Lexington, Ky. – US Equestrian is pleased to announce the 2024 Horse of the Year nominees. The International and National Horses of the Year will be announced at the 2024 SmartPak/USEF Horse of the Year Awards Dinner on Saturday, Jan. 25 during the 2025 US Equestrian Annual Meeting in Lexington, Ky.

Horses of Honor are nominated by their USEF affiliate organization or USEF breed or discipline committee, and the finalists are selected by the USEF Awards Committee. The final Horses of the Year are determined by member voting.

Voting is open now through 11:59 p.m. ET on Dec. 31. Click here to vote now. Please note that you must be logged in to your USEF account to vote. After submitting your selections, you will receive an email asking you to confirm your vote. You must confirm your ballot in order for your votes to count!

VOTE NOW

National Horses of Honor

CH The Crowd Went Nuts!
2016 American Saddlebred gelding (Undulata’s Nutcracker x Elegant Heirloom, Harlem Town)
Owner: Diane Sembler Kamins
Breeder: Julie Behrends-Jones

CH The Crowd Went Nuts! has lived up to his name throughout his career, lighting up the show ring in the three-gaited classes since he made his debut in 2018. Known in the barn as “Forrest,” the striking dark bay American Saddlebred gelding by Undulata’s Nutcracker out of Elegant Heirloom secured his place in the breed’s history books in 2024, winning his fourth Three-Gaited World’s Grand Championship with trainer Steve Wheeler. This championship followed Forrest’s other three-gaited open championship wins with Wheeler in 2024 at Rock Creek and the Lexington Junior League Horse Show.

Forrest’s owner, Diane Sembler Kamins, says her favorite show ring memory of her beloved horse was his 2022 World’s Grand Championship, when he won the class with her daughter, Erin Eichenbaum, a feat made extra impressive by the fact that Eichenbaum was an amateur rider in a class dominated by professionals. The unstoppable pair of Forrest and Eichenbaum teamed up for numerous victories in 2024, including the three-gaited championship at the Bonnie Blue National in May and the ladies three-gaited championship at Rock Creek in June and the Ocala International in October.

In recognition of Forrest's outstanding achievements, the United Professional Horsemen's Association named him the Saddlebred Three-Gaited Horse of the Year for the third time in 2024, and the American Saddlebred Horse & Breeder's Association recognized him as its Horse of the Year, marking his second year in a row that he received this prestigious honor.

 

McQueen
2014 KWPN gelding (Cornet Obolensky x Sanea, Marlon)
Owner: Walkenbach Equestrian LLC
Breeder: V. Magera

With numerous high-profile victories in the hunter ring at shows across the country, Walkenbach Equestrian LLC’s McQueen was one to watch in 2024. The 2014 U.S.-bred KWPN gelding earned top spots in the amateur classes with Lanie Walkenbach and in the performance hunters with Nick Haness and Javier Abad Barragán. In February, McQueen and Haness topped the $100,000 USHJA WCHR Peter Wetherill Palm Beach Hunter Spectacular at week six of the Winter Equestrian Festival. The pair went on to win the reserve championship in the High-Performance Conformation Hunter division at The Devon Horse Show in May and the $100,000 WCHR Central Hunter Spectacular at Traverse City Horse Shows in June.

A highlight of McQueen’s many successes with owner Lanie Walkenbach came back home in California at the Blenheim Racing Festival in July when they won the 3’6” West Coast Amateur Owner Hunter Challenge capping off a season that also included victories for the pair at Desert Circuit, San Juan Capistrano International, Blenheim Surf & Turf Classic, and Traverse City Spring Horse Show.

International Horses of Honor

Caracole de la Roque
2012 Selle Français mare (Zandor x Pocahontas d’Amaury, Kannan)
Owner: Signe Ostby
Breeder: S.A.R.L. Top Stallions Company

Caracole de la Roque has remained one of the top horses on the international jumping scene since her career start with Julien Epaillard (FRA), but 2024 marked an extraordinary year for the 2012 Selle Français mare owned by Signe Ostby and ridden by Karl Cook (USA). With Cook in the irons, Caracole de la Roque finished inside of the top ten 15 times in FEI competition, with major podium finishes at the CSI5* level at major events in Wellington, Rome, and La Baule, and Santa Anita. In total, the pair jumped clear an impressive 27 times in FEI events in just 2024. Their incredible win in the Rolex Grand Prix of Rome CSIO5* and their second-place finish in the Rolex Grand Prix of La Baule CSIO5* helped secure their ticket to the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.

