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Sally Spickard

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About Sally Spickard

Sally Spickard is a Korean adoptee living in San Diego, California. Sally joined the Eventing Nation team in 2013 and has subsequently written for Noelle Floyd, Heels Down Mag, and other publications both in and out of the equestrian world. Sally is an eventing fan through and through and enjoys telling the stories of riders who are not well-represented within equestrian media.

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Tamie Smith and Danito One-Two Step into US Equestrian Open of Eventing Final Lead at Morven Park

By on Oct 9, 2026 7:19 pm -

Tamie Smith and Danito. Photo by Haley Boothe / Impulsion Media.

It’s a fitting start to competition at the US Equestrian Open of Eventing Final at Morven Park (Leesburg, VA) as we conclude dressage this afternoon with Series winner Tamie Smith and Ruth Bley’s Danito in firm command of this $200,000 CCI4*-L. With the order of go weighted in rank of the Series leaderboard, it was an all out dance battle the closer we got to the end of the day. Tamie eased in front of Sharon White’s leading score of 26.0 on Claus 63 early on in her test and never relinquished it, earning four 9s and a healthy number of 8s on a day when 7.5s and 8s were more the tune of the day. In the end, Tamie and Danito would exit the arena on a Morven Park record of 22.8 and a lead to defend.

Danito is one horse that helped Tamie Smith win this year’s US Equestrian Open of Eventing Series, a season-long pathway of CCI4*-S qualifiers from which a rider’s top six scores are counted towards Series points. At the end of the Series and just before this weekend’s Final, the points leaders are awarded chunks of an additional cash prize — $25,000 in Tamie’s case, with 265 total accumulated. Two of Tamie’s counting results — a win at Tryon International (NC) in May and again at Twin Rivers (CA) in September — came aboard Danito.

In a way that describes Danito’s steady role on Tamie’s string through the years. Many an eventing fan will be well familiar with Danito, who may have floated along in the public eye somewhat in the shadows of the great Mai Baum but has maintained his own string of impressive results dating all the way back to 2019, when he debuted at the four-star level on the podium at Twin Rivers. He’s not had all full seasons at the level in the intervening years, at times due to injuries, at others simply because the pressure was taken off for a spell. Really, the lack of ongoing wear and tear, the intentional application and release of pressure, is a big factor in itself in terms Danito’s longevity.

Tamie Smith and Danito. Photo by Haley Boothe / Impulsion Media.

“I think that’s kind of the theme of my program — I don’t know that it’s rocket science,” Tamie said. The result, in this case, being a 17-year-old horse that’s still pulling scores equal or better than the last time he competed at this 4*-L level (2021 — his last run at this level was at Boekelo that year, where he finished 10th).

“As him and I have both aged, I think we’ve just gotten a little bit more of the feeling of what it’s like to be in the ring and comfortable and just the harmony of it,” Tamie elaborated. “So I think that’s what you’re probably seeing.”

“I’m really particular about paying attention to the horses and knowing when to keep the gas pedal on and when to take it off,” she said of her program in general. “I kind of pride my program on that. We let the horses tell us, and it’s just something I think is really important to do for the horses, for everything they do for us, that we try to listen to them. So as he’s had little things here and there, we’ve backed off and when he’s felt great then we’ve pressed on.”

It was a day when we were truly treated to some quality tests, and our judging panel of Peter Gray (CAN), Bea di Grazia (USA) and Christian Steiner (AUT) were happy to reward what they saw. Both Tamie and second-placed Sharon White with Claus 63 earned scores more than 3 penalties better than their incoming 6 Run Average. Sharon’s 26.0 didn’t quite best her 25.2 from this event last year, but in many ways it was an even stronger test than its predecessor. Sharon credits today’s success with being present — something she’s always been vocal about prioritizing, though like for all of us it’s a challenge to achieve.

Sharon White and Claus 63. Photo by Haley Boothe / Impulsion Media.

“[Claus] was like, ‘I’m just so glad she decided just to be normal!'” Sharon laughed after her ride. “I just went in there and tried to be with him…I’m really thrilled with him.”

Sharon’s coming into this week after a less than ideal summer that saw a knee injury force her to withdraw Claus from Bromont’s 4*-L, which she’d been leading after dressage. But she’s spent the last few months getting stronger in an intensive rehab program and now says her knee is feeling better than ever (she did have one Ian Stark trot Claus up yesterday since running would be a silly way to re-aggravate that knee). She’s also coming in with some business to settle after coming to grief at the coffin last year and losing out on what could have been a podium finish. That’s been somewhat the theme with Claus, who is 14 this year and who’s had some brilliant results at this level and a top 10 finish at Kentucky’s CCI5*, but also some real heartbreakers. Sharon tries to navigate these highs and lows with a sense of curiosity, always believing the big result is in the tank.

“I’m fascinated,” she said. “What makes them tick? How can you make them better? How can you make them physically better, mentally better and stronger? And that is all horsemanship. If your horsemanship is good, they’re going to perform better.”

“He is my Thelwell pony,” she described of Claus. “He is absolutely the most athletic horse I’ve ever ridden and he’s so fun to ride, and then mentally he will just disappear for a second or two! I’m really hoping I can keep it together this year but he feels amazing so I’m so happy to be here with him.”

Alyssa Phillips and Rockett 19. Photo by Atalya Boytner for Erin Gilmore Photography.

It’s somewhat easy to forget that Alyssa Phillips has had the ride on Rockett 19 for less than two years, given the string of results they’ve collected in a short span of time. Their campaign at the three-star level, where the 11-year-old gelding was confirmed through the initial production of Sweden’s Louise Romeike, was studded with top finishes. A second place finish at Maryland’s CCI3*-L a year ago would conclude their first season together, and this year has consisted of steady education at the four-star level. They traveled to Rebecca Farm’s 4*-L in July, finishing second there with time on cross country and in show jumping their only added penalties. Now that much more experienced and strong, it won’t be surprising to see Alyssa ask for an even better performance this weekend, and she’s off to a strong start with a 26.4 as her target to finish on.

This score provides some additional validation for Alyssa, who through the shrewd eye of her coach Barend Heilbron discovered that the horse’s teeth had gotten to an uncomfortable length in between dentals.

“I actually was having a few dressage tests at the shows where he was kind of being a little funny in the mouth, and wasn’t his normal self,” Alyssa described. “So then after Stable View, Barend was like, ‘Why don’t we just take a look in his mouth?’ And actually his teeth somehow had gotten pretty sharp, pretty quickly. So I had that taken care of last Wednesday, and it made an immediate difference in the horse — he is so much happier. Today, he trusted the connection in the bridle, and actually was really there for me, whereas the past three shows, he had been a little bit more insecure and hesitant because of what was going on in his mouth. Luckily, Barend was the one that suggested I take a look.”

Lucienne Bellissimo and Dyri. Photo by Haley Boothe / Impulsion Media.

This time last year, Lucienne Bellissimo and Dyri were a year on from a second-place finish in this division, but were instead contesting the CCI3*-S here at Morven Park. The reason? Lucienne had taken things back a few steps after experiencing some growing pains with Dyri, who is now 14. She’d had trouble at both Dyri’s five-star debut and the four-star reroute that followed, so she took the pressure fully off and started, in many ways, fresh. Her efforts were rewarded with a string of wins at lower levels, and eventually a return to four-star that culminated in a win in April. Lucienne’s kept this US Open run fresh as the goal for this fall — the true test to see if her reaffirming work will stick at this larger effort.

She and Dyri are off to a strong start for that mission, earning a 26.6 today for fourth overnight. It’s their second-best score at the level since they stepped back up to it earlier this year, and Lucienne’s got her marching orders.

“[I] came here with the goal of doing a personal best 4*-L result with him,” Lucienne said. “I have huge respect for the strength of the field that’s here this weekend, some very proven competition. So I hope for a confident fast round Saturday, and a happy horse Sunday.”

Laine Ashker and Lovedance. Photo by Haley Boothe / Impulsion Media.

The sole athlete to compete on both the US Open campaign trail for dressage and eventing, Laine Ashker is here this week with her Maryland International 4*-S winner Lovedance and an eye to the future. A personal best four-star score of 26.9 is certainly a good way to kick things off, but truthfully Laine felt the best work is very much yet to come. The biggest improvement, she said, was the decisions “Lottie” made when her tension would rise.

“In the past couple rides, she’s been super rideable – and it wasn’t that she wasn’t rideable [today], she just had a little more tension,” Laine explained. “But honestly this time last year, or even the year before, had she felt that tension, she wouldn’t have been able to work through it. So the progress is there – I was still able to ride her out to the hand, she wasn’t curled in her neck and so I was thrilled – thrilled to bits with her.”

This weekend is the 10-year-old KWPN mare’s first 4*-L, so that will factor in when it comes to how competitive Laine chooses to be. It’s such an interesting nuance within our sport — pardon me while I go on a tangent here — and while this isn’t at all me accusing other disciplines of considering their horses less, I think the challenging thing about big money purses in eventing is the fact that these riders only have THIS shot to make the run count for the long term. They can’t just go back next week, or even the next day, for another shot like they can in jumper world. They may run two of these Long formats a year, so each one had better count. Sometimes, it can’t be about chasing the money. I’d argue that, in equestrian sports, one should never be chasing the money – not if it sacrifices the horse, in any way. Will Coleman, for all of the storylines about his “need for revenge” and “the second that lost him the title” in 2025, isn’t here for the money either. Off the Record will be as competitive and fast tomorrow as Off the Record chooses to be, and I think while that isn’t an uncommon sentiment, it’s very much a necessity in our sport.

Back to Laine: this mare is 10, and she’s one for the future. “So tomorrow, my goal is to have a clear round. She’s not the quickest horse, and it is her first Long, so it’ll be a big test [and] how quickly and economically I can get around the course. I feel very confident that the mare can do it.”

Here’s a look at the top 10 at the conclusion of dressage — a very different picture from what we saw yesterday, as anticipated, though our Thursday leaders Kim Severson and Cooley Corraghy Diamond hung on to a top 10 spot:

And now we look ahead to cross country tomorrow. What’s on tap for the riders? Well, it’s another true-blue Derek di Grazia flavor out there, with an optimum time of 10:09 and terrain that’s enough to compete with the toughest four-stars in the world. It’s mostly a steady climb upwards for the bulk of the course, before the horses get a chance to catch their wind back after making their way to the Morven Park Mansion. Here’s a look at the terrain of this year’s course, courtesy of CrossCountry App:

Like any good cross country course, the challenge of it isn’t isolated to one singular fence (though a couple of them stand to be potential bogeys), it’s the cumulative effect and the subtlety that will test the core of every rider’s training program.

“It’s very much all right there, but one little mistake could have you have a stupid run out, which is what makes makes it exciting,” Tamie Smith said. You can take a look at the full fence-by-fence preview on CrossCountry App here.

Riders will have the benefit of near-perfect going tomorrow thanks to the beautiful fall weather in Virginia this week. “It’s really up to [the riders] to be able to figure out how to answer all the different questions that are being asked,” Derek di Grazia said. “They are different questions as they go around the course. I always say, you’re not finished until you’re finished, so you really have to stay with it the whole way.”

Meg Pellegrini and Falcon Crown Z lead the CCI4*-S. Photo by Atalya Boytner for Erin Gilmore Photography.

We’ll get to see for ourselves as the course is unveiled to us in action tomorrow. We’ll begin with the CCI4*-S, which I’m not covering in full this week but is currently led by Meg Pellegrini and Falcon Crown Z on a score of 27.2. Both the 4*-S and 4*-L will run in reverse order of dressage standing; the 4*-S will begin at 9:30 am EST and will be followed by the US Open 4*-L at 11:00 am EST. Tamie Smith and Danito will be the final pair out of the start box at 1:20 pm EST. A full order of running and live scores for each division can be found here. Additional live streaming of the other divisions can be found for free on the Morven Park YouTube channel here.

Read up on the USEA/USEF Developing Horse National Championships’ Friday action

Morven Park Fall International + US Equestrian Open of Eventing Final (VA): [Website] [US Equestrian Open] [Start Lists & Scores] [Free General Admission + Hospitality] [EquiRatings Prediction Center] [Eventing Manager – Code PCTD to join EN’s league!] [ClipMyHorse.TV Live Stream] [CrossCountry App XC Maps] [EN’s Coverage] [Volunteer]

US Equestrian Open Final at Morven Park: Kim Severson Leads Thursday Field

By on Oct 8, 2026 9:05 pm -

Kim Severson and Cooley Corraghy Diamond. Photo by Haley Boothe / Impulsion Media.

Kim Severson was the rider we’d tapped to be in the lead today after the first half of dressage at the $200,000 US Equestrian Open of Eventing Final at Morven Park. This afternoon, Kim and Cooley Corraghy Diamond (owned by Ros and Bill Johnson) took a smooth lead on a score of 29.8, the sole sub-30 of the first day of competition. This weekend marks the first CCI4*-L for the 9-year-old Irish Sport Horse gelding and also Kim’s first entry at the Long level since 2018. That year, she was still competing Cooley Cross Border at the now-five-star level.

“Cory” has in particular needed strengthening in his flying change work, Kim noted earlier this year, and the hard work at home was rewarded today with two 7s and an 8 on their first of two changes in this 4* Test B. Several pairs slated to go on Friday come in with lower 6 Run Averages than today’s best score, so we anticipate there to be quite a bit of change as we head further down in the order.

“I think that’s the second time he’s ever gotten both changes in the ring,” Kim said. “It was a real struggle for him, but he’s very obedient, and he’s a very good boy, and I just tried to be as accurate as I could possibly be and give him the best possibility to show himself off.”

Woods Baughman and Hopak de Greenbay Z. Photo by Haley Boothe / Impulsion Media.

Katie Lichten comes into the weekend on good form through the summer, finishing top five in the Adequan Advanced Final at the American Eventing Championships in August with HTS Jensen R. Now she’s in early second on a score of 31.4, about 1.5 points improved on her 6RA and the best score at four-star this year. Woods Baughman enjoyed a smooth ride on Hopak de Greenbay Z, earning a 32.4 for third overnight. This weekend marks the pair’s fifth CCI4*-L start — they’ll be looking to improve on the 14th place they earned at this event last year.

Here’s a look at your Thursday top 10:

Click the image to enlarge.

The running order for the Open Final is set by points earned during the Qualifier season. Tamie Smith, the Series champion, will ride last tomorrow afternoon as well as on cross country Saturday. With the riders ranked higher coming later on tomorrow, it’s sure to be a refreshed leaderboard in many ways. Morven Park, however, is not something to bet on by dressage. I’d be looking at the best-rated cross country horses in the field for your top finishers come Saturday — but of course, anyone can step up at any given moment, and that’s one of the greatest things about sport.

Friday’s action continues at 1:00 pm EST live on ClipMyHorse.TV. You can stream the CCI4*-L and CCI4*-S live on ClipMyHorse.TV and other FEI divisions will be available for free on the Morven Park YouTube page here. Friday, the USEA/USEF Developing Horse National Championships begin their competition with dressage, so you can catch a glimpse of some future stars on the free live stream. If your USEF account is linked, you’ll be able to watch the ClipMyHorse.TV stream free as well (more information on that here).

Looking down from this year’s Morven Park Leaf Pit question. Photo via CrossCountry App.

I’ll be back with much more in our end of dressage report tomorrow evening. Until then, go ahead and take yourself for a virtual walk around Derek di Grazia’s gorgeous cross country course on CrossCountry App here.

