120 SIDELINES MARCH 2014
FOR HORSE PEOPLE • ABOUT HORSE PEOPLE
e
There’s No
Place Like
Home
By Brianne Goutal
As much as I love competing at home in the United
States, traveling to Europe is a necessity in order to climb
the ranks of international show jumping. I enjoy traveling
around the world to compete, and my experiences have
shown me that show jumping in Europe differs from
American horse shows in various ways.
Although we have a strong fan base in the United States,
the majority of Americans think of equestrian sports only
during the Olympics. Television networks are just starting
to catch on with carriers like NBC Sports showing the
American Gold Cup and the Rolex Grand Prix of Geneva,
but we have a long way to go to make show jumping a
mainstay in American homes. Europeans, on the other
hand, have long been fans of equestrian sports and fill
the stadiums for grand prix on a regular basis. The large
crowds create a highly charged atmosphere that the horse
and rider can draw from in the ring.
Outside of the winter months when the top U.S. and
There’s nothing like winning at home! Brianne shows off her trophy after
winning the $200,000 American Gold Cup Grand Prix at the American
Gold Cup at Old Salem Farm in North Salem, New York
Photo by Carrie Wirth
Continued on page 122
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