Lexington, KY—November 17, 2004—The Gold, Silver and Bronze Medal winners in Eventing at the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens are all “graduates” of the Rolex Kentucky Three-Day Event presented by Bayer. Held annually at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington the last weekend in April, the Kentucky Three-Day is organized by Equestrian Events, Inc. (EEI), a non-profit charitable corporation created in 1975 to stage the 1978 World Three-Day Event Championships. Following the success of those World Championships, the U.S. national federation asked EEI to organize an annual Three-Day Event in the spring and the Kentucky Three-Day Event was born.

Athens Olympic Individual Gold Medal winners Leslie Law of Great Britain and Shear L’Eau, owned by the Shearwater Insurance Syndicate and Jeremy Lawton of Great Britain, contested their first Four Star Three-Day Event (CCI****) at Rolex Kentucky in 2002, finishing in 7th place. They then went on to place 5th in the Burghley Masterfoods CCI**** in England in September 2002. The pair returned to Kentucky in 2003, advancing to a 5th place finish in the Four Star Event.

Steady, solid, honest and, after two years at Kentucky, thoroughly experienced, Shear L’Eau put it all together for his rider in Athens.

For U.S. rider Kim Severson and Plain Dealing Farm’s Winsome Adante, Individual Silver Medallists at Athens, Rolex Kentucky 2002 was their first Four Star Three-Day Event also. In 2001, this pair was 2nd at the CCI*** Foxhall Cup in April and impressive winners of the CCI*** at Blenheim (ENG) in September. The Event Director and Course Designer at Blenheim is Mike Etherington-Smith, Course Designer for Kentucky since 1993.

Severson and “Dan” won Rolex Kentucky 2002 and following a frightening 2003 when Kim broke her leg and Dan survived colic surgery while in England, the two returned to Kentucky to capture the Rolex Trophy at the Four Star level for a second time.

Pippa Funnell of Great Britain, an experienced rider at the Four Star level, brought the young Primmore’s Pride, her eventual 2004 Olympic Bronze Medal Winner, to Rolex Kentucky in 2003. Owned by Mr. and Mrs. Roger Lincoln and Metier Consulting of Great Britain,

Primmore’s Pride had placed 6th in his first Four Star at Burghley in 2002, but came of age at Rolex Kentucky 2004, capturing the title of Rolex Champion. The pair then went on to win at Burghley in the fall.

Pippa’s win on Supreme Rock at Badminton (they also were Badminton winners in 2003) the weekend following Kentucky, and her two wins on Primmore’s Pride, enabled her to become the first winner of the Rolex Grand Slam of Eventing, which awards $250,000 to the rider who wins, consecutively, Rolex Kentucky, Badminton and Burghley.