Morven Park Fall International + US Equestrian Open of Eventing Final (VA): [Website] [US Equestrian Open] [Start Lists & Scores] [Free General Admission + Hospitality] [EquiRatings Prediction Center] [Eventing Manager – Code PCTD to join EN’s league!] [ClipMyHorse.TV Live Stream] [CrossCountry App XC Maps] [EN’s Coverage] [Volunteer]

Maryland 5 Star’s Future in Question Once More as Select Event Group Withdraws License Application

By on Oct 8, 2026 6:34 pm -

Arden Wildasin and Sunday Times. Photo by Atalya Boytner Photography.

The future of the Maryland 5 Star has hit another stumbling block as the entity that had made moves to revive it has announced its withdrawal of its license application from consideration. Funding was a large consideration named in the press release issued by Select Event Group, which had announced its intention to acquire the license to run the 5 Star in April on Thursday. Select Event Group emphasized that the Maryland 3 Star and USEA East Coast Young Event Horse Championships slated for October 15-18 are not in jeopardy and will move ahead as scheduled.

The full press release is as follows:

The organizing group supporting the future of the Maryland 5 Star at Fair Hill remains committed to the long-term vision of restoring one of the world’s premier eventing competitions and continues to work collaboratively with public, private, and community stakeholders to identify a sustainable path forward. That commitment has not changed.

However, after careful evaluation of current timelines, funding requirements, and organizational responsibilities, Select Event Group has informed the United States Equestrian Federation that it will withdraw as the prospective license holder for a future Maryland 5 Star event at this time. This decision reflects the practical realities of the current situation, not a lack of enthusiasm for the event’s return.

While encouraging discussions continue regarding potential funding, governance, and operating structures, the certainty necessary to responsibly relaunch an event of this scale has not yet materialized. Rather than misrepresent the status or timing of those efforts, we believe it is important to be transparent with the governing body and the broader equestrian community regarding where things stand today.

This decision does not affect the USEF 3* or Young Event Horse competitions scheduled at Fair Hill next week. It relates only to the timing and structure of a future Maryland 5 Star license and does not signal any concern regarding next week’s competitions.

Select remains ready and excited to support, participate in, or potentially lead a future organizing effort as a viable long-term funding model emerges. Fair Hill remains a world-class venue, and many dedicated stakeholders continue working toward a solution that can ensure the Maryland 5 Star’s successful return. We remain hopeful that opportunity will present itself in the future and stand ready to assist when it does.

This is a developing story on which we’ll be working to find more information in the coming days. 

October World Rankings: Two U.S. Riders Rank in Top Three

By on Oct 8, 2026 9:00 am -

Will Coleman and Very Dignified. Photo by Hannah Cole Photography.

The USA now owns two of the top three spots on the FEI Eventing World Athlete Rankings after the October points update. Now joining Boyd Martin in the top three is Will Coleman, who’s seventh-place finish at Burghley contributed to his jump from seventh last month to third in the world. New Zealand’s Tim Price retains the World #1 title and stands to head into the off-season as the titleholder with a strong performance at Pau later this month.

Points for these rankings are calculated on a rolling 12 month period. An athlete’s best six results count, so you could be cycling in fresh points with good results (the higher the level and, of course, the higher the placing, the more points you earn) as last year’s points roll off. You can read more on how the world ranking points are tabulated here.

There are a total of three U.S. riders in the top 10, with Caroline Pamukcu rising from 12th into sixth with her podium finish at Burghley last month.

Here’s a look at the full top 10 for October (click to enlarge):

[View the full Eventing World Rankings]

All Presented Horses Move to Dressage as $200k US Equestrian Open of Eventing Final Commences at Morven Park

By on Oct 7, 2026 6:49 pm -

Announcer Brian O’Connor is a great brand ambassador. Contact him for bookings! Photo by Haley Boothe / Impulsion Media.

October in the eventing sphere always tends to feel a bit frenetic. Even with the absence of a U.S. fall CCI5* event this year, it nonetheless feels like a whirlwind has picked us up and deposited us, tousled, unsure of the time or day, at the tail end of the season. Not that that’s a complaint, though. The addition of the US Equestrian Open of Eventing to the top-level eventing calendar last year gave us a lot to be excited about in terms of the sport’s profile. This young series, which hands out about $250,000 in prize money between the qualifier Series and the Final championship, has at least one year left on its initial contract and has been an appreciated addition on the part of the participants, who enjoy having a big prize to chase in a sport that’s not exactly flush with them.

I could go on and on about the nuances between our sport and those that attract more money, and argue how we could still be taking advantage of eyeballs and an equestrian renaissance that’s currently making its way through mainstream culture, but I’ll save that for another time. The fact is: for those professionals in the sport who compete at this four-star level, the opportunity to win some real money is a big deal. And I believe that giving the sport’s top athletes a bigger stage provides an aspirational gateway for potential new riders, just as in any other sport.

Woods Baughman and Hopak de Greenbay Z. Photo by Haley Boothe / Impulsion Media.

So it’s a big weekend, and of course there are many other storylines here at Morven Park that we won’t even be able to get to, but our colleagues over at the USEA will be providing more reports from the USEA/USEF Developing Horse National Championships for 6- and 7-year-olds throughout the weekend and you can follow along with live scoring across divisions here.

Full disclosure: it’s been a bit of a weird few months for me, on a personal level. Between that and the economic challenges I’m sure we’re all feeling in terms of cost of travel, I opted to cover this year remotely. I have some awesome help on the ground in Haley Boothe, who’ll be providing the bulk of our visuals this week, as well as the official photography team helmed by Erin Gilmore Photography. I’ll be here with you all weekend with daily updates, and my goal is to bring you the same level of quality and enthusiasm to our coverage as always.

Anyway, about that horse show…

Boyd Martin is down to one ride this weekend in Luke 140 (“Spook 140” as we prefer to call him). Photo by Haley Boothe / Impulsion Media.

Before we even commenced the day’s action at the first horse inspection this afternoon, we knew the field had thinned by two. Boyd Martin, last year’s inaugural Series and Final champion, withdrew Fetiche des Rouges, who was set to make his first CCI4*-L debut this weekend. Waylon Roberts of Canada was another to withdraw one of his two rides (Chevalier).

The afternoon’s trot-up was uneventful, save the general up energy of the horses as is typically the case here. This weekend’s Ground Jury is presided over by Peter Gray (CAN), who is joined by the USA’s Bea di Grazia and Austria’s Christian Steiner, and our presented field was accepted without incident.

Okay, but THIS was an occasion: one Ian Stark trotting up not one but TWO horses for their variously gimpy riders (or did he simply want to sneak back out of retirement?). Photo by Haley Boothe / Impulsion Media.

So that leaves us with 37 combinations to duke it out for the title this week. Morven Park has a reputation as one of the toughest 4*-L courses in the U.S., if not the world. It’s got plenty of terrain to use, and a master of that exact skill in Derek di Grazia returning for his fifth year as the designer. This event’s position near the tail end of the season provides riders an opportunity to use this as a end-of-season test of a horse that’s just getting to this level or a confirmation for one that’s en route to a five-star debut in the spring. There’s also a handful of horses in this field who have gone five-star, who are either entering the twilight of their careers or who are opting for this four-star run versus an overseas five-star that’s difficult to fund.

This type of variety makes a four-star field that much more interesting. It also makes it difficult, truly, to handicap a division like this. You’ve got the most experienced horse in the field in Off the Record, who Will Coleman’s brought here after he was kept fit as a traveling alternate for the World Championships team this summer and frankly will be looking to just have some fun with. Sure, it can be argued that Will’s got some unfinished business after narrowly missing out on the win here last year, but how competitive he chooses to be this week will be left up to “Timmy”. You’ve got a horse like Series winner Tamie Smith’s Danito, who’s another ageless wonder who will probably win the dressage but again, will have a lot of say on what type of weekend it is. Dyri, a horse who’s been painstakingly produced for a big moment like the one this weekend presents by Lucienne Bellissimo. Or an Imperio Magic, who’s on sizzling hot form with Mary Bess Davis this summer and, while he won’t factor so heavily in the first phase (though that’s been improving this year too!), he’s one you’d want to be sat on to finish on your dressage score and potentially on the podium or better at an event like this, where clear jumping is invaluable.

Tamie Smith accepts her $25,000 check for winning the Series as the top points-earner. Now, she’ll ride for the $200,000 Final prize on Ruth Bley’s Danito. Photo by Haley Boothe / Impulsion Media.

I could go on, and that doesn’t even touch some of the rising stars who could make a splash if they’re asked to this weekend — Caroline Pamukcu’s got three who could answer in a big way, Laine Ashker’s Lovedance could be ready for a big moment, and Katie Lichten’s been knocking on the door of a big result. It’s a true quality field this weekend — every pair deserves a mention, frankly.

If you’re into predictions and statistics, you won’t be surprised that Off the Record is the projected winner by EquiRatings ahead of competition, given a 26% chance at the outset. Luke 140, making his return to the level after undergoing colic surgery and recovery over the off season and slowly coming back into top fitness, is tired for second on the predictions center with Boyd Martin, given an 17% pre-competition chance. Series champion Tamie Smith, who took home a $25,000 check as the top point-accumulator of the Qualifier Series this year, is third on the Prediction Center with Danito makes up the other half of that tie.

[View the full Prediction Center]

One of my favorite ways to engage with the sport at the top level is to play Eventing Manager, and I’ve got my team sorted for this weekend. You’ve got until the first horse goes down centerline tomorrow (Thursday) to set your team. It’s free to play, and we’d love for you to join the EN league (also free!) by clicking on Leagues in your account and entering code PCTD.

Here’s my Eventing Manager team. How do I pick? I don’t have much of a method, but I suppose I have some semblance of one (I’m not usually THAT successful though so, you know, grains of salt and the like). I usually pick horses that I know are good cross country horses; I can get over dressage that doesn’t win in favor of a solid jumper. Where I typically come undone is show jumping, like some of these cross country machines. The other part of me picks sentimentally, people or horses I like to support as a normal human in this sport.

[Play Eventing Manager]

I’ll be back with you tomorrow with a recap of Thursday’s action, which begins first with the CCI4*-S and then continues with the Open CCI4*-L in the afternoon.

CCI4*-S First Horse: 11:00 am EST

CCI4*-L First Horse: 1:00 pm EST

You can stream the CCI4*-L and CCI4*-S live on ClipMyHorse.TV and other FEI divisions will be available for free on the Morven Park YouTube page here. As of publication it does not appear that any 4* action will be on the YouTube channel. If your USEF account is linked, you’ll be able to watch the ClipMyHorse.TV stream free as well (more information on that here).

[ClipMyHorse.TV Live Stream]

[Morven Park YouTube Live Stream – No CCI4*]

Morven Park Fall International + US Equestrian Open of Eventing Final (VA): [Website] [US Equestrian Open] [Start Lists & Scores] [Free General Admission + Hospitality] [EquiRatings Prediction Center] [Eventing Manager – Code PCTD to join EN’s league!] [ClipMyHorse.TV Live Stream] [CrossCountry App XC Maps] [EN’s Coverage] [Volunteer]

“Have You Got a Go For Gold Horse?” Inside Ireland’s Most Coveted Young Event Horse Sale

By on Oct 5, 2026 5:00 pm -

In Irish breeding circles, there’s a question that gets asked every summer: “Have you got a Go For Gold horse?”

For breeders and producers across Ireland, the answer matters. Earning a spot in the annual Goresbridge Go For Gold sale is a mark of quality, and many of them plan their year around it. “It’s the sale to get into,” says Siobhan Donohoe, who runs Goresbridge Horse Sales with her husband, Ed as a part of a multi-generation family effort that dates back to a tiny horse sale in 1968.

“People will say, ‘Oh, that’s a good horse — I’m keeping that for the Go For Gold.'”

This November, the sale’s 90+ select lots go under the hammer at a gala dinner at the Amber Springs Hotel, capping off three days of live viewing. And if you’ve only ever watched the livestream from home, this might be the year to see it in person.

Goresbridge has been selling horses in Co. Kilkenny since 1968, when Ned Donohoe wondered why a horse couldn’t be sold in a ring the same way a bull or a heifer could. After his sudden death ten years later, his wife Kitty was determined to carry on the sale as a part of his legacy. She remains an active part of the business today, which sees the family business run a full calendar of sales. But Go For Gold, established by Ned’s son Martin and his wife Mary Frances, is the one everyone circles.

Getting in is no small feat. A panel of experienced riders and producers — Siobhan affectionately calls them the “X Factor judges” — sifts through hundreds of young horses each summer. This year, they narrowed the field to roughly 90 lots: about 30 four- and five-year-old riding horses and 60 three-year-olds.

“A lot of breeders target this sale because it’s quite difficult to get a horse into, due to the high standard,” Ed says.

For vendors, that thumbs-up of acceptance into the sale is the reward for years (and, for some of these breeders, generations) of work. “They put their heart and soul into it,” Siobhan says. That pride shows in the results: the sale typically clears around 80 percent of its lots, and when the hammer falls on the last horse, the vendors’ party is the unofficial start of the Irish Christmas season.

Selection day is just the beginning. Once horses are chosen by the three-member Selection Panel of Sally Parkyn, Chris Ryan, Nicky Roncoroni and guest selector Nick Gauntlett, representing a broad range of competition and horse sourcing experience, the Goresbridge team spends months preparing them for the catalog — filming, photographing, and watching each one develop. “It’s exciting to see how they’ve come on since they were selected a couple of months ago,” Siobhan says. “And then to see them improve again by November? It’s magic.”

Siobhan brings an unique and useful skill set to the process. Before joining Goresbridge, she spent a decade as a multimedia journalist and TV presenter in Ireland, covering big race days and the Irish Open and hosting her own human-interest program, Irish TV, which aired in America and Australia. When she and Ed took over the business in January 2024, she gave that career up, but not the instinct.

“The very first day we took over the horse sales, I just went out with my mics,” she says. “Some people said, ‘We weren’t sure what you were doing.’ And I said, hold on a minute. If I’m buying a horse, I want to know the person who bred my horse and where my horse has come from. I’m not just buying a random horse. You need to know the people behind the horse.”

Her format is simple: walk down to the stable with the breeder or vendor and ask three questions — past, present, future. Those stable-door interviews now travel across Goresbridge’s social channels, and Siobhan and her camera operator, Sarah Jane, regularly visit breeders’ yards around the country. They never turn down a cup of tea. “There’s always a hot scone or soda bread in the farmer’s kitchen,” she laughs. “That’s when you meet the real people.”

For buyers overseas, that’s half the story. A three-year-old’s catalog page tells you its pedigree. Siobhan’s videos tell you about the family that raised it, the farm it grew up on, and the people who believed in it enough to aim for Go For Gold.

Liz Halliday and Cooley Nutcracker, a Go for Gold graduate, compete at the 2024 Olympics in Paris. Photo by Tilly Berendt.

Go For Gold has a reputation as a professionals’ sale, and Olympians certainly shop it: last year, a table of Olympic riders was bidding hard, and several went home with new horses. Pro names such as Liz Halliday, Oliver Townend and Austin O’Connor have purchased horses consistently in the past from Go for Gold. But the Donohoes are clear that the catalog is built for a wider range of buyers.

“Our buyers range from riders looking for a future five-star horse to those wanting a top-quality amateur ride, so it’s essential that we offer horses to suit every level,” Ed says. “When selecting for the Go For Gold sale, we look for potential five-star horses, top amateur international horses, and quality amateur horses capable of taking their rider as far as they want to go. Above all, they need to be super friendly, have great brains and be easy to ride.”

The buyers prove it. Last year, a grandfather and granddaughter visiting Ireland for the first time, after discovering the sale on Facebook, went home with three or four horses. Here in the U.S., plenty of Go For Gold graduates have found their way to amateur riders, either straight from the sale or a few years down the road.

