1.60m, Swail & “Crosby” jump clear at 67%, also finishing in the top-10 67% of the time. That’s an improvement on the pair’s previous numbers, where they’ve averaged 45% clear rounds at 1.60m, and 37% at 1.55m, finishing in the top-10 at 66% (1.60m) and 37% (1.55m), respectively.
And this particular win at Spruce Meadows is likely extra-special for Swail for a couple of reasons. For one, he gets to add his name to that prestigious list of winners of the ATCO Queen Elizabeth II Cup (the USA’s Kent Farrington and Beezie Madden each have three titles; Canada’s Eric Lamaze has five).
What’s more: for all his winning ways, Spruce has, for the most part, remained an elusive venue for Swail.
Of his 36 international wins at circuits including Wellington, Florida; Lexington, Kentucky; and of course, Thunderbird in Langley, B.C.—where he is the show park’s winningest rider—only one other grand prix victory has occurred at Spruce Meadows. That would be the $500,000 RBC Grand Prix way back in 2016, where Swail and Martha Louise took top honors.
Eight years on, there’s no denying that this particular win, on this particular horse, is a big one for Conor Swail. “No words for you Crosby,” he wrote on Instagram after the class. “Thank you to the team behind this once in a lifetime horse.”