Tracy Magness and Tarco Van Ter Moude. (ESI Photography© .) Ocala, FL - The gift of warm weather, bright blue skies and outstanding competition have been the theme of this year's HITS Ocala Winter Circuit. Last week's Ocala Masters marked the mid-way point of the six-week, AA-rated Circuit, and with just three more weeks of competition remaining, the Circuit is shaping up to be the one of the best yet. Each week the Grand Prix and Devoucoux Hunter Prix qualifiers for the 2011 Pfizer $1 Million...

Sappire Wins Again for McLain Ward (Erin Cowgill) Lexington, KY and La Baule, France – McLain Ward topped off a phenomenal week for the United States show jumpers with a brilliant win in the Grand Prix Longines de la Ville de La Baule at CSIO La Baule with his superstar mare, Sapphire. He topped teammate Mario Deslauriers on Jane Clark’s Urico by nearly a second. There were 13 first round clears out of 50 starters, and Ward went last in the jump-off. Riding for Tom Grossman’s Blue Chip...

McLain Ward and Pjotter van de Zonnehoeve. (Sportfot©.) Wellington, FL - Saturday night at the FTI Winter Equestrian Festival featured an exciting victory for McLain Ward (USA) and Pjotter Van De Zonnehoeve in the $78,000 Fidelity Investments® CSI 2* Grand Prix. The class was held on a beautiful Florida evening under the lights at the Palm Beach International Equestrian Center. Riders representing 12 different countries made up the international field this evening, showing over a course...

Kentucky Horse Shows, LLC, the management company for hunter/jumper competitions held at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, KY, will be featuring numerous improvements at the state operated facility during the 2010 horse show season. This year Kentucky Horse Shows, LLC, will be hosting the Kentucky Spring Horse Shows, the Kentucky Summer Horse Shows, the Adequan FEI North American Junior and Young Rider Championships Presented by Gotham North, the USEF Junior Hunter National...

www.flickr.com/photos/skodak (Rio de Janeiro) The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has elected Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, as the host city of the Games of the XXXI Olympiad in 2016 during its 121st Session in Copenhagen, Denmark. Rio de Janeiro received 66 votes compared to Madrid’s 32 in the final round of voting. IOC President Jacques Rogge congratulated Rio de Janeiro on its election and praised the high quality of the bid, “I would like to congratulate the city of Rio de...

The finishing touches to a completely remodeled Palm Beach International Equestrian Center (PBIEC) were being applied on Sunday, January 4, in readiness for the opening of the 2009 FTI Winter Equestrian Festival (WEF) on Wednesday, January 7. Trucks and trailers filled the streets around PBIEC bringing in horses for hunter, jumper and dressage competitions for 12 weeks of WEF, the largest and longest-running horse show in the world, which concludes March 29. The weather for the past several...

A new round of major improvements focused on footing in the competition arenas has begun at the Palm Beach International Equestrian Center (PBIEC) in preparation for 2008/2009 circuits including the showcase Winter Equestrian Festival (WEF). Footing created by Olympic provider Bart Poels that was installed in PBIEC's International and DeNemethy arenas last year will be extended to the DeNemethy warm-up ring and the Mogavero arena. Footing in Rings 7 and 8 and the arenas at the South Grounds...

Raul de Leon was awarded the designation of Master Instructor by the American Riding Instructors Association (ARIA) in July. A former Cuban junior jumping champion, de Leon furthered his career in the U.S., working closely with former United States Equestrian Team coach Bertalan de Nemethy and eventually settling on Long Island. From 1994 to 1990, de Leon served as co-director of the Westmoreland Davis Equestrian Institute at Morven Park with his friend and former student, 1976 Olympic...

Grand Prix de Santa Fe, Santa Fe’s most prestigious horse show, is pleased to announce the donation of $35,000 in net proceeds from its 2007 annual show-jumping event to New Mexico social service and equestrian non-profit organizations. Beneficiaries include Big Brothers Big Sisters of Northern New Mexico, New Mexico Suicide Intervention Project, Silver Bullet Productions, Rio Grande Agricultural Land Trust, Santa Fe Pro Musica’s Youth Programs, The Horse Shelter and Rancho Corazon Riders....

Wellington, FL - March 19, 2016 - It was a day of firsts for Italy's Lorenzo de Luca as the 28-year-old rider guided Ensor de Litrange LXII to victory in the $130,000 Horseware Ireland Grand Prix Lorenzo de Luca and Ensor de Litrange LXII. Copyright Sportfot. CSI 3* on Saturday during week ten of the 2016 Winter Equestrian Festival (WEF). It was the rider's first grand prix win at the Winter Equestrian Festival on a new horse that he was competing in its very first FEI competition. It...