At the top end, graduates include Cooley Nutcracker (Liz Halliday’s Olympic and Boyd Martin’s World Championship horse) and Copper Beach (5* partner of Cosby Green), and the sale has sent horses on to the top five-stars around the world, the World Championships and the Olympic Games. Additional graduates include Cooley Corraghy Diamond – a horse entered in this week’s US Equestrian Open Final at Morven Park with Olympian Kim Severson, as well as Lucy Latta’s RCA Patron Saint, who you may recall was on the podium in his first attempt at Badminton back in 2024.

“Every time one of our horses does well, whether it’s at a local event or at five-star level, it’s a proud moment for everyone involved,” Ed says. “From the people who produced the horse to the riders who bought them and our own team.”

Growing that American audience is a priority. “It’s a huge market for the Irish event horse, and we expect it to be very strong this year,” Ed says. “Irish event horses are top of the pile at the minute.”

Crowds gather to view the lots on offer at the Go for Gold sale.

The livestream is great and convenient (California-based 5* rider Andrea Baxter can attest to that, seeing how she has a horse quite literally named The Big Easy for his origination at this sale and its livestream’s “easy button”), but Go For Gold is built to be experienced in person. Over three days, buyers can watch every horse perform, get hands-on, and talk to the people who produced them. Siobhan’s advice: “Bring your riding helmet. You can test the horse out — people love that.”

You’re guaranteed a good time attending Go for Gold auction night.

Auction night is the main event. Since taking over and since the COVID-19 pandemic put a pause on close gatherings, Siobhan and Ed have brought back the glitz and glamour, with full TV-style production, big screens and auctioneers in black tie. Every successful buyer receives a bottle of champagne, a Go For Gold saddle pad from partner Connolly’s Red Mills, and a framed photo of their new horse. Last year, the tables got competitive over who had collected the most frames.

The online catalog goes live October 15, followed by an online gallery with extensive photos, videos and X-rays for every lot. Keep an eye right here on EN for our forthcoming Wishlist picks as well, because we have zero issue enabling our friends to buy horses.

This year’s Goresbridge Go for Gold sale kicks off November 9 and runs through November 11, the date of the actual sale. Browse the catalog (once it’s available) and plan your visit at goresbridge.com/goforgold. The Go for Gold Instagram is also worth a follow; keep an eye out for content about this year’s sale horses coming on their page soon.

Les 5 Étoiles de Pau CCI5* Entry List Live with 54 Entries Representing 10 Nations

By on Oct 5, 2026 9:00 am -

Tim Price and Jarillo take Pau in 2025. Can they do it again in 2026? Photo by Tilly Berendt.

Our final CCI5* of the 2026 season is looming in just a few weeks, and we’re preparing to head to the south of France for Les 5 Étoiles de Pau — frankly one of the best places to end the season, if you ask us. This year’s event takes place October 22-25.

Our entry keeps with the theme of slightly lighter numbers this year at the five-star level, but in truth right on par with the field we saw at Pau in 2025. We also have another theme in this year’s field, which is the return of 2025 winners Tim Price (NZL) and Jarillo. Will a repeat be in the cards for them? It’s been happy hunting grounds for them; they finished ninth in 2024 in the horse’s first five-star, and while this year’s been light while Tim focused on things like the summer’s World Championships, he’s retained that competitive form at his FEI starts leading up to Pau. A “three-phase freak” is what EN’s Tilly Berendt called Jarillo last year, a horse certainly worth an eye for upcoming championships like LA in 2028 (he’s 12 this year, so 14 for LA). Tim also returns with Happy Boy, fourth at this event last year, as well as Garcon, stepping up to the level for the first time.

Julie Wolfert and SSH Playboy. Photo by Shannon Brinkman Photography.

Tom Jackson and Plot Twist B, second at Pau in 2025, also return for another shot this month, 15th at Kentucky this spring. Boyd Martin will be the only podium finisher who isn’t returning this year, but the USA is represented by five-star first-timers Alexa Gartenberg and Cooley Kildaire as well as Julie Wolfert and SSH Playboy. Hallie Coon also joins the list with her four-star winner Kapriccio.

A few other former winning riders also join us at Pau, including 2022 winner Jonelle Price (entered with that winning horse, Grappa Nera, as well as her WOrld Championships horse Senor Crocodillo and Capitaine de Hus Z) and 2019 winner Tom McEwen (entered with five-star debutant Quintus).

The current list of competitors can be found in full here.

Pau also has its own in-house livestream that you’ll be able to use to access all of the content you can stand, both live from France as well as on demand. The subscription costs about $30 USD and was a great experience for us to use last year. You can access and subscribe to Pau TV here.

Les 5 Étoiles de Pau (France): [Website] [Entries] [Pau TV] [EN’s Coverage]

‘I’m Just Very Happy We Took the Time’: Julia Krajewski Clinches Another Boekelo Win; GB Claws Back Nations Cup Crown

By on Oct 4, 2026 1:07 pm -

Julia Krajewski and Ero De Cantraie. Photo distributed by Boekelo Press Office.

Military Boekelo has played a key role for Tokyo Olympic champion Julia Krajewski (not least due to the fact that she’s based less than two hours down the road) as she develops horses into eventual championship contenders. If you look back through the pages of her results, you’ll see a clear pattern: she’s won Boekelo’s fall CCI4*-L twice before, each with a horse that would become top of her string in one way or another (2018 – Samourai du Thot, 2024 – Uelzener’s Nickel). Her Tokyo Olympic gold medalist, Amande de B’Neville likely would’ve had at least a top-five finish at this event the year she won with ‘Samourai’ had it not been for a withdrawal after cross country.

Now a third horse can join the ranks, and while perhaps a year delayed than she initially planned, it’s a fresh demonstration of setbacks not signaling an end of the road.

We’d already seen big things from this year’s champion, the now-12-year-old Ero de Contraie, who’d won the German Championships CCI4*-S at Luhmühlen in 2023. At that point, Julia was still fact-finding with the horse, who she’s described as similar in some ways to Samourai du Thot. From there, she finished in the top five at Montelibretti’s CCI4*-L after not finishing at Blenheim’s 4*-L earlier. They’d qualified for the Paris Olympics and between him and Uelzener’s Nickel, she seemed to be set up with options for the team.

But then, life intervened.

“We had quite some hope for 2024 and onwards,” Julia told me. “But he tied up, and it was not spectacular in the winter, into 2024. And even though he recovered well and everything, he’s just happened to have several minor issues afterward and I just felt it took really long to get him back on track.”

Ero had come back into competition form last fall, and this spring competed at Strzegom’s CCI4*-L, but that effort was truncated when they pulled up midway around cross country when Julia felt some off strides (later found to be a mild overreach that caused no further trouble).

“It just really took some time to get him back to top level, like good in his body and then really feeling him where he was in 2023,” Julia said.

Boekelo features on Julia’s calendar for its proximity, yes, but because it provides a good challenge for horses who will benefit from the atmosphere exposure. “It’s usually a competition which is not extremely difficult, but really exposes the horses to atmosphere and spectators,” she elaborated. “It’s a very nice show to bring a horse to if you want a proper event – it’s not as hilly as Blenheim or as big, but it does tell you a lot about the horse.”

The weekend wasn’t fraught with pressure, Julia said. If things didn’t go to plan this week, Strzegom had an offering at the same level the following week. The main goal was to earn an MER, have a good weekend. But once Julia and Ero emerged in the lead after dressage, “I do like to bring it home. I do like to win…once I’m on it, I like to seal the bag.”

She knew she was on a horse that could deliver the result. Yes, he’d not had the 4*-L experience for a spell, but she knew the course’s style would suit his, and she knew he was capable of being quick enough. “He’s a very genuine horse, wants to do good. I was just very pleased that it all really came together for him and he could show what he’s capable of, and then to have a clear show jumping today and even they do feel a bit tired on the last day, that’s normal, but if a horse goes out and puts so much effort into the last day, it’s a really special feeling. You really feel they sometimes know what’s at stake, and that’s very much the case with him.”

“I’m just very happy that we took the time and that the owner (Bernd Hiecke) trusted in me, and I always felt that if we get him back back to where he can be, there will be something very cool possible with him.”

 

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Sunday’s show jumping course (designed by Kris Van Gelder (NED)) yielded fewer than 20 double clears, making rails a valuable commodity that were costly if dropped; Germany’s Christoph Wahler was one victim, dropping from fifth to 24th with two poles down, and U.S. team members Allie Knowles and Montpellier Scais also lowered two to sink from 10th to 25th. They were far from the only victims from the combination of fatigue and challenging design; both the overnight second- and third-placed combinations also lost their footing with rails, carving out space for those who did manage the double clears to squeeze on up.

Katie Magee (GBR) was one case, repeating a scenario that just happened at Burghley in which she moved from just off the podium in fourth into second overall. This time, she did it with the 9-year-old Cushlas Indigo, improving on his 4*-L debut finish (7th at Bramham in June) and finishing on her dressage score of 24.3. Last year’s Boekelo winner, Lara de Liedekerke-Meier (BEL) was another who benefitted from her double clear, moving from sixth to third with the 10-year-old Quintus to finish on their dressage score of 27.6.

 

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Three clear British rounds under pressure after the retirement of Kirsty Chabert and Classic VI on cross country Saturday meant that they clinch another title to add to their pile for the year: FEI Eventing Nations Cup champions. With a refreshed format that debuted this year, it was a winner-take-all scenario for the 10 teams that qualified for this weekend’s Final. Again, next year this will be that much more impactful, as many teams will be seeking Olympic qualification for 2028 at that juncture.

[View more about the FEI Eventing Nations Cup]

The USA didn’t quite repeat their program’s strong show jumping today, though their experience wasn’t largely unique on a day when the final phase did properly exert influence. Lauren Nicholson was the best of the team, delivering a clear with some time aboard Landmark’s Jungle Gold, but rails down from teammates Jack Curtis, Allie Knowles and Hallie Coon meant the bronze finish relinquished to the Irish, who added just one rail across their three counting scores to earn the podium finish. Germany swapped back with Great Britain to go back into silver position to end the weekend.

“We fielded a team of either up-and-coming horses, or athletes, at the event,” said Chef d’Equipe Leslie Law. “Although naturally we would of all been happier to have brought home a medal, there were certainly positives to take away most notably from the first few days. I was most impressed that every one of our athletes went out on the cross country to be competitive; to not only jump the jumps but try to make the time to give the team a chance. The attitude and ability on cross-country was admirable by each.”

 

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Individually for the U.S., Allie Knowles earned a top-10 finish with LS Crown Royal, moving up from 16th into 8th thanks to a double clear jumping effort. It’s an exciting time for Allie and her program, which is supported by her longtime friend and owner Katherine O’Brien. The partnership with the 8-year-old LS Crown Royal is less than a year old; he’d been produced to the three-star level by Idaho-based five-star rider Jordan Linstedt-Granquist before Allie acquired the ride, and it’s been a rocket ship ride ever since. Allie and Lauren Nicholson will now return stateside to begin wrapping their seasons up at next weekend’s US Equestrian Open of Eventing Final at Morven Park.

 

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And finally to send us off, a big shout to another U.S. competitor, Jack Curtis, who finished his first 4*-L with Luska Candy Clover as the top U25 rider in the field. Two rails down today would keep them from a more competitive finish overall, but their hard work certainly paid off in many other ways this week. Jack and Luska Candy Clover emerged as the best of the 14-rider U25 field that ran inside the main 4*-L division.

Military Boekelo / FEI Eventing Nations Cup CCIO4*-NC-L (Netherlands): [Website] [Scores] [Live Stream Replays on ClipMyHorse.TV] [Dressage & SJ Replays on FEI YouTube]

Julia Krajewski Doesn’t Flinch on Boekelo Cross Country Day

By on Oct 3, 2026 7:32 pm -

Julia Krajewski and Ero de Cantraie. Photo distributed by Boekelo Press Office.

The morning of Boekelo cross country was bright with promise; the morning light made the live feed look nearly cinematic as the first horses left the start box. In the end, it would be a day deliciously devoid of some of the drama we’d seen here the last couple of years — torrential downpours and muddy conditions in 2024 and a whole lot of flag drama last year, to name a couple — and the yield was the cream risen to the top and the shine of newly-minted future stars.

While the standings beneath them shuffled due to the cumulative influence of the Boekelo cross country course, the top three of the morning emerged from Saturday’s conclusion unscathed (though impacted by the early withdrawal of second-placed Marcio Carvalho Jorge and Castle Howard Casanova; Marcio posted on social media that the horse was not feeling 100% and prompted his decision to withdraw). It was 2024 winner and Olympic gold medalist Julia Krajewski who was the first of the three to see on Bernd Heicke’s Ero de Cantraie. We knew this horse had the gift of speed in him and today he delivered the class performance that never truly looked under much pressure on the way around.

Julia and Ero added one second of time to their score and will go ahead to show jumping with a 24.3 and without a pole in hand over Gemma Stevens and Chris and Lisa Stone’s Chilli Morning IV. Gemma, along with third-placed Yasmin Ingham and Kinda Corvette, was one of 22 riders to make the optimum time of 10:00 and remains on her dressage score of 25.4. A whisker separates Gemma from 2022 World Champion Yasmin Ingham, on a 26.0.

From there, the members of tonight’s top 10 are largely new after cross country. Fast clears were rewarded handsomely; the number was about on par with what we saw here last year, which is handy information given the reversal of the cross country that we hadn’t seen for nearly a decade.

Allie Knowles is the highest placed U.S. individual, riding Katherine O’Brien’s Montpellier Scais to a clear finish with just six seconds of time added and in 10th overnight. Allie also moved from 21st to 16th with LS Crown Royal. Jack Curtis also delivered a smashing 4*-L debut with Luska Candy Clover, showing their grit and the education they’ve gained in their lengthy partnership to stop the clock a mere two seconds over the optimum time. They halved their starting position, jumping from 26th to 13th thanks to today’s effort.

Lauren Nicholson was the trailblazer for the Defender USA team with Jacqueline Mars’ Landmark’s Jungle Gold, skipping around with four seconds of time to put a good buzz on for the Americans. Lauren moved from 33rd up to 19th overnight with her round on “Richy”. Hallie Coon picked up a bit too much time to hold her place on a day when fast rounds were valuable, but delivered a clear nonetheless with Katherine Coleman’s Sirius SB; this is Hallie’s first 4*-L with the 12-year-old Hanoverian. He’d previously podiumed at the level with Katherine, but this is still a cementing partnership with Hallie, who’s had the ride for this season.

The U.S. team couldn’t quite make a threat on the top two spots on the Nations Cup Final podium (though Great Britain and Germany did swap places) but are within three rails of moving up tomorrow. The more realistic approach, though, is probably to focus on delivering their own clear rounds, as Ireland breathes down their neck just 1.3 penalties off the podium and will be wanting to regain some ground after show jumping was the team’s undoing at World Championships this summer.

On Sunday, the 79 remaining pairs will be inspected by the Ground Jury and veterinary delegates at 8:30 am local time / 2:30 am EST. Show jumping will then begin at 10:30 am local time / 4:30 am EST. To see the show jumping schedule in your local time, use the widget below or reference this website. Orders of go for show jumping will be made available here, as are live scores and full reporting from the phases completed to date.

Time converter at worldtimebuddy.com

Sunday’s show jumping live stream will also be available for free on the FEI’s YouTube channel here. You can also view it (along with cross country replays) on ClipMyHorse.TV here.

Military Boekelo / FEI Eventing Nations Cup CCIO4*-NC-L (Netherlands): [Website] [Entries/Timing/Scores] [Live Stream] [FEI YouTube Free Live Stream]

Only One Can Top Thursday’s Leader as Boekelo Dressage Concludes

By on Oct 2, 2026 3:35 pm -

The personal bests kept coming as dressage wrapped up averaging nearly two penalties better as a field than the competitors’ 6 Run Average, according to EquiRatings. Similar to the trend we saw yesterday with our top three, who all took over four marks from their 6RA, two new additions to top four achieved the same today.

