From Andre Thieme’s first canter stride aboard Chakaria there was no mistaking that he was going for the win in the Great American $1 Million Grand Prix, held March 28 at HITS Ocala in Ocala, Florida. The chestnut mare locked onto the first fence as she took large, attacking strides.
The 11-year-old German Sport Horse (Chap 47—Askaria 3, Askari 173) never backed off throughout the short course, contorting herself at times to keep her hooves above the rails. It proved to be the winning effort, and with that victory, the German rider claimed his fourth $1 million grand prix.
“Now that I’ve won this class four times, it’s just unbelievable to me,” Thieme said. “I would have never thought that it is possible, but I have a superstar horse for the first time in my life, and it’s just so much easier with that kind of a horse.”
Thieme has been paired with the mare for about 1½ years.
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“I couldn’t believe my luck that for the first time in my life I was a little bit quicker than someone else buying the horse,” he said. “She is fast, sound, a fighter, careful and scopey—I don’t know how to start and how to end, she’s just an amazing horse.”
Watch their winning round, courtesy of ShowhorseTV:
