No Stirrup, No Problem for James Chawke in the Keg Qualifier CSI 3* at Tbird

By Jumper News on 2024-08-17

Langley, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada – August 16, 2024 – As James Chawke (IRL) went over his plan for the jump-off with Nacara van Berkenbroek Z in the $31,100 Keg Qualifier CSI 3* 1.50m, his peers surmised that the winner would do eight strides to the final fence.

Then Chawke lost a stirrup.

**James Chawke** (IRL) & **Nacara van Berkenbroek Z**

Working with Conor Swail (IRL), known for his own frequent acrobatics on course, it’s no surprise that Chawke could navigate his plan with one less iron on course—and his time proved good enough to claim a third international victory in the last two weeks at tbird.

What’s more impressive is that Chawke managed to win with one stirrup while on the mend from a myriad of serious injuries, including one to his groin.

“I tore my groin in January, and I was managing it for a while. And then after [tbird’s Canadian Premier and Odlum Brown BC Open] in May, I went back to Calgary, and I had a fall on a different horse and fractured my knee and separated my shoulder,” Chawke revealed. “Then I MRI’d my groin and found out that it was tearing off the bone.”

Chawke stepped away from the saddle for eight weeks before returning to competition last week. So far, he’s holding up well, with superior results helping make up for lost time.

And he certainly lost no time in Friday’s jump-off, besting the 11 other combinations that advanced to Joey Rycroft’s (CAN) short course; the winning time was 30.08 seconds. Last to go, Katie Laurie (AUS) came closest with Cera Caruso (30.51s).

She was followed by Tiffany Foster (CAN) and Battlecry (30.86s). The top three were separated by less than a second.

“Tiffany and Katie are both fast, and both of [their] horses are quick,” Chawke said. “I was second the other day to [Laurie], I figured if she did the same [strides] as me it would be tight.”

Friday’s victory marks the first FEI win at 1.50m for the 11-year-old Nacara, who is owned by Alison Locke, a friend of his wife, Jacqueline. Chawke has been riding the gelding for the better part of the last two years but only began trying bigger fences over the course of the winter season.

“I was never sure how big he could jump, so in January we decided to see if he would jump 1.40m and then since then he’s won a couple of 1.45m [classes],” Chawke shared. “He won at the four-star level [at the Odlum Brown BC Open], and he won a $100,000 [Grand Prix] at Del Mar.”

A three-star Grand Prix start might be next for the bay, as Chawke plans to enter him in Sunday’s ATCO Cup CSI 3*.

“He has a nice character. He can be a little bit nervous, which you can even see when you ride him,” Chawke described. “That’s a little bit the type he is, but he’s very easy to deal with…He’s been great.”