2024 Boekelo champion Julia Krajewski (GER) is the new leader, the sole rider who could crack the top three and best Thursday leaders Gemma Stevens with Chilli Morning IV and second-placed Marcio Carvalho Jorge (BRA) and Castle Howard Casanova. Julia’s brought the 12-year-old Ero de Cantraie (owned by Bernd Heicke) forward as her entry this year for a first run at Boekelo, though this French gelding has a touch more experience at the level than some of his fellow competitors. After his first season at the four-star level in 2023, he had some time off, building back steadily over the last year and eventually returning to the level this spring. He’s come in good form; some blips in his first starts at four-star this spring could be overlooked as rustiness, and he’s not finished outside of the top two otherwise nearly all season in FEI competition.

Ero de Cantraie’s 23.9 hits the board as a four-star personal best and 4.5 under his 6RA. Making tomorrow’s optimum time of 10:00 won’t be the most impossible ask for this horse; while his 4*-L performance is a bit unknown at this stage since he hasn’t actually done or completed one since 2023, his time penalties aren’t massive, even at the Short format events.

The other tiers on the early podium remain from yesterday with overnight leader Gemma Stevens in second behind Julia with Chilli Morning IV and Marcio Carvalho Jorge and his Paris Olympic horse Castle Howard Casanova in third. Yasmin Ingham and Kinda Corvette put in another of Friday’s competitive scores as one of the early pairs to see on Friday, scoring a four-star personal best of 26.0.

As the FEI Eventing Nations Cup Final competition got underway today, the stakes are high as all points for the 10 qualified nations were set back to zero. This means that for the first time, this Final is a winner-take-all situation. Olympic qualification isn’t on the line for this year, but the 2027 cycle will be exciting to follow as the nation that wins the Nations Cup (or is highest-placed after a nation that was already qualified) will also secure their berth to the LA Games in 2028.

The USA is in medal position in this Final, earning a team score of 84.0 to sit behind Germany (79.1) and Great Britain (78.8) — wait, that feels familiar — and well within range to make a threat with strong jumping performances. Allie Knowles is the best of the team bunch for the USA, riding Katherine O’Brien’s Montpellier Scais to a four-star personal best of 27.0; they’re in ninth overnight. Two places following Allie is teammate Hallie Coon, riding Katherine Coleman’s Sirius SB to a (you guessed it) four-star personal best of 27.5. Lauren Nicholson rode Jacqueline Mars’ Landmark’s Jungle Gold to a 30.5, sitting in 33rd and less than a flag penalty’s worth of marks from the top end of the stack. We’re also shouting out Jack Curtis, who’s a couple months into his stay in England with Tom McEwen and scored his own personal best of 29.5 with Betsy Curtis’ Luska Candy Clover — in their 4*-L debut, no less. I loved this look behind the scenes as Jack’s media team tells his story this weekend:

It promises to be a wild day of cross country tomorrow and you’ll be able to tune in live on ClipMyHorse.TV here. Some phases of competition can also be viewed or rewatched on the FEI YouTube channel here (as of publication, it’s unclear whether or not cross country will be shown here, so your best bet is most likely ClipMyHorse.TV).

The full starting order for cross country as well as live scoring can be found here. Here’s a look at a few key ride times if you’re planning to follow along:

  • 9:50 am local time / 3:50 am EST: Lauren Nicholson and Landmark’s Jungle Gold
  • 10:22 am local time / 4:22 am EST: Jack Curtis and Luska Candy Clover
  • 10:54 am local time / 4:54 am EST: Julia Krajewski and Ero de Cantraie
  • 10:58 am local time / 4:58 am EST: Allie Knowles and Montpellier Scais
  • 11:02 am local time / 5:02 am EST: Yasmin Ingham and Kinda Corvette
  • 11:34 am local time / 5:34 am EST: Hallie Coon and Sirius SB
  • 11:38 am local time / 5:38 am EST: Gemma Stevens and Cooley Park Muze
  • 1:34 pm local time / 7:26 am EST: Marcio Carvalho Jorge and Castle Howard Casanova
  • 3:26 pm local time / 9:25 am EST: Allie Knowles and LS Crown Royal

For help identifying the time in your time zone, refer to the widget below or use this website:

Time converter at worldtimebuddy.com

Adrian Ditcham’s cross country course, running counterclockwise for the first time in his near-decade tenure, can be viewed here on CrossCountry App and we’ll drop a few pieces of content below for a closer look.

Military Boekelo / FEI Eventing Nations Cup CCIO4*-NC-L (Netherlands): [Website] [Entries/Timing/Scores] [Live Stream]

Gemma Stevens Takes Lead, Allie Knowles Top 5 for USA on Day One of Military Boekelo CCIO4*-L

By on Oct 1, 2026 6:55 pm -

Gemma Stevens and Chilli Morning IV top the Thursday leaderboard at Boekelo. Photo distributed by the Boekelo press office.

Gemma Stevens has intentionally produced the Chilli Morning clone, Chilli Morning IV, since he was a just-saddled three-year-old. “Four” is one of three clones of the great eventing stallion who won Badminton in 2015; all three clones were birthed in the U.S. via ViaGen Pets and Gemini Genetics and surrogate mares before coming to the UK. The cloning was an endeavor on the part of Christopher and Lisa Stone, who also owned Chilli Morning (the stallion passed away six years ago at the age of 20). The other two clones have been ridden by Julia Krajewski (GER) and Alex Hua Tian (CHN). Much like her recent Burghley champion, Chilli Knight (all in the family, a Chilli Morning offspring himself and also owned by the Stones), it’s been a relationship built very much from the ground up.

The 9-year-old clone comes into this first CCIO4*-L at Military Boekelo sensibly prepared; Gemma believes in cultivating longevity at the top levels, and that means creating a schedule that allows them to grow and learn without being overly demanding of their bodies. The production in this phase paid off on Thursday as Gemma and Chilli Morning IV took the lead with about half the field seen, scoring a 25.4 from the judging panel comprised of president Andrew Bennie (NZL), Angela Tucker (GBR) and Polly Ann Huntington (AUS).

Statistically speaking, there aren’t any horses coming forward on Friday’s start list that have a better 6 Run Average (6RA) score, but most riders will tell you to not put a ton of stock into numbers. They tell a part of the story, to be sure, but for example, Chilli Morning IV shaved 4.3 marks off of his 6RA today — in fact, all three of the top Thursday horses were at least 4 marks better than their 6RA. It shows that little improvements accumulate over time and sometimes pay off all at once. Applying this thought process and early average widens the field on Friday considerably, and in fact Gemma’s one who could usurp herself on Friday, with Cooley Park Muze (the top-rated pre-competition pair in the EquiRatings Prediction Center) coming forward as one of the last to see.

Also delivering strong marks that were better than the 6RA forecasted were Brazil’s Marcio Carvalho Jorge and his Pan Ams silver medal partner Castle Howard Casanova, who took 4.2 points off his 2025 Boekelo score (he finished 14th on that effort) to score a 26.0, as well as Germany’s Nadine Marzahl and Victoria 108, who earned a four-star personal best of 27.1 in their first 4*-L start together since 2020. 2026 Boekelo champion Lara de Liedekerke-Meier (BEL) is positioned in fourth with Call Me Senorita (28.3).

For the USA, Allie Knowles is leading the early charge with her individual horse, LS Crown Royal. It was a big day in the sandbox for the 8-year-old Hanoverian owned by Katherine O’Brien as he earned his first sub-30 FEI score and a personal best with Allie in the irons. Their 28.6 is good for fifth in the early going. This was the sole U.S. pair to see on Thursday; the remaining riders will go as follows on Friday as the Nations Cup Final competition kicks off:

  • 10:38 am local / 4:38 am EST: Lauren Nicholson and Landmark’s Jungle Gold
  • 11:34 am local / 5:34 am EST: Jack Curtis and Luska Candy Clover
  • 1:49 pm local / 7:49 am EST : Allie Knowles and Montpelier Scais
  • 3:06 pm local / 9:06 am EST: Hallie Coon and Sirius SB

Dressage continues on Friday starting at 9:07 am local time / 3:07 am EST. The full Friday starting order can be found here. To see what time the dressage will take place in your local time zone, refer to the widget below or this website.

Time converter at worldtimebuddy.com

Click or tap the image to see the fence-by-fence map on CrossCountry App.

Adrian Ditcham’s reversed cross country course has also been unveiled, and a fence-by-fence preview is now available over on CrossCountry App. This will be the first time we’ve seen this course run counterclockwise since 2017, when Sue Benson was still the designer in residence.

L: the 2026 track, R: the 2018 track

The tracks run a remarkably similar loop in this direction, save one more visible deviation toward the end of the 2026 version, as you can see above. The optimum time is 10:00.

More to come from Boekelo!

Tap the screenshot above to view full live scores.

Military Boekelo / FEI Eventing Nations Cup CCIO4*-NC-L (Netherlands): [Website] [Entries/Timing/Scores] [CrossCountry App XC Map] [Live Stream]

Military Boekelo CCIO4*-L Field of 93 Moves Forward to Dressage Start on Thursday

By on Sep 30, 2026 1:25 pm -

Tom McEwen looks to continue his hot streak, trotting up this week at Boekelo with Isa.

While we are sadly not covering Boekelo full-tilt as we ordinarily would this year (budgets, they’re a real pain), we’ll nonetheless be keeping you as up-to-date as possible on this absolutely bursting CCIO4*-L field. Some riders are competing for the honors of winning the FEI Eventing Nations Cup Final, while others are looking to confirm their horses as future championship and/or five-star contenders with a strong weekend here in the Netherlands.

Boekelo wouldn’t be the most dimensionally imposing course there is, but the packed-tight atmosphere with spectators in the five figures and beer tents strewn about essentially right on the galloping ropes means it’s a unique environment that often provides a real confirmation of a horse’s coping ability for the future. While it does look like we might avoid cross country day sog, it will be raining in the early going of competition as an additional layer of enjoyment.

For the USA, a team of four + one additional horse for Allie Knowles comes forward to contest this Nations Cup Final. It’s primarily a team of developing horses and next-gen riders, with experience like that of Lauren Nicholson’s anchoring the team. Lauren rides Ms. Jacqueline Mars’ Landmark’s Jungle Gold, and is joined on the team by Allie with two of her exciting younger horses, Montpelier Scais (on the team) and LS Crown Royal as an individual. Jack Curtis and Luska Candy Clover are tackling their first 4*-L together this week as a part of team USA (but they’ve got a good amount of experience at this early stage of their career, having also competed at the inaugural FEI Eventing World Championships for U25 Riders in Ireland this summer), and Hallie Coon steps forward with Sirius SB, whom she’s taken the rider on for fellow American Katherine Coleman.

Coming into the week, it’s Burghley champion Gemma Stevens who’s been tapped as the highest chance to win with Cooley Park Muze, and for good reason with multiple four-star wins and a top-five finish in his first 4*-L at Royal Jump in May. EquiRatings gives this pair a 22% win chance and a 61% of a top 10 finish. You can get the full sense of field, on paper at least, here.

Today’s First Horse Inspection wasn’t without its tension: it wasn’t to be Irish young rider Tom Nestor’s weekend, with his ride Cooley Diamond Dancer sadly not accepted on re-presentation after being sent to the hold box. The Ground Jury this week is presided over by New Zealand’s Andrew Bennie, joined by Angela Tucker (GBR) and Polly Ann Huntington (AUS). Also not coming forward for the jog was French rider Lisa Gualtieri with A D’Aunis.

Dressage commences on Thursday at 9:00 am in the Netherlands, which is six hours ahead of EST. To find the start time in your local time zone, reference the widget below. Starting orders for both Thursday and Friday, as well as live scoring, can be found here. All of the live action can be found on ClipMyHorse.TV here.

Time converter at worldtimebuddy.com

Military Boekelo / FEI Eventing Nations Cup CCIO4*-NC-L (Netherlands): [Website] [Entries/Timing/Scores] [Live Stream]

Bouckaert Farm to Add Dedicated U25 Divisions Starting in October

By on Sep 25, 2026 12:00 pm -

U25 World Championships individual bronze medalist Olivia Dutton competes at Bouckaert Farm. Photo by Liz Crawley Photography.

Developing riders heading to Bouckaert Farm (Georgia) this fall will have a new chance to compete against riders of similar age. The long-standing equestrian venue, which has committed to a future of equestrian sport in the coming years (and has stated on its website that a “permanent solution” for the venue’s equestrian future is in the works), will debut dedicated U25 divisions at the CCI1*-S, CCI2*-S and CCI3*-S levels at Bouckaert Equestrian International Horse Trials, October 23–25, and will carry those divisions through all three of its international events in 2027.

For Carl Bouckaert, a two-time Olympian for Belgium, the new divisions address a familiar problem for young riders at FEI events.

“A young rider can have an excellent result at an FEI event and still finish well down the leaderboard because they are competing against some of the most experienced professionals in the sport,” he said in a press release. “Dedicated U25 competition gives those riders a chance to see how they compare with others in their generation and have strong performances recognized as they move through the levels. Bouckaert Farm is an exceptional venue, and with three International Horse Trials on the calendar each year, we have an opportunity to make U25 competition a real part of what we offer. We want developing riders to have a place where they can gain experience, build results and keep progressing through the international levels.”

USEF Eventing Selector Michael Pollard sees the initiative as a building block for the U.S. pathway.

“The U25 years are one of the most important transition points in an athlete’s development,” Michael said. “These riders need FEI mileage, experience competing under pressure and opportunities to measure themselves against their peers. Dedicated U25 divisions create meaningful competition at that stage, raise the standard within the next generation and help develop a deeper pool of athletes capable of progressing into senior international competition. That ultimately strengthens the U.S. eventing pathway and our ability to produce competitive teams in the future.”

The October 23–25 International will run CCI1*-S through CCI4*-S, the new U25 divisions at the 1*, 2* and 3* levels, and National Horse Trials from Beginner Novice through Advanced, over a cross country track designed by Clayton Fredericks.

Dedicated CCI1*-S, CCI2*-S and CCI3*-S U25 divisions will be offered at each of the following, alongside open FEI competition through CCI4*-S and National Horse Trials from Beginner Novice through Advanced:

  • March 4–7, 2027
  • August 19–23, 2027
  • October 21–24, 2027

The Internationals sit within a larger Bouckaert calendar of schooling shows and national events, which Carl says is designed to keep horses and riders coming back as they progress. “Our goal is to provide consistency throughout the season,” he said. “Whether someone is developing a young horse, moving through the national levels or progressing through FEI competition, we want Bouckaert to be a venue they can return to throughout the year. With schooling shows, National Horse Trials and International Horse Trials across the calendar, horses and riders can keep gaining experience and progressing at whatever level they are at.”

Learn more about Bouckaert Farm and its competition calendar here.

Defender U.S. Squad for Military Boekelo CCIO4*-L Unveiled

By on Sep 23, 2026 1:20 pm -

Military Boekelo’s fall festival CCI4*-L features on the global eventing calendar as the final leg of the FEI Eventing Nations Cup, and team USA historically sends a developing team of horses and/or riders to this despite not participating heavily on the Nations Cup circuit. Boekelo has yielded a fair share of future five-star and Championship horses, and its late-season spot on the calendar lines up as a natural goal for many riders based overseas.

