Courtney King Announces Harmony Sporthorses as New Owners of Her Dressage Grand Prix Mount - Name Changed to Harmony's Mythilus

Courtney King has announced that Harmony Sporthorses purchased her Grand Prix mount previously owned by Richard Malloch and renamed him Harmony's Mythilus. __The transaction took place in December while King and Harmony's Mythilus were in Germany training with U.S. Dressage Chef d'Equipe Klaus Balkenhol. King is preparing the 13-year-old Dutch Warmblood gelding for the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games Selection Trials.__King has been riding Mythilus for Malloch, an amateur dressage rider, for two years. "Richard Malloch had originally found and purchased 'Myth' as his own mount, but fully supported me riding him exclusively when it appeared that we had a good chance to make the Pan Am team last year," King explained. "Then in Europe this fall, when it was clear that 'Myth' is a candidate for the 2008 Olympics, Rich decided that he is actually a professional's international horse rather than an amateur's mount, so he decided to sell him, with the caveat that the new owners would allow me to remain the rider."__With support from Malloch, King and Mythilus made their show ring debut in Florida at the 2007 Winter Equestrian Festival, competing in small tour classes. The duo also traveled to California where they trained with Steffen Peters and participated in the Festival of the Horse CDI-W/Y, sweeping the small tour classes. By June 2007, King and Mythilus were ranked as the number one duo in the nation for the USEF National Intermediaire I Championship/Pan American Games Selection Trials. With Malloch's blessing, King did not compete in the Trials, but moved Mythilus up to the Grand Prix. With Malloch's support, Mythilus competed at six shows as a Grand Prix horse over a period of six months, including in the U.S. at Windy Hollow Hunt, NJ; Centerline Events, Saugerties, NY; and Dressage at Devon, PA; plus in Europe at Stuttgart and Frankfurt in Germany and Hengelo in The Netherlands. __King expressed her appreciation of Malloch's support saying, "It was incredibly astute and generous and just good of Richard Malloch to want us to be able to reach our potential and he fully supported us for two years. I'm grateful to Rich for the past two years of support as well as his sacrifice in selling the horse so that I could take him as far as we can go."

After her stint in Europe, King brought Harmony's Mythilus and her other mounts to Florida for the winter season and the qualifiers for the 2008 World Cup Dressage Final and the 2008 Olympic Games Selection Trials. __Harmony's Mythilus started his 2008 season in the United States at the Gold Coast Opener Festival CDI-W/CDI-Y Presented by Collecting Gaits Farm on January 25-27 in West Palm Beach, Florida. In the FEI Grand Prix CDI, King and Harmony's Mythilus scored 71.125% for second place, earning the distinction of being the highest placed American duo in the field of 29 horses representing five countries. King also competed Harmony's Mythilus in the Grand Prix Special in the national segment of the show, winning the FEI Test of Choice class with a score of 69.800%, topping a field of 17 horses.__"He's definitely far more confirmed in the Grand Prix now. I can trust him much more in the ring," King said. "At the end of our stay in Germany, I had him very amplified and now I've let that down a little. I don't want to use him up. If all goes well, then it would be too long to go between Germany, Florida, California, and then the Olympics - that's eight solid months and I don't want to keep him that amped up because he couldn't possibly sustain it."__King noted, "It's an exciting time in Myth's career. I'm very grateful to Richard Malloch for his generous support during the past two years that enabled us to be where we are today." __King expressed her appreciation of her new owners saying, "Harmony Sporthorses stepped straight up to the plate and bought 'Myth' with the purpose of an international horse for me. They're ready for all of that support. I'm so pleased that my new owners, John and Leslie Malone of Harmony Sporthorses, will be a part of this talented horse's career. I'm grateful to them for giving me this opportunity with Harmony's Mythilus." __Harmony Sporthorses, based in Kiowa, Colorado, breeds and imports horses for amateur and professional horsemen. Harmony Sporthorses previously sponsored King's purchase of Harmony's Wyoming, a seven-year-old Hanoverian gelding.