Press release from Starting Gate Communications 

Canada’s Eric Lamaze has announced the sale of Quality FZ, a 10-year-old bay Italian Sport Horse gelding (Quintender x Eurocommerce Berlin). Moving from one Olympic champion to another, Quality FZ will leave the stables of Lamaze, the 2008 Olympic show jumping champion, for those of Rodrigo Pessoa, individual gold medalist at the 2004 Athens Olympic Games.

Under the ownership of Ansgar and Ellen Holtgers’ Gut Einhaus LLC, in partnership with Lamaze’s Torrey Pines Stable, Lamaze began showing Quality FZ in five-star competition during the 2018 Spruce Meadows ‘Summer Series’ in Calgary, AB.  The pair then competed successfully in Europe at such venues as CHIO Aachen, Germany, and the CSI5* Brussels Masters in Belgium before Torrey Pine Stable’s professional rider, Spencer Smith, took over the ride. Smith and Quality FZ most recently competed together throughout the 12-week Winter Equestrian Festival in Wellington, FL, scoring a second-place finish in the $134,000 CSI3* Grand Prix during week six.

The horse has now been purchased by Artemis Equestrian for Pessoa as a potential mount for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

“I first noticed the horse last year when he jumped the five-star grand prix with Eric [at the Brussels Masters], then I followed him for a couple of months as I was looking for a prospect for this year and next year,” explained Pessoa, a three-time Olympic medalist for Brazil and the 1998 World Show Jumping Champion. “In the months that we have been watching the horse down in Florida, we could see that Spencer was doing a good job bringing the horse along.

“Artemis Equestrian, long-time supporters of the sport, purchased the horse,” continued Pessoa, 46. “I am really excited for the opportunity and to embark on this new adventure. We’ll get started and hopefully everything will fall into place for the Olympics next year. I’m very excited about the future with him.”

“It was a difficult decision to make as the horse has proven itself to be an exciting prospect for the top level of our sport,” said Lamaze, an Olympic individual gold and bronze medalist as well as a team silver medalist. “While we wrestled with the decision to sell, Rodrigo really loved the horse and we are pleased that Quality will be continuing his career with someone who has the ability to bring the horse to its full potential. We wish Rodrigo and Quality great success together.”

Lamaze’s Torrey Pines Stable and Gut Einhaus LLC of Wellington, FL, own several other horses in partnership together including Idee-Fixe d’Exaerde, an 11-year-old Belgian Warmblood mare (Deauville de la Vie x Toulon); Bonnie M Z, a 10-year-old bay Zangersheide gelding (Bentley van de Heffinck x Berlin); Firkov du Rouet, a nine-year-old chestnut Dutch Warmblood stallion (Baloubet du Rouet x Voltaire); and the exciting young prospect Storiall Blue, a seven-year-old bay Hanoverian gelding (Stakkato x Chacco-Blue).

“Our relationship started when Ellen and Ansgar’s son, Angsi, began training with me in Europe in the fall of 2017,” said Lamaze. “We have grown together from there. Our partnership has expanded into purchasing talent for the top end of our sport and that’s where we will continue to focus.”