This year’s Defender U.S. roster has just been announced by US Equestrian for the October 1-4 competition in Enschede, Netherlands. The team is made up of:

  • Hallie Coon (Ocala, Fla.) and Sirius SB, a 2014 Hanoverian gelding (Scuderia x Contendro I) owned by Katherine Coleman and cared for by Conor Comey
  • Jack Curtis (Beverly, Mass.) and Luska Candy Clover, a 2013 Irish Sport Horse gelding (Sligo Candy Boy x White Clover) owned by Betsy Curtis and cared for by Jason Wood
  • Allie Knowles (Lexington, Ky.) and Montpellier Scais, a 2017 Anglo European gelding (Quasimodo van de Molendreef x Indoctro) owned by Katherine O’Brien and cared for by Alex Cain
    • Allie is also an alternate for this squad with LS Crown Royal, a 2018 Hanoverian gelding (Comte x Escudo 19) owned by Katherine O’Brien and cared for by Alex Cain
  • Lauren Nicholson (The Plains, Va.) and Landmark’s Jungle Gold, a 2015 Holsteiner-Irish Sport Horse cross gelding (Diarado x Cougar) owned by Jacqueline Mars and cared for by Sally Roberston

The majority of this team is currently based or stationed overseas; Hallie Coon has been based overseas for the past couple of seasons, Jack Curtis recently begun a stint riding with Tom McEwen in England, US Olympian Lauren Nicholson is traveling over for Boekelo before returning to the U.S. to compete in the US Equestrian Open of Eventing Final with I’ll Have Another the following week, and Allie Knowles is globetrotting her way from competition to competition, shuffling herself back and forth to compete in the UK as well as stateside. Here’s a look at her current rough schedule: most recently, she competed in Blenheim’s 8/9-year-old Championships 4*-S with her Boekelo-named horses and has a horse or two entered at Jump Start in Kentucky this weekend before she’ll hop back over for Boekelo, then do quick scamper back to Virginia to run four horses at Morven Park. Oh, and Allie’s doing this all while balancing motherhood and her full business at home in Kentucky — no biggie.

There will be ample live streaming available to follow along from wherever you are, and EN will be bringing you updates throughout competition week as well, though we won’t have a team on site this year. Use the link list below to follow along October 1-4:

Military Boekelo CCIO4*-L (Netherlands): [Website] [Schedule/Timing] [Live Stream – ClipMyHorse.TV] [Live Stream – FEI YouTube]

A Decade in the Making: New Water Complex Coming to Adelaide’s Victoria Park for 2027

By on Sep 14, 2026 9:00 am -

Madison Seivwright and Waitaingi Pinterest at the 2026 Adelaide Equestrian Festival. Photo by Atalya Boytner Photography.

Nearly ten years after the idea was first conceived, a new water jump is coming to Victoria Park/Pakapakanthi, the home of the Adelaide Equestrian Festival and sole CCI5* in the southern hemisphere.

The Adelaide Equestrian Festival has announced it will debut a new water complex within Victoria Park ahead of the 2027 edition of the event, a project first championed by former Event Director and dual Olympic gold medallist Gillian Rolton AM before her passing in 2017. Gillian, who ran the event (then the Australian International Three-Day Event) for a decade, remains one of the most significant figures in Adelaide’s history: she won team gold for Australia at both the 1992 Barcelona and 1996 Atlanta Games, and Victoria Park itself hosted her state funeral following her death.

The Victoria Park Water Jump has been part of the Festival’s long-term vision for its home in the Adelaide Park Lands, and the organizing team have billed it as an important legacy project for both the Festival and the sport of eventing in Australia. Work on the project got underway prior to Gillian’s death, but was shelved amid the COVID-19 pandemic, which forced a three-year postponement of the event itself.

A rendering of the forthcoming new water question to be added at the Adelaide Equestrian Festival in 2027.

With the Festival now firmly re-established on the international calendar, preliminary work resumed in early 2025 in partnership with the City of Adelaide.

The new water complex has been designed to sit lightly on the landscape it occupies; a consideration that is an important part of the ongoing sustainability and future of the sport. The site is an existing cleared area within Victoria Park’s naturally undulating terrain, and for most of the year it will simply read as a grassed depression in the parkland. Only during the Festival itself will the complex hold water, using stormwater engineering and water-management systems built into the design.

Adelaide’s beautiful parklands play host to the first CCI5* of the season in April. Photo by Atalya Boytner.

Notably, the project does not require removing any trees or established vegetation, and organizers say it will not be affected by the new MotoGP circuit also being built within the park ahead of an anticipated November 2027 race — a project that is separately reshaping parts of Adelaide’s competition footprint (as EN reported when Clayton Fredericks was named the new CCI5* cross-country designer for 2027).

Adelaide Equestrian Festival Event Director Kirsty Withers called seeing the project move toward reality an emotional milestone.

“This is a project that has been close to a decade in the making,” she said. “Cross country is the defining discipline of our event and sport — a second water complex brings Adelaide’s course infrastructure in line with the world’s leading venues. To be realizing Gill’s vision ten years on is incredibly special.”

Kirsty added that the design philosophy centers on working with, rather than against, the existing parkland. “The site is already cleared and naturally depressed, allowing us to create something that presents as part of the grassed Park Lands year round and then transforms into a world-class competition feature during the Festival,” she said.

The new water jump arrives as Adelaide navigates a broader reshaping of its home turf. The Festival is working alongside the South Australian Government and the SA Motor Sport Board to ensure the 2027 event — set for April 15-18 — is delivered to the standard expected of a five-star competition while the park simultaneously accommodates MotoGP circuit work. A new event layout, which will see some temporary rejigging of the grounds’ layout for 2027, is in development to respond to the changes within Victoria Park, with organizers aiming to preserve the atmosphere and professional presentation the Festival is known for among competitors, spectators, partners, and traders.

It won’t be the first time Adelaide has had to adapt on the fly. “Our team is no stranger to adapting to disruption and change within the Adelaide Park Lands, with the Festival having successfully operated outside the traditional Victoria Park hub on a number of occasions throughout its history,” Kirsty said.

Adelaide Equestrian Festival Deputy Chair Karlene Maywald framed the project as part of a longer-range strategy to protect the Festival’s standing on the international calendar.

Photo by Atalya Boytner.

“The Adelaide Equestrian Festival is an iconic international event that has been successfully staged in the Adelaide Park Lands for more than 25 years,” she said. “The Victoria Park Water Jump represents an important investment in the Festival’s future. We are pleased to work collaboratively with the City of Adelaide, South Australian Government and SA Motor Sport Board on the opportunities ahead for the Festival.”

“Our focus is not simply on navigating the changes required for 2027, but on ensuring the Adelaide Equestrian Festival continues to thrive, evolve and strengthen its international standing for decades to come,” she added.

Adelaide remains the only CCI5* in the southern hemisphere and one of just six such events run worldwide (a number the sport hopes to see return to seven in 2027 with the re-addition of the Maryland 5 Star, under new management). The venue’s signature urban course, which famously threads through closed-down city streets within Victoria Park, has long been central to its identity. A second water complex would bring its cross country infrastructure closer in line with fellow five-star venues like Kentucky, Badminton, and Burghley, each of which features multiple water features on course.

The announcement also lands amid a broader changing of the guard at Adelaide. Longtime designer Mike Etherington-Smith is handing the CCI5* course design reins to Clayton Fredericks for 2027, while himself shifting into a Course Advisor role and Ewan Kellett stepping in as Assistant Course Designer. Clayton will now be tasked with incorporating the new water complex into his first five-star design, something he’s expressed to us that he’s quite excited to do.

More details on the new layout, and how the water complex will factor into the course itself, are expected as planning continues. In the meantime, tickets for the 2027 Adelaide Equestrian Festival, April 15-18, are available here.

Team Riders Announced for £50,000 Blenheim Challenge

By on Sep 12, 2026 9:00 am -

Tommy Greengard and That’s Me Z. Photo by Shannon Brinkman Photography.

As the Agria Blenheim Palace International approaches, riders participating in the inaugural £50,000 Blenheim Challenge have been announced. This new Challenge division will feature developing/rising star riders from Great Britain, the USA and Australia and has been supported by the GB Rising Lions team that sent over a handful of young riders to contest the Cosequin Lexington CCI4*-S at Defender Kentucky this past April.

The riders who have been announced are:

Olivia Dutton and Jewelent. Photo by Tilly Berendt.

USA:

  • Olivia Dutton and Jewelent
  • Tommy Greengard and That’s Me Z
  • Grace Taylor and Bandito van Polderzicht

Great Britain:

  • Isabelle Cook and Cymoon “F” Z
  • Jess Rimmer and The Spice Merchant
  • Barnie Brotherton and DHI King Nelson
  • Josh Levett and Huberthus AC

Oliver Barrett and Sandhills Briar. Photo by Atalya Boytner Photography.

Australia:

  • Oliver Barrett and Sandhills Briar

You can see more about each competitor on the GB Rising Lions Instagram page here. The Agria Blenheim Palace International kicks off on September 17 in England, and you can learn more here.

The Eventing Connemara Knows No Bounds

By on Sep 9, 2026 9:00 am -

Allison Springer and No May Moon. Photo by Sally Spickard.

The Connemara is a breed often featured on an eventing entry list, and for good reason. Connemaras carry a well-earned reputation for their hardiness, temperaments and athleticism. In fact, many a Connemara has been crossed through the years with a Thoroughbred or a warmblood to add additional movement and athletic ability, and we’ve even seen some of these horses compete up to the top levels of eventing. Pure Connemaras, too, have found success in the sport. Horses such as Donna Miller’s Coud’Poker Tartifume and Kendal Fansler’s Delilah’s Boy have shot to the top of the USEA leaderboards, earning accolades like SmartPak Pony of the Year.

So it’s safe to say the Connemara is here to stay. We caught up with a few riders competing Connemaras at last month’s USEA American Eventing Championships at Kentucky Horse Park and one common thread ran throughout each conversation: the Connemara is a top choice for eventers at every level.

By the way, if you currently ride or own a Connemara, there’s a good chance that horse is eligible for membership to the American Connemara Pony Society, which is an organization dedicated to the support and promotion of the breed all throughout the U.S., in any discipline. Half- and quarter-Connemaras are even eligible for their own membership, which can make them eligible to earn year-end awards, scholarships and much more. If you aren’t already a member, you can find more information here.

Elliott Timmons and Illaunurra Duster at #AEC2026. Photo by Sally Spickard.

For Elliott Timmons, the Connemara has become a whole career path. After competing through the Preliminary level and earning her USDF Bronze and Gold medal with Connemaras, Elliott set up shop with a boutique breeding farm, where she stands two of her own stallions, WH Top Gun and Foothills Field Marshal, intentionally making matches to produce sport- and amateur-friendly progeny.

“[These stallions] are great ambassadors for the breed,” Elliott, who bases her operations out of Ocala after relocating a few years back from Indiana, told me. “They’ve shown all over the country, have babies of their their own all over the country, and since I’ve been able to buy them, I’ve picked up a couple Thoroughbred mares that I’ve competed, done RRP with, and things like that. I competed them in eventing, and then now they’ve had our cross babies. They’re perfect. They’re the best. [The Thoroughbred influence] gives them some height and some gallop, and then they’re just amazing.”

And her own background goes much deeper, in fact. “I grew up on a Connemara,” she laughed. “My mom also had Connemaras, and it was always like, ‘if we’re going to do this, we’re doing it with Connemaras.'”

It’s the Connemara work ethic, Elliott says, that continues to draw her in. Here, she references the Connemara history, all the way back to their originating status in Ireland as cart horses. “They’ve always had jobs, and enjoyed having them. I think that their work ethic is what has drew drew me to them in the first place, and what has brought me back, because I’ve gone off and ridden other horses and I’m like ‘wait a second, it’s not the same! I don’t want to work that hard!’ They’re sure footed and they’re smart and they’re usually made of iron, and I just adore them.”

Heather Wu and HSH Gunpowder and Lead compete at #AEC2026. Photo by Sally Spickard.

“My husband jokes around and always tells me there’s like other horse breeds of horses — no there’s only one,” laughs Heather Wu, another competitor who brought her Connemara mare, HSH Gunpowder and Lead, to compete at Starter level at AEC. This AEC marked the first time she’d qualified with this horse, and she was eager to put the ultimate test in front of her game mare. In fact, her mare was sired by Elliott’s WH Top Gun. “I mean, they’re fancy, they could do well on the flat. They jump around. They’re so brave. They’re so sound. They’re compact little things, and they just cruise around. Some people don’t really like the attitude — I like the pony attitude. I think it kind of gives them a little bit of an edge. I don’t really like big horses, so anything like 15.3 and below is perfect. I think they’re a great size, especially for a lot of adult amateurs.”

Heather acts as the Region 5 American Connemara Pony Society governor, a position that’s allowed her to really build a community within the sport. “I love this Society. It’s a wonderful group of women. Everybody’s so supportive. We all show up with our Connemara pads, and at away shows we all have our banners, and we say hi to each other. It’s just like a great organization where they really celebrate everybody’s successes, which is really cool. I don’t really know of any other breed organization other than Thoroughbreds, honestly, that really kind of headline what they’re doing out in the world.”

Megan Lichty and TBS Declan Pondi. Photo by Sally Spickard.

And one incredible selling point for a Connemara? Their sense of when to be gentle.

This has been one of the best things for Megan Lichty, who also competed at AEC with her Connemara stallion, TBS Declan Pondi. Based out of Georgia, Megan’s life isn’t just about the horses — she’s got a family at home, too, and even as a stallion, TBS Declan Pondi is the gentlest of souls around her young daughter.

“He’s a people person,” Megan describes. As I’m interviewing her, her daughter is helping to untack Declan after his dressage ride at AEC, gently brushing his legs (the most she can reach at her age!) while he looks on steadily. “When I was pregnant, he was the only one I would ride, so I was still doing his fitness and gallops until I was six months pregnant.”

Megan herself also does some breeding with this horse out of her farm — TBS Declan Pondi is the sire of Young Rider competitor James Power’s Brambleridge Ponder the Truth — and this stallion was purchased to be the cornerstone of that program. “My mom and I decided to import a stallion from Ireland, and she sent me over to pick him out, and I picked him out when he was three months old, and he shipped to the states when he was five months old. My mom bought him for me, and I’ve done all of his training myself. All of his showing, he’s shown in hand. He events. He fox hunts. He show jumped. He’s done dressage. Their temperaments are so super — the bulk of the stallions here in the states are are owned by amateurs, and most people compete their own pony. That’s just part of the beauty of the breed.”

And as I said earlier, it’s not out of the realm of possibility that these sporty Connemaras can even reach the top of the sport. Allison Springer knows this firsthand — it was longtime supporter Nancy Winter who first turned her on to the Connemara breed, and through her breeding program Allison’s taken several of these ponies up to the upper levels of the sport. No May Moon, a Connemara/Thoroughbred cross is one such success story, winning the 2024 MARS Bromont CCI4*-L and handing Allison her first four-star Long win to boot.

“I rode many of [Nancy’s] homebred, purebred Connemaras for years and years, and then it was in her mind that she wanted to breed a modern day Connemara sport horse cross,” Allison said. “Nancy always said she wanted the sure-footedness and quickness, and the brains of the Connemara. Then she wanted to get some of the Thoroughbred blood in there, and that’s what they are. They’re like my little dirt bikes. They are so fun.”

Behind it all, the American Connemara Pony Society offers support and camradarie around this special breed. “The American Connemara Pony Society is so fabulous because they really do a great job of recognizing these super athletes in so many different categories,” Allison said. “And I’ve been the recipient [of awards] with some of Nancy’s ponies in the past, which is really fun. But it’s just such a super breed, and I’m really honored to represent them.”

This article is brought to you in partnership with the American Connemara Pony Society. Interested in learning more? Visit acps.org to start your own journey.

‘If We Do Our Jobs Right, Then the Horses Will Understand’: Riders React to Derek di Grazia’s Defender Burghley Cross Country Course

By on Sep 4, 2026 8:21 pm -

It’s nearing go time for cross country day at Defender Burghley and before we get “stuck in” as many a rider would say, let’s dive into some of the reactions to what Derek di Grazia has rolled out this year.

