Tom McEwen and Brookfield Future News. Photo by Leszek Wójcik / Strzegom October Festival.
Let’s head over to Poland as the eventing season comes to a close with the October Eventing Festival CCI4*-L (among other divisions). Saturday’s cross country leader, Tom McEwen and Brookfield Future News, needed the rail they had in hand but came away unchallenged for the win in the headline division.
Germany’s Ben Leuwer and Zuccini MN finished second on 44.2 penalties, while fellow German rider Nicolai Aldinger and Palm Beach took third place on 54.1 penalties.
For Tom, the weekend marked a milestone: his eighth four-star win of the season. This makes him the first rider to reach this mark since 2008, when the statistics began to be measured in earnest. He accomplished the feat with six different horses; three of the wins were at the CCI4*-L level, the other five at CCI4*-S. It speaks to the current depth and quality of his program, and the support he has behind him, to accomplish this feat — we just wrote yesterday about the rarity of opportunities to win at the level in our sport. It’s nearing the end of the 2026 road for Tom and team; he’s got a horse entered at Pau in a couple of weeks as the season begins to wind down in earnest.
Major International Event Results
Strzegom October Festival CCI4*-L (Poland): [Website] [Scores] [ClipMyHorse.TV Live Stream Replays]
U.S. Weekend Event Results
Morven Park Fall International + US Equestrian Open of Eventing Final (VA): [Website] [US Equestrian Open] [4*-S/4*-L Scores] [Full Scores] [ClipMyHorse.TV Live Stream Replays] [EN’s Coverage]
Redefined H.T. (CO): [Website] [Scores]
In the News
Lara De Liedekerke – Meier (BEL) and Tara Van Het Leliehof winners of the FEI WBFSH Eventing World Breeding Championship 2025 for 6 year olds – Lion D’Angers (FRA) © FEI/ PSV
The FEI WBFSH Eventing World Breeding Championship for Young Horses kicks off this week in France at Mondial du Lion. It’s a real fall festival event that’s a popular stop among the European-based pros and a traveling American as a developmental stop for 6- and 7-year-old horses. Many a future success (the name Lordship’s Graffalo ring a bell? He competed at Le Lion as a 7-year-old) has come through the Le Lion pipeline.
The U.S. has two riders in the CCI3*-L for 7-year-olds in Hallie Coon with Tykillen Tango and Phillip Dutton with Darwinn, supported on the trip by the Holekamp/Turner Grant and Dutta Corp. Prize. Canada’s Mike Winter has a 7-year-old entry as well in Billy Debussy.
[View the 6-year-old CCI2*-L entries] [View the 7-year-old entries CCI3*-L]
Action begins on Thursday and each phase for both divisions will be live streamed on ClipMyHorse.TV here (membership required).
Other News
- Morgan Houberg and MHE Excel Star Noble Ikon Win USEA/USEF 6-Year-Old Developing Horse National Championship at Morven Park
- California-based Amber Birtcil and Orpheus Win USEA/USEF 7-Year-Old Developing Horse National Championship
- Eighteen National Championship Titles Awarded across 2026 USEF Eventing National Championships League and USEA/USEF Developing Horse National Championships
- We’ve launched a new series of free Quick Guides all focusing on the small decisions we can make to do right by our horses. This project is in partnership with Sentinel Horse Nutrition and features our newly crowned US Equestrian Open champion Sharon White. You can download your free first edition Quick Guide here.
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Suggested Reading & Listening
- ‘Priceless was perfection; he didn’t deviate an inch right or left’: how Ginny Elliot’s legendary eventer mastered the trickiest tracks in the world
- Allie Knowles on the Jon & Rick Show
Coaching Corner
- Two steps forward, one step back: improve your horse’s balance and responsiveness with this simple walk and rein-back exercise
- Do You Know the Difference Between Contact and Connection?
Go Eventing
Here’s a video that should get your traffic! NBC Sports has released a highlight video from this summer’s FEI Eventing World Championships, and the views on this are valuable to demonstrate equestrian sports’ reach and popularity. Make sure to watch and share the video above to help those traffic numbers show the major networks that our sports deserve their limelight.
[Look back on World Championships]
