Michelle Gibson riding Don Angelo for owner Terri Kane claimed a double victory at the Wellington Classic Holiday Challenge, held December 15-16 at the Jim Brandon Equestrian Center in Wellington, Florida, winning both the Prix St. Georges and the Intermediaire I.

Don Angelo, a 16.2-hand, seven-year-old Oldenburg stallion, won the FEI Prix St. Georges on Saturday with a score of 72.50% and followed that up with a win on Sunday in the FEI Intermediaire I, scoring 68.50% in his debut performance at this level. FEI International (I) judge Natalie Lamping officiated.

Gibson, a member of the Bronze Medal Team at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, is based at Terri and Dick Kane's Diamante Farms in Wellington, and has had the ride on Don Angelo for two years. In 2006, the duo finished as Reserve Champion in the Eastern Markel/USEF Young Horse Dressage Selection Trials for Six Year Olds and earlier this year they won the 2007 USEF National Developing Horse Dressage Championship sponsored by the Dutta Corporation and Performance Sales International. Gibson is aiming Don Angelo for the 2008 USEF National Intermediaire I Championship.

The Wellington show was Don Angelo's first outing since the Developing Horse Championship in September. "I wanted to get him in the ring again and do his first I-I. The I-I was really the whole point," explained Gibson. Describing her horse's performances over the weekend, Gibson said, "In the Prix St. Georges, he was really super - in front of my leg, listening, everything was just right there. For the I-I, it was his first time and he was good. He was a little bit tired because it was the second day, but he still stepped up to the challenge. I had two small mistakes, but I'm thrilled with the score that we received from Natalie Lamping."

Gibson noted that Don Angelo's strong points in the Intermediaire I proved to be in the canter tour, despite a small mistake in the two tempis. "He has such an uphill, beautiful canter and the changes are really pretty," Gibson enthused. "In the pirouettes he sits and carries and makes a really nice canter pirouette. Even the extension - he's uphill, bounding, ground-covering. We get a lot of points there. Overall it went very well. I could not have expected more."