If you want more in-depth looks at the course, we’ve got you covered! Here’s a fence-by-fence map from CrossCountry App:

The course can also be viewed here. There is also a preview on Burghley TV, which can be accessed here with your subscription.

Here’s some analysis on the course’s intensity this year:

The course has an optimum time of 11:20. Below you’ll find some quotes from riders at Burghley on what they think of the course, and we’ll also mix in a few posts from social media with more analysis and how-to.

Cross country begins at 11:30 a.m. BEST, which is 6:30 a.m. EST. If you need more help with time zone conversions, we recommend using World Time Buddy here, but we’ve added a widget below that should show the start time in your device’s local time zone:

Time converter at worldtimebuddy.com

The cross country order of go can be found here.

Defender Burghley: [Website] [Tickets] [Entries] [Timetable] [Timing & Scoring] [CrossCountry App XC Preview] [EN’s Burghley Field Wiki] [EN’s Ultimate Guide] [Burghley TV] [EN’s Coverage]

Nadja Minder – Toblerone

Nadja Minder and Toblerone. Photo by Hannah Cole Photography.

On the track and how she feels Toblerone will take to it:

“Well, I think the the cross country looks good. I like it. It looks very intense after the second road crossing, like there is one question after the other, two combinations, the Trout Hatchery and the Leaf Pit — all that is just very intense and not really a breather in between. What is a bit different, the first half of the course. But for me, when I point him in the right direction and we manage the feel the right way, and he’ll be fine.”

Sam Watson – Ballyneety Rocket Man

When asked for some nerdy analysis on some of the fences (he’s the co-founder of EquiRatings, if you didn’t know, so this is an on-brand question to ask Sam at any point in time):

“In the middle of the course, firstly we’ve got five curving lines to a corner, so we’ve got one at the Dairy Mound. You pop down a log, curvy stride there to a corner. We’ve got one of the Pedigree Corners, which I think is really interesting because that’s so blind. We come in over a big box brush with a ditch underneath it, and there’s a corner to our right, and it’s probably going to be quite an open five strides around to it. Some will do six, but that’s so blind when you jump in. I think that’s one of the traps: that it walks lovely, you know. If you’re like, ‘oh, if I build this in my arena, that that walks lovely.’ But you forget how blind you are when you come into it, and that you’re five minutes around Burghley as well, so you’re getting going. Then again, at the Maltings, you come out of there with a curve to a corner, come out of the Trout Hatchery, curve to a corner, and you come off the Leaf Pit and you go curve to a corner. What the curve does is it allows you to make mistakes. It allows you to fall in. It allows you to move the shoulder to the outside. And Derek has just built a very fair track. Probably not as big as last year. Probably not quite as technical, either. But it’s still trappy — and where where I say trappy is not trying to trick horses. He’s allowing riders to make mistakes, and he gives us enough time. There’s not much on two strides. There’s not much on one stride out there. Very little even, I think on three strides, it’s it’s sort of 4, 5, 6, and that gives you time to make an error.”

Matthew Heath – Benedict Radau

On the ground preparation and conditions:

“It’s going to be fantastic. Real good cut in the ground. Best ground I would have ridden on all year by a country mile. They’ve done a fantastic job prior to this rain, and this rain has just really helped boost all the work and hard work that they’ve done. I think the course is presented beautifully. The ground is second to none. You won’t find it anywhere else. I’m 15, 20 minutes up the road, and I can promise you, my place is like the outback. It is completely desert land, and I mean, we’ve had a bit of rain recently — it’s just starting to green up. So for them to get this place, looking how it does, I think, is just a phenomenal effort from them, and hugely appreciated by not just me, by everyone.”

On the track itself:

“I think it’s a really cool track to ride. I can’t wait to go out and have a go. Last year, I felt like there was the one or two things that were maybe a little bit kind of hidden and tricky for Burghley terrain. This year, I think he’s put it there. It’s in front of us. It’s very, very big. It’s very, very technical, and he’s put us on committed lines. I think if we do our jobs right, then the horses will understand the question. It’s just down to us.”

Michael Owen – Monbeg Darwin

On the track itself:

“So comparing to last year, I think it’s a lot smoother where the fences are positioned. There might be a couple more horses nearer the time, not necessarily inside the time, but a lot closer to the time. So I think it’s a lot less — it won’t interfere with your rhythm as much, so it should suit Darwin fine, although he is very adjustable for a big horse, so he’s quite adaptable. So I wasn’t really hoping what kind of course he’d build, but it’s Burghley. The terrain is the things that catch them out, and the cumulative effect of the terrain and the fences. Put them on a flat ground like Aston le Walls, and it’d be easy. But put it here, and it’s a totally different ball game.”

Harry Meade – Cavalier Crystal and Et Hop du Matz

On the track itself:

“Similar routes to last year, very different questions. I think notably, the questions come from beginning to end, not just in the first half, which always used to be the case at Burghley. And things like the Trout Hatchery will come up very quickly, and what happens at element A will affect your ride the rest of the way through. There’s very little time to recover or change your plan. And again, I think that the Leaf Pit is a comparatively straightforward Leaf Pit, but it’s right at the end, so you can’t compare it to a few years ago, when it was very, very difficult, those big brushes that were about fence seven or eight. So I think there’s questions throughout, and it’d be be fun to get stuck into it.”

On the “flavor” or “theme” of this year’s track:

“Probably compared to some of his courses, less forward, attacking. There’s quite a lot of accuracy questions out of not that open a stride. But like all good courses, he’s very much mixed it up — Derek does test everything.”

Gemma Stevens – Chilli Knight

Gemma Stevens and Chilli Knight. Photo by Hannah Cole Photography.

On the track itself and what makes a course a five-star:

“There’s loads of combinations. To be honest, I don’t think there’s one that really stands out as being ‘hello, I’m impossible,’but there are lots and lots of difficult combinations, and I think the cumulative effect of those over the whole course — and there are a few real tricky ones towards the end — I think that’s what makes it a true five-star.”

Tim Price – Falco and Global Quest

Tim Price and Falco. Photo by Hannah Cole Photography.

On his many years coming to Burghley, and whether it ever becomes easier to ride here:

“Look, the thing about Burghley is walking the course yesterday, I get nervous and I wonder how to do my job, and it’s not many places it’s like that. You know, at other places you’d just be like — I’m not saying it always goes to plan — but the feeling you get walking the courses at Burghley, I’m like, ‘is that actually–? Is it–? Will my horse actually understand?’ You know, you’re questioning everything. So in a funny way there’s a closer relationship with the designer because you trust him and you try to see it through his eyes and the question he’s asking. You refer to that quite — well I refer to that quite a lot, but no, it never it never gets normal.”

On the track itself:

“I think it’s a bit tougher than last year. The ground is fantastic. We’re very lucky with what’s gone into that to give us a good platform to do the job, but I think in terms of the course, I think it’s a little bit more modern. You know, like there’s questions where we’ve got question followed by question and it’s quite intense in that way. It’s a long way round as usual. And the Trout Hatchery, I think, is particularly a big ask at that stage of the track.”

Jesse Campbell – Cooley Lafitte

On the track itself::

“It’s pretty big, but I think it’s quite fair. He lets you in probably a little bit nicer this year. Like I think the Dairy Mound’s a really good fence, and I think it’ll be be cool to ride. There’s some, I think, a couple of fences where, if you get it right, it’s going to be like, just unreal. I think like the Maltings, if you get a good ride there, that’s going to feel like a amazing roller coaster. Same with the Trout Hatchery — I think that could ride really cool. But yeah, it’s beefy all the way up to Leaf Pit, and the Leaf Pit’s a huge question as well. So you have to be on the game.”

More insights from Derek di Grazia himself can also be found on the Eventing Podcast here.

EN’s Ultimate Guide to the 2026 Defender Burghley CCI5*

By on Sep 1, 2026 9:17 am -

We’re all set to kick off the action at the 2026 Defender Burghley CCI5* this week! Things will get underway tomorrow (Wednesday) with the first trot-up, and then it’s off to the races. Tilly Berendt will be our on-site reporter this week, with help from Gemma Redrup as well as Hannah Cole on photos and Incanto Sports on video. Stay tuned for much more coming your way all week long, but for now you can get your week started and primed with our Ultimate Guide. Keep this page bookmarked for all of the latest from EN’s coverage!

Defender Burghley: [Website] [Tickets] [Entries] [Timetable] [Timing & Scoring] [CrossCountry App XC Preview] [EN’s Burghley Field Wiki] [EN’s Ultimate GuideBurghley TV] [EN’s Coverage]

The Schedule

Wednesday September 2

4:00 p.m. BEST / 10:00 a.m. EST: First Horse Inspection

Thursday, September 3

10:00 a.m. BEST / 4:00 a.m. EST: Morning Dressage Session
2:00 p.m. BEST / 8:00 a.m. EST: Afternoon Dressage Session

Friday, September 4

10:00 a.m. BEST / 4:00 a.m. EST: Morning Dressage Session
2:00 p.m. BEST / 8:00 a.m. EST: Afternoon Dressage Session

Saturday, September 5

11:00 a.m. BEST / 5:00 a.m. EST: Cross Country

Sunday, September 6

8:45 a.m. BEST / 2:45 a.m. EST: Final Horse Inspection
10:30 a.m. BEST / 4:30 a.m. EST: Show Jumping – Morning Session
2:30 p.m. BEST / 8:30 a.m. EST: Show Jumping – Top 20

All times are, of course, subject to change. You can view the full timetable, including all official events happening on-site, here. We also know there are many other time zones around the world, so if you need help figuring out when to tune in locally, we recommend using this handy app.

How to Watch and Follow

Defender Burghley carries its own livestream, and it’s a great option for those of you wanting to follow along virtually. Burghley TV is the exclusive provider of live stream and on-demand content, and it costs just £25 (about $34 USD) to sign up. The subscription will renew annually unless you cancel it (Burghley TV will email you a few weeks out each year to remind you), and in our opinion it’s well worth the investment.

You can sign up for Burghley TV here.

The Players

We have had a few withdrawals over the last few weeks, including title contenders Felix Cogg (SUI) and his Maryland 5 Star winner Cartania, Sophia Hill (AUS) and Tulara Baltango, and others. The up-to-date entry list can be found here. Our full Form Guide to all combinations in the field can be found here.

Defender Burghley Draw Order: Harry Meade to Lead Off

2026 Defender Burghley Entries Go Live with 58 Combinations

The Officials

Here’s a look at your officiating crew this week:

Ground Jury: Xavier le Sauce (FRA) – President, Joanne Jarden (IRL), Sandy Phillips (GBR)

  • Technical Delegate: Gary Parsonage (GBR)
  • Cross Country Designer: Derek di Grazia (USA), assisted by Adrian Ditcham (GBR), Andy Heffernan (NED), Clayton Fredericks (AUS)
  • Jumping Course Designer: Paul Conner (GBR)

 

Other resources:

EquiRatings Prediction Center

EquiRatings Eventing Manager

EN’s Coverage

SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 6

“25 Years of Work, And I’ve Finally Won a Big B”: Gemma Stevens Claims Burghley Victory with Chilli Knight

US Partnership Bows Out of Defender Burghley at Final Horse Inspection

SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 5

The Defender Burghley Cross Country Report: An Actually Really Cool Day of Sport

Horse-by-Horse Updates from Cross Country Day at Defender Burghley: Live Blog

An Early Hill and Corners for Days: What to Expect from the Burghley Course

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 4

‘If We Do Our Jobs Right, Then the Horses Will Understand’: Riders React to Derek di Grazia’s Defender Burghley Cross Country Course

A Reward for Work Well Done: The Defender Burghley Friday Debrief

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 3

“Today He Believed He Could do Dressage”: Nadja Minder Takes Thursday Burghley Lead with 19-Year-Old Wonderhorse

Every Day She’s Shuffling: Gemma Stevens and Chilli Knight Take Thursday Morning Burghley Lead

WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 2

Major Withdrawal Shakes up Defender Burghley First Horse Inspection

PRE-COMPETITION

A Champion Awaits: EN’s Form Guide to the 2026 Defender Burghley Field

Your First Look at the 2026 Defender Burghley Cross Country Course

Defender Burghley Draw Order: Harry Meade to Lead Off

2026 Defender Burghley Entries Go Live with 58 Combinations

Heath Ryan (AUS) Suspended 18 Months by FEI Tribunal After Horse Abuse Investigation

By on Aug 31, 2026 9:00 am -

Australian Olympic rider Heath Ryan has been issued an 18-month suspension by an FEI Tribunal — backdated to June 12, 2025, which means the suspension will end on December 12 of this year — following a decision on a horse abuse case that originated on social media in June of 2025. The video, which was found to be from May of 2023, depicted Heath hitting a horse named Nico more than 50 times. In the wake of the video being posted online, Heath initially issued a statement on his own social media, describing the horse as one that had seriously injured his owner and was on the path to euthanasia. He also stated that the video had been published by a disgruntled ex-employee.

“The FEI Tribunal concluded that Ryan engaged in horse abuse pursuant to Article 142.1 of the FEI General Regulations, bringing both the FEI and equestrian sport into disrepute,” a statement issued by the FEI on August 28 says. “He has furthermore breached the FEI Code of Conduct for the Welfare of the Horse pursuant to Article 164.12(i) of the FEI General Regulations. In its Final Decision, the FEI Tribunal suspends Ryan for a period of eighteen (18) months, starting as of the date of the Provisional Suspension imposed on him on 12 June 2025. Consequently, his suspension will end on 12 December 2026. Ryan is also ordered to pay a fine of CHF 3,000 and a contribution of CHF 3,000 towards the FEI’s legal costs.”

The decision comes after months of investigation and procedural elements, which include an attempt by Heath and his legal team to file with Australian national courts to halt the FEI Tribunal’s proceedings via an Australian court injunction, arguing the Tribunal lacked jurisdiction to discipline him. He contended the FEI lacked jurisdiction because the session was private, involved a non-FEI-registered horse, and wasn’t tied to any FEI event — an argument the Tribunal itself rejected in its jurisdictional ruling. He separately sought injunctive relief in Australian courts, including on the question of the Tribunal’s jurisdiction, though the specific grounds argued there aren’t detailed in the tribunal’s decision.

In his team’s arguments to the FEI Tribunal, Heath said that he used FEI-recognized Equitation Science principles (negative reinforcement with escalation), that the horse was in “conflict behaviour” rather than a fear state, and that the horse’s later successful rehoming proved the method worked.

His defense leaned heavily on training science, not just the horse’s history. He argued he had applied recognized Equitation Science principles — specifically negative reinforcement with progressive escalation of pressure, a widely used method in which pressure is released the moment a horse gives the correct response. He maintained the horse was displaying “conflict behavior” (resistance, kicking out, tail-swishing) rather than a genuine fear response, and pointed to the horse’s outcome — successfully re-homed and ridden without incident since — as proof the method had worked.

It’s a defense that borrows real, recognized terminology from an actual scientific framework. But that same body of research contains warnings that cut the other way. Equitation scientists have long cautioned that negative reinforcement only works ethically with precise timing: pressure has to stop the instant a horse responds, or it stops functioning as training and becomes de facto punishment. Researchers have also warned that what looks like a “successful” outcome — a horse that eventually stops resisting — can actually reflect learned helplessness, not genuine compliance, when an animal is subjected to sustained or inescapable pressure.

This is close to the argument the FEI’s own expert made. Equine veterinarian Dr. Rachel Murray concluded in her report that the whip strikes were delivered continuously and “without allowing the Horse time to respond,” finding the technique had “no rational training value” under recognized learning theory. The FEI’s claim went further, arguing that “obedience obtained through abuse is not a success but reflects the prioritisation of the Horse’s use over its welfare” — a framing that echoes, almost precisely, the same caution found in the equitation-science literature Heath cited in his own defense.