Cook and Caracole de la Roque were initially selected as the traveling alternate combination, but were called onto the team after the withdrawal of Farrington and Greya. The pair were phenomenal on the biggest stage in the sport, pushing the team to strong qualification towards the Team Final, followed by a second clear round, helping to secure a coveted podium finish, with the U.S. Olympic Jumping Team ultimately hoisting the silver medal. The pair finished 16th in the Olympic Individual Final, marking their second championship appearance together and their first Olympic Games.

 

Diabolo
2012 Holsteiner gelding (Diarado X Roulett M, Aljano 2)
Owner: Diabolo Group
Breeder: Fritz Maschmann

Joining Will Coleman’s string of competition horses in 2023, Diabolo, owned by the Diabolo Group, is familiar with the top of the leaderboard at eventing competitions. The 2012 Holsteiner gelding began his FEI career in Australia with Stuart Tinney, who then passed on the ride to daughter Gemma Tinney. Diabolo competed through the CCI4*-L level in Australia before coming to the U.S. where his success has continued under Coleman’s wing.

With 24 FEI starts, Diabolo has only finished outside of the top ten at two events.

Together, Diabolo and Coleman have had two first-place finishes at the CCI4*-S level in 2024. The pair captured the win at the Lexington CCI4*-S in April on their dressage score of 29.9, being the only combination to go double clear in both the cross country and show jumping phases.

Diabolo was selected to be Coleman’s alternate mount for the Paris Olympic Games where he did not contend, though shortly after went on to win the $60,000 Adequan Advanced Final at the USEA American Eventing Championships in August. Their success this year did not stop there, as Diabolo and Coleman capped off the competition year winning the CCI4*-S at Plantation Field International in September.

 

Diamond Dunes
2013 Hanoverian gelding (De L’Or x Wibella, Wolkentanz)
Owner: Dressage Family LLC, Sharon Day, Fiona Howard, Julian Howard, and Hof Kasselmann
Breeder: Klaus-Dieter Mansholt

While new to the U.S. competition world, Dressage Family LLC & Hof Kasselmann’s Diamond Dunes has been one of the top horses to watch in 2024. Diamond Dunes, aka Dunes, made his U.S. CPEDI debut with Fiona Howard early this year in March at the CPEDI3*, Ocala, FL. After a clean sweep at the World Equestrian Center in the FEI Para Dressage Grand Prix A, B, and Freestyle classes, the combination travelled to Germany in the spring where they would earn their spot for the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games.

Dunes and Howard showed off their incredible partnership at both CPEDI3* Mannheim (GER) and Hagen a. T. W., (GER) earning top placings at both. The true testament to their partnership came at the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games in September where they came home with not one, but three gold medals. Most notably, they received top honors in the Grade II FEI Grand Prix Freestyle with a personal best score of 81.994%, with music from the ’Avatar’ film earning them a gold medal.

 

Floratina
2008 Hanoverian mare (Fidertanz x Rubina, Rubin Royal OLD)
Owner: Rowan O'Riley
Breeder: Dr. Susanne Rauth

Floratina, known as Flora at home, started her career with Canadian dressage rider Lindsay Kellock. They represented Canada at the Lima 2019 Pan American Games, finishing third individually in Small Tour competition. Rebecca Hart took over the ride in 2023 and earned major victories both in the U.S. and abroad, starting the Paralympic journey to Paris. She has been exceptionally consistent in Grade III events this year.

Leading up to the Paralympics, Hart and Floratina won all three competitions in Mannheim (GER) in May, and produced a series of strong showings and podium finishes at Hagen (GER) CPEDI3*. Floratina achieved some of the most consistent scores in Grade III competition during the 2024 season and secured individual gold in their first test of the Paris Paralympic Games and a remarkable gold in the Team Final, as well as gold in the Grand Prix Freestyle.

Floratina is owned by Rowan O’Riley, a dressage rider herself who is a sponsor of Hart. O’Riley is also a sponsor for Para Dressage and able-bodied dressage competitions during the winter season. Flora is cared for by her groom, Mackenzie Young.

 

Find more information and for a full schedule of the 2025 US Equestrian Annual Meeting, visit www.usef.org/annual-meeting and follow US Equestrian on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and X.