There is no confirmation in the decision documents (which can be read in full here) that the individual who submitted/posted the video was interviewed by the FEI or the FEI Tribunal. Heath, along with some of the nine witnesses who provided character statements in his defense, maintained that the video was submitted with a vindictive intention. A third party, Quest Global, confirmed that no evidence of editing or other manipulation of the video was found.

[Read the full FEI Tribunal decision here]

Boyd Martin and Shanroe Cooley Crowned Adequan Advanced Champions at USEA AEC

By on Aug 28, 2026 11:25 pm -

Boyd Martin and Shanroe Cooley. Photo by Sally Spickard.

Boyd Martin hasn’t had a rail with the 11-year-old Irish Sport Horse gelding Shanroe Cooley in five starts at the four-star level, and he’s a consistent show jumping rider in general. With a rail’s cushion in hand after cross country at the USEA American Eventing Championships, presented by Nutrena, it would be safe to say that Boyd came into Rolex Stadium, ablaze at the end of golden hour and buzzing with a packed hospitality tent, feeling buoyed by confidence.

Clear rounds had been hard to come by in the 18-horse field to that point. Bobby Murphy set the courses for our AEC competitors this weekend, and a technical track that kept horses and riders on their toes with most fences set after a turn as well as the complicating factor of the setting sun exerted influence. Two pairs — eventual second-place finisher Mary Bess Davis (Imperio Magic) and Elisa Wallace (Lissavorra Quality) — secured double clears, and just three others had left all the poles where they belonged but incurred time penalties.

Boyd Martin and Shanroe Cooley. Photo by Sally Spickard.

So that rail in hand may have come in handy, should Boyd have needed it. But he didn’t. One second’s worth of a time penalty was added to his overall score with Shanroe Cooley, who is owned by Dallas LLC, but not so much as a pole was touched on their trip around, giving Boyd another Adequan Advanced Championship and the lion’s share of the $60,000 prize fund. He and “Dallas” end the weekend on a score of 40.5.

“He’s brilliant. I mean, he’s a fantastic jumping horse,” Boyd commented. “At all the the big shows that are really important, he seems to prance out there and jump like a stag. I felt like he jumped the course really well. We had a good warm-up, and [I’m] very pleased with him tonight.”

Shanroe Cooley already has a five-star podium finish under his belt, earned at Luhmühlen earlier this year. The maturity event horses often leave their first five-star with is something Boyd feels is evident in Dallas now. “I just think he’s evolved and and matured and developed a lot since Luhmühlen five-star, and I think that was a great turning point in our career,” he elaborated. “Sometimes when you do those big five-stars, it can rattle the horse, [but] in this case, it’s made him stronger and and more seasoned. So I must say, all three phases this weekend with Dallas, he just felt like a more established, mature horse.”

Liz Halliday joins Boyd for the prizegiving. Photo by Sally Spickard.

The evening was complemented by a special appearance by Dallas’ former rider, Liz Halliday, for the prizegiving ceremony. In fact, the first thing Boyd did upon exiting the stadium was to call Liz and tell her to scoot her boot down to the prizegiving. “We need her in there,” he told her team.

Photo by Sally Spickard.

It’s bittersweet, to be honest, seeing Liz now. It’s overwhelmingly incredible to see how well she is doing, but the shadow of the accident she had here at this event two years ago nearly to the day still lingers. I admire the strength she has (which is, of course, utterly unsurprising, if you know Liz at all) and the pure joy she feels when she’s around the sport now. We can all learn a thing or three from her, her embracing of life as it is. And you’ll be unsurprised to hear that she’s already planning her LA28 Paralympics campaign, so this is certainly not the last we’ve seen of Liz in an arena.

Above all, it’s nice to have her back, here with us. We won’t ever stop being grateful for that.

Mary Bess Davis and Imperio Magic. Photo by Sally Spickard.

Mary Bess Davis capped off a weekend of redemption by jumping her way up from fourth into second (44.3) thanks to that aforementioned double clear with her own Imperio Magic. I wrote a little yesterday about Mary Bess’ journey back from a nasty injury that, while not the most serious injury she’s ever had was certainly among the lengthiest in terms of recovery. It was discouraging enough that Mary Bess briefly considered hanging it up for good. “I told my husband I’m quitting, I’m tired of hurting, and he’s like ‘let’s just give it time’ — he always says that — and of course, like two days later I was back in with everything, planning where I wanted to go.”

Between that and the niggling little inconsistencies she’d experienced with this horse over the past season or so, Mary Bess came into the weekend armed and ready.

Her secret weapon? The one and only Karen O’Connor, who has been in Mary Bess’ corner for many years, but has been present more recently. “I called Karen and told her I wanted her everywhere with me,” Mary Bess said. “She talked to me coming into this [weekend], and she said ‘you’ve got to learn how to win. You’re competitive. You have to learn how to win,’ and I was like, well, that’s important. And so we came into this and really focused hard on every aspect of the show and performance, and it really paid off. It was really important that she had that conversation with me, and then we applied it all week.”

Mary Bess laughs when she thinks back on her clear round, which she describes as “a little wild.”

Mary Bess Davis and Imperio Magic. Photo by Sally Spickard.

“He’s just an amazing little horse, and he goes in there and he knows that he wants to perform and show everybody what he’s about,” she said. “And you have to hold on because he gets wild, and he’s like, ‘Hold on, mom!’ I didn’t have time to shorten my reins. I was like, ‘This, this is getting wild!’ and he was just like, “Girl, I’m taking you for a ride!'”

“McColl” doesn’t have the most traditional jumping form, but he certainly doesn’t typically come close to touching a rail, reminding us a little of Emily Hamel’s Corvett in this phase. For Mary Bess, who only has this one horse at the upper levels and not really any others, aside from a few client horses, this result is all about becoming more consistent. Allowing the horse to be who he is is a part of that, and the partnership she’s established with him enables her to keep chipping away at those little one-percent details.

“I want to be consistent everywhere I go, and I don’t want to have any of these mountains and valleys that I’ve kind of been having on and off,” she said. “I want to have a full season of competitive success, so that’s our goal, and hopefully we’ll just keep on.”

“I think all the time about when I was younger and I had three Advanced horses at the same time and I could not get it wrong — I was just on fire,” she had told me yesterday. “And so I think about that a lot, but I will say if you’re going to be on something you would want to be on him because he’s just so careful and I’m so confident with him. I know him so well now and he makes it easy for me to trust and believe.”

Maya Clarkson and Maks Mojo C. Photo by Sally Spickard.

Maya Clarkson didn’t quite have the jumping round she hoped for tonight with her own Maks Mojo C, lowering two rails but finishing within the time allowed for third place and a score of 51.1, but she remained pleased with the improvements she did feel across phases this weekend. “Maks” is a bit more of a one-rail horse, if he’s going to have a rail, so two tonight was disappointing — and something Maya takes the responsibility for — but the weekend served its purpose as a set-up for Maya’s yet-to-be-finalized fall plans.

“The rails where my fault, and I was bummed about them, but that’s okay,” Maya said. “It was our both of our first time actually jumping in this ring together, so I was pleased. He jumped the same he does in every other ring, and I was a little bit just not quite on my game, so that was on me. But he was fantastic both yesterday, and dressage was probably the best test he’s ever done, even with a couple mistakes. And then the cross country, he made it feel so easy. Advanced on him, in the past, has been not always that easy. The horse has the biggest heart of anything I’ve ever ridden, and will just find the flags regardless of what position I’m in. But it was nice to have pretty much all of the round feel really smooth yesterday. So I was really proud of that and proud of him today.”

The recipient of the 2026 Wilton Fair grant, Maya has yet to finalize her plans for whether she’ll go overseas this fall or hold off. She’ll also be eyeing a five-star move-up at some point in the coming seasons, so her ongoing production of Maks Mojo C will be done with this larger picture in mind.

Katie Lichten and HTS Jensen R. Photo by Sally Spickard.

Here’s a look at our final top 10 in this Adequan Advanced Championship:

Keep scrolling for further updates from #AEC2026! I’m signing off from the Advanced division, but will be bringing you end-of-day round-ups from our remaining two days of competition, which will finish off our Starter through Novice divisions.

USEA AEC, $60,000 Adequan Advanced Final, and ATC Finals (KY): [Website] [Schedule] [Program] [Entries/Ride Times] [Scoring] [USEA AEC App] [Volunteer] [CrossCountry App XC Maps] [Live Stream] [EN’s Coverage]

Many thanks to Ride EquiSafe, Freejump (both here on site at the Ride EquiSafe trailer on the back side (facing the barns) of Vendor Row!) and the American Connemara Pony Society for their support of EN’s 2026 AEC coverage!

Friday at #AEC2026

Novice riders took on cross country on Friday. Photo by Sally Spickard.

Here’s a look at your full leaderboard for the divisions still running on Friday:

ARMA USEA Training Amateur Championship: Jane Musselman and Corleone Tops (27.8)
ARMA USEA Training Horse Championship: Meghan O’Donoghue and Chepfly (27.6)
ARMA USEA Training Junior Championship Winner: Caden Carter and FE Santos (29.2)
ARMA USEA Training Rider Championship Winner: Catherine Ramsey and Cakewalk (30.0)
USEA Novice Amateur Championship: Hannah Reeser and Ltl Ireland Summr Soldier (24.3)
USEA Novice Horse Championship: Chris Talley and HTF All Eyes On Me (25.6)
USEA Novice Junior Championship: Elliot Bizjak and N’Pressive (28.7)
USEA Novice Junior 15yo & Under Championship: Emmeline Tinsley and RL Horus (27.6)
USEA Novice Master Amateur Championship: Jane Musselman and Cayr Della Caccia (24.5)
USEA Novice Rider Championship: Kirsten Wood and Sophia Tharseo (25.3)
Marshall + Sterling USEA Beginner Novice Amateur Championship: Ashley Anderson and Global Jedi (25.9)
Marshall + Sterling USEA Beginner Novice Horse Championship: Megan Correia-Bittner and Lamborghini (22.5)
Marshall + Sterling USEA Beginner Novice Junior Championship: Lauren Collett and Cozywing (26.6)
Marshall + Sterling USEA Beginner Novice Junior 14yo & Under Championship: Skylar Ragsdale and Finnegan’s Irish Dream (28.1)
Marshall + Sterling USEA Beginner Novice Master Amateur Championship: Kendra Moss and Presidential Nominee HU (27.3)
Marshall + Sterling USEA Beginner Novice Rider Championship: Madeline Bletzacker and Drummer Boy (27.7)
USEA Starter Amateur Championship: Kirsten Hiles and Beatrix SWF (25.3)
USEA Starter Junior Championship: Shelton Repetto and Accordingly (25.8)
USEA Starter Rider Championship: Katrina Davis and Paint Misbehavin’ (23.9)

USEA #AEC2026 Coverage

Chris Talley and FE Marco Polo. Photo by Sally Spickard.

First Impressions Count for Beginner Novice and Starter Leaders at #AEC2026

ARMA USEA Training Champions Make Their Mark at the Kentucky Horse Park

Novice Riders Take on Cross-Country at the #AEC2026

Addie Singleton’s Make-A-Wish Brings Her Back to the Horse She Loves at the AEC

Instagram Round-up: Friday at #AEC2026

Boyd Martin Jumps to Top of Adequan Advanced Championship + Thursday Recap from #AEC2026

By on Aug 27, 2026 2:16 pm -

Boyd Martin and Shanroe Cooley. Photo by Sally Spickard.

Jay Hambly’s Adequan Advanced Championship cross country track exerted its influence today as 21 competitors tackled the top-tier questions he’d set out for them. With that, the leaderboard shuffles considerably, with clear, quick rounds rewarded with big leaps up in the standings.

Boyd Martin was the one to emerge atop the field, piloting Luhmühlen podium finisher Shanroe Cooley (owned by Dallas LLC) to the quickest round of the day, accumulating 8.8 time penalties to go onto a score of 40.1 ahead of show jumping on Friday evening. The 11-year-old Irish Sport Horse gelding has been in fighting fit form as an alternate for the World Championships earlier this month, so Boyd knew he had a good, competitive run in the tank.

“I sort of let him run on gently a bit, knowing that he’s very, very fit at the moment, just because of the preparation we did in case we needed him for the [World Championships], and he gave me a fantastic round,” Boyd commented. “I’ve really gelled with him, and we’re just on the same page now through the cross country. He shows a lot of grit and determination –we stumbled into the ditch at the coffin, and I thought it was the end of me, and he shuffled his steps and jumped out over C like a champion.”

Boyd Martin and Shanroe Cooley. Photo by Sally Spickard.

“Dallas” is a former Liz Halliday ride, and Liz has been here throughout the week cheering Boyd on. As Liz works toward her next career move in para dressage, Boyd’s actually heading over to watch her ride at her home base here in Lexington this afternoon.

In terms of Jay Hambly’s course, Boyd shared his thoughts: “He used a lot of the five-star fences, so it’s pretty big, and you know, if I had to be critical, the beginning part wasn’t that friendly. It was a little bit twisty and turny, and there was a lot of trouble early on in the course. I felt like he could have been nicer to us just letting the horses settle in, but it’s a championship course and a lot of prize money on the line, and so it needs to be a high level of standard, and it took some riding, but it was sort of a four-and-a-half star, in my opinion.”

Indeed, there was a considerable amount of trouble earlier on in the course, particularly at the first combination, which was a water complex at 5AB. Overnight leaders Laine Ashker and Lovedance came to grief here — Laine shared on social media later that she’d taken her leg off before the B and “Lottie” didn’t quite read the question, causing a drive-by. A handful of other riders had similar problems here, and one (Rory Frangos and DHI Rocketman) opted to retire at this question.

Maya Clarkson and Maks Mojo C. Photo by Lindsay Berreth/USEA.

A couple of riders who were able to secure clear rounds jumped significantly up in the standings. One of those is 2026 Wilton Fair Grant recipient Maya Clarkson with her own Maks Mojo C, who enjoyed one of their best dressage tests yesterday and jumped a strong clear to move up from 12th into second on a score of 43.1. Maya’s still formulating her fall plans, having undergone hip surgery earlier this year and abbreviating her spring season to recover, but this run has set her up well for whatever comes next.

I was out walking some of the cross country with Maya earlier this week, and she spent some time walking the Normandy Mound question at fence 10, which was set on a sort of S turn with three related questions on terrain. She got some help from some fellow riders and by today felt more confident in the question — which did cause some trouble for other riders today. “I mean, he’s such a good horse,” she told me. “My plan was just to give him a good ride around. He’s a really fast horse. He’s super rideable — he goes in a leather snaffle on cross country, and takes very little to set up for the fences. He was one of the quicker times, but I didn’t really try to go super fast. The jumps are big enough to back them off, so I was trying to just have like a confident round and really set him up well for the rest of his fall season.”

Maya Clarkson and Maks Mojo C. Photo by Sally Spickard.

And the flatwork is coming — it wouldn’t be “Maks'” strongest phase, but thanks to some ongoing help from Maya’s coach Lauren Nicholson, the strength and balance is improving as time goes on. “I think like three weeks ago he like learned how to trot fancy!” she laughed. “And I’m not really sure where it came from, but it’s a really cool thing. I was so proud of him, honestly. In the past too, he’s been one that can sometimes melt down in the ring a little bit. We actually had like a couple of mistakes too, so I was obviously frustrated about that, but really thrilled with the fact that the test was so much better — the quality, everything was so much better, and there’s still room for improvement.”

Katie Lichten and Hickstead Musterd. Photo by Sally Spickard.

Katie Lichten owns two spots in the top five after cross country, in third with Hickstead Musterd and fifth with HTS Jensen R. These two horses are among Katie’s first to have at the level; she previously rode her sister’s horse to the level, but these — primarily HTS Jensen R — would be the first she’s done most of the producing on. She now rides with Phillip Dutton, who’s helped her with both horses and, in particular, the quick footwork that’s needed to produce solid cross country rounds.

Hickstead Musterd started his career as a show jumping before going on to reach the four-star level of eventing with New Zealand’s Jesse Campbell. Katie’s had the ride since 2025 and hit a high point at MARS Bromont this spring, where they finished fourth in the CCI4*-L.

“He’s a really good cross country horse, but he does get a little backed off, and he can really balloon and jump high over the jumps,” Katie described of “Muzzie.” “And he’s not always the most quick-footed with terrain questions. He’s like 17.3 hands or something, so he almost sometimes feels like he goes into a little bit of slow motion. So we’ve just been kind of working on quickening up his footwork.”

Katie Lichten and Hickstead Musterd. Photo by Sally Spickard.

That footwork, she says, comes from a focus on repetition when schooling. Based in Pennsylvania, she frequents Boyd Martin’s Windurra USA base, which has a strong coffin complex that really encourages quick feet. “And Phillip just really emphasizes the position and having the horse in the right canter for each of the questions, and so I think that has given Muzzie more confidence. [Phillip has been great] for my confidence on the cross country too, and I think that’s really translated to the horses. I’m not always 100 perfect, but I feel like now they trust me enough to help me out when I need it, and then I try to tell them they’re good boys and then move on and give them confident rides.”

Hickstead Musterd goes onto a two-phase score of 44.1, with HTS Jensen R in fifth on a 45.2.

Mary Bess Davis and Imperio Magic. Photo by Sally Spickard.

Mary Bess Davis put her down bank demons to rest with Imperio Magic today; she’s come to the Defender Kentucky CCI5* the last two years and had trouble at the big down bank in the back portion of the course. Jay Hambly used this complex, crafting a very similar question to what we saw this spring at the five-star, and Mary Bess had a game plan to put the past troubles behind her once and for all. It’s not that “McColl” is a spooky horse — he’s insanely brave, as she describes, but he is careful.

“I just thought, ‘oh, it surprised him because I came too quick at it,'” she said of the past issues at the bank. In preparation for this weekend, she spent some extra time schooling similar types of questions. “He’s such a careful horse. I it’s a little unsettling to him, so we just sat there and we went down the banks until he was happy and confident. And I think it really made a difference today.”

Which ticks off her primary goal — redemption — and sets her up well for a run at the US Equestrian Open of Eventing Final at Morven Park in October. She’s also coming off a leg injury herself, sustained when she fell from Imperio Magic after a fence on cross country at Kentucky, resulting in a broken fibula and a nasty stud puncture wound that took a couple months to heal. Luckily, the timing worked out okay to bring McColl back for this event and the fall season.

“I know how amazing he is, and I know what a partnership we have, and I just feel like we’ve just been a small bit off from being very successful last year,” Mary Bess elaborated. “So it was a good day for him. I feel really, really excited about the future because his dressage is getting stronger too.”

Mary Bess will take a score of 44.3 and fourth place into tomorrow evening’s show jumping finale.

USEA AEC, $60,000 Adequan Advanced Final, and ATC Finals (KY): [Website] [Schedule] [Program] [Entries/Ride Times] [Scoring] [USEA AEC App] [Volunteer] [CrossCountry App XC Maps] [Live Stream] [EN’s Coverage]

Many thanks to Ride EquiSafe, Freejump (both here on site at the Ride EquiSafe trailer on the back side (facing the barns) of Vendor Row!) and the American Connemara Pony Society for their support of EN’s 2026 AEC coverage!

Thursday at #AEC2026

Boyd Martin and Fetiche des Rouges. Photo by Sally Spickard.

Here’s a look at your full leaderboard from Thursday:

USEA Intermediate Championship Winners: Ariel Grald and Obalix (30.8)
Bates USEA Preliminary Amateur Championship Winners: Elle White and Biscotti (30.7)
Bates USEA Preliminary Open Championship Winners: Allie Knowles and Tip Top Quality (26.9)
Bates USEA Preliminary Rider Championship Winners: Shelby Bradley and Commando D’Osthuy (28.5)
Standlee USEA Modified Amateur Championship Winners: Charlotte Collier and Loughtown Cici ZA (26.7)
Standlee USEA Modified Open Championship Winners: Kyle Carter and Redfield Nola (30.1)
Standlee USEA Modified Rider Championship Winners: Olivia Jane Fry and Qabernet VT (29.6)
ARMA USEA Training Amateur Championship: Jane Musselman and Corleone Tops (27.8)
ARMA USEA Training Junior Championship: Caden Carter and FE Santos (29.2)
ARMA USEA Training Rider Championship: Catherine Ramsey and Cakewalk (30.0)
USEA Novice Amateur Championship: Hannah Reeser and Ltl Ireland Summr Soldier (24.3)
USEA Novice Horse Championship: Chris Talley and HTF All Eyes On Me (25.6)
USEA Novice Junior Championship: Elliot Bizjak and N’Pressive (28.7)
USEA Novice Junior 15yo and Under Championship: Emmeline Tinsley and RL Horus (27.6)
USEA Novice Master Amateur Championship: Jane Musselman and Cayr Della Caccia (22.9)
USEA Novice Rider Championship: Kirsten Wood and Sophia Tharseo (25.3)

Beginner Novice and Starter get underway on Friday with dressage starting at 8:00 a.m. EST.

USEA #AEC2026 Coverage

Photo by Sally Spickard.

Clear Rounds Clinch Standlee USEA Modified Championship Titles for Collier, Carter, and Fry at #AEC2026

ARMA USEA Training Leaders Gallop Toward the Final Phase at #AEC2026

Bates USEA Preliminary Champions Shine in the Rolex Stadium at #AEC2026

USEA Novice Riders Dazzle the Judges at #AEC2026

The #AEC2026 Daily: Thursday

Instagram Round-up: Thursday at #AEC2026

Laine Ashker and Lovedance in Early Command of $60,000 Adequan Advanced Final + Wednesday Recap from USEA AEC

By on Aug 26, 2026 9:30 pm -

I’m a bit unsure of what day it is as the schedule for the USEA American Eventing Championships, presented by Nutrena, is always jam-packed. I did, eventually, conclude that it was Wednesday and managed to get myself ringside in time for the start of the headlining division, the $60,000 Adequan Advanced Final, this morning. We’ve got a good-sized field in this top-level division, which is led by Maryland International CCI4*-S winners Laine Ashker and Lovedance (owned by Lovedance LLC) at the conclusion of dressage. They earned a 28.1 to slide ahead of Isabelle Bosley and Conner on a 28.4.

Laine Ashker and Lovedance. Photo by Sally Spickard.

Dressage is certainly a strong suit of Laine’s; she competes on the international dressage circuit with a small string of horses and has also become the first dual-discipline rider to compete in both the US Equestrian Open of Eventing as well as Dressage. Developing “Lottie” for the skills needed at the top levels has been a learning process nonetheless. Tension — but a different type than what she typically feels in her top dressage horse, Zeppelin — has been the biggest thing to manage, along with the ongoing development of strength for the required collection and engagement at this level.

Laine Ashker and Lovedance. Photo by Sally Spickard.

Laine noted that Phillip Dutton — here with an Intermediate horse after his medal-winning weekend at Aachen a couple weeks ago — has been instrumental in helping her work through this with the 10-year-old KWPN mare. “My other half of my career is doing dressage, so I hope I can ride a clean change, but it’s all about being on the ground and working through tension. I mean, let’s face it: it’s a totally different ballgame when you’re riding an event horse. I can say that I’ve done changes all day long, but it’s a different breed of that I’m riding in regard to fitness level. I do love to ride a hot horse, and it’s just a matter of it not boiling over. So Philip’s been great because he understands that, and he’s ridden literally every kind of horse. And this is my first journey on a true warmblood, and that’s where he’s been very helpful in helping me understand how to ride that and package that and harness that.”

Isabelle Bosley and Conner. Photo by Lindsay Berreth/USEA.

2026 Connaught Grant recipients Isabelle Bosley and Conner have been chipping away at the additional work required to compete at this Advanced level. After experiencing some growing pains following success at the Intermediate and three-star levels, this season has been about building strength and confidence. Today in the dressage, Conner felt confident and sure of himself as his Advanced mileage continues to accumulate.

“It was kind of a fine line of training them but not overdoing it,” Isabelle said. “[So I’ve] kind of been able to have a nice summer, working on everything, but without feeling the pressure of an event coming up. I think that’s been really good for him that we’ve kind of had some downtime to kind of fine tune everything, and with the idea in mind of stepping him back up here.”

It’s the flying changes — a typical point of weakness for many an event horse — that kept Isabelle from taking the dressage lead, but she’s taking the process one step at a time. “Even those were so much better than they have been,” she said. “I feel like today was the first time he did really good proper half-passes, and felt really confident about it. So, you know, just all these little things. I think he’s gotten so much more confident about himself, with what he’s doing. It’s all that kind of stuff we’ve been kind of training on, but in a really calm way. And now he’s kind of like, ‘okay, I get what we’re doing. I’m on the same page.'”

Phillip Dutton (who’s just been named as USEF Eventing Development Program Advisor) is another common thread here; Isabelle’s worked with him out of his Pennsylvania home base for the past few years, and she was glad to have her coach back from his overseas jaunt this week. “He’s been a massive help with [Conner]. We really have been just chipping away at him all summer, and just trying to fine tune all these little things and get him more confident with all of it.”

Boyd Martin and Shanroe Cooley. Photo by Sally Spickard.

Boyd Martin, with Liz Halliday ringside, piloted Dallas LLC’s Shanroe Cooley to third place overnight as a last-minute entry into this Advanced championship. Initially not planning to come to AEC this year, Boyd made a quick decision after seeing how well-hydrated the area has been from recent heavy rainfull and sent in two entries. He’s third with ‘Dallas’ on a 31.3 and fourth with the Fetiche des Rouges Syndicate’s Fetiche des Rouges on a 31.4.

“Luhmühlen was a heroic effort for him,” Boyd said of Shanroe Cooley, who finished third in his five-star debut in Germany earlier this year. He went on to be an alternate for the U.S. team at the World Championships earlier this month (Boyd rode Cooley Nutcracker to that team bronze medal). “He’s been fit and in work, ready to step up as a backup for the [World Championships], so he’s in great form and I thought this would be a nice run for him.”

Boyd Martin and Fetiche des Rouges. Photo by Sally Spickard.

The 11-year-old Selle Francais gelding Fetiche des Rouges is newer to this Advanced level and is loosely aiming for his first four-star Long at Morven Park and the US Equestrian Open of Eventing Final this October. Boyd calls him a “hot and feisty” type who’s taken a bit of patience to produce. The confirmation at this level, though, is coming, Boyd says.

Allie Knowles and Montpellier Scais. Photo by Lindsay Berreth/USEA.

Allie Knowles has brought out her two Bramham CCI4*-L graduates, Montpellier Scais and Leo Santos (both owned by Katherine O’Brien) for their first runs since their big efforts in June. Montpellier Scais slid ahead of Leo Santos for fifth overnight on a 31.5, while Leo Santos earned a 32.3.

Allie is sitting flush with top quality horses and developing talent in the pipelines, and she’s using this weekend as a setup for some big fall plans. This big year began with a bang in England, where each horse finished top-10 and top-20 or better at both Bicton’s CCI4*-S and Bramham’s CCI4*-L — two events with big reputations for the development of top horses.

Allie Knowles and Leo Santos. Photo by Sally Spickard.

“I am so lucky right now,” Allie said. “I’m trying to ride this wave. They feel like they’ve come back from Bramham just stronger, better, more confident horses, which is fun to feel. It’s a good start to our fall season and something to build on for both of them because they have a fairly serious fall. I sort of plan on doing the same for tomorrow — I just want them to have a good, confident run and be competitive.”

Montpellier Scais, a 9-year-old Anglo European gelding, is heading back overseas to Blenheim’s 8- and 9-year-old CCI4*-L next month, while Leo Santos (an 11-year-old Zanghersheide gelding) will tackle Morven Park and the US Equestrian Open of Eventing Final in October. “I’m really hoping this is a very confident, competitive warm-up,” Allie elaborated. “I think their base fitness is stronger, and I think they feel more confirmed in themselves — in their own ability. So I’m just hoping they think this is just fun, kind of a walk in the park for them. That’s that’s the hope — I won’t know until I get out there. But I schooled them a little bit — and by a little bit, I mean literally a little bit — and they both came out just firing.”

Cross country for the Advanced division begins on Thursday at 9:30 a.m. You’ll be able to follow along live with this division and others on Horse & Country here.

Many thanks to Ride EquiSafe, Freejump (both here on site at the Ride EquiSafe trailer on the back side (facing the barns) of Vendor Row!) and the American Connemara Pony Society for their support of EN’s 2026 AEC coverage!

Wednesday at #AEC2026

Will Coleman and Box Como are second in the Intermediate Championship. Photo by Sally Spickard.

The AEC is a bustling event with Championship divisions from Starter on up through Advanced and nearly 800 entries across those levels. Each and every rider worked hard to qualify for this event and, as U.S. team member Will Coleman said in a short speech during the Wednesday night competitor party, the feeling of “one big family” permeates the Horse Park grounds this week. This event holds a sentimental place for me as it was my first event to cover as a fledging EN reporter back in 2013.

This week I’m on my own covering the bases, and I’ll be bringing you more content on our social media as well as ongoing reports throughout the week. The USEA has sent a superb team of writers and creators to cover every single angle of these Championships, so I’m also going to link to their coverage in my daily reports. I’ll also drop in some social media highlights here to try to give as many of these deserving riders their due as I possibly can.

First, here’s a look at the division leaders after competition on Wednesday:

USEA Intermediate Championship: Ariel Grald and Obalix (30.8)
Bates Preliminary Amateur Championship: Elle White and Biscotti (30.7)
Bates Preliminary Open Championship: Allie Knowles and Tip Top Quality (26.9)
Bates Preliminary Rider Championship: Shelby Bradley and Commando D’Osthuy (28.5)
Standlee Modified Amateur Championship: Charlotte Collier and Loughtown Cici ZA (26.7)
Standlee Modified Open Championship: Kyle Carter and Redfield Nola (30.1)
Standlee Modified Rider Championship: Olivia Jane Fry and Qabernet VT (29.6)
ARMA Training Amateur Championship: Jane Musselman and Corleone Tops (24.6)
ARMA Training Horse Championship: Meghan O’Donoghue and Chepfly (27.6)
ARMA Training Junior Championship: Caden Carter and FE Santos (27.6)
ARMA Training Rider Championship: Ashley Thorp and Lancreto (27.2)

Novice, Beginner Novice and Starter will all begin their competitions on Thursday. Full scores, ride times and scheduling can be found here.

USEA AEC, $60,000 Adequan Advanced Final, and ATC Finals (KY): [Website] [Schedule] [Program] [Entries/Ride Times] [Scoring] [USEA AEC App] [Volunteer] [CrossCountry App XC Maps] [Live Stream] [EN’s Coverage]

USEA #AEC2026 Coverage

Maddy Temkin and Fernhill Bertus are all smiles on Intermediate cross country. Photo by Sally Spickard.

Intermediate, Preliminary, & Modified Tackle Cross-Country at #AEC2026

Familiar Faces and New Leaders Top the ARMA USEA Training Leaderboards at #AEC2026

From $450 Rescue Colt to the AEC: Stephanie Watko and Brinley Gold’s Unlikely Journey

Instagram Round-up: Wednesday at #AEC2026