The American Saddlebred Horse Association's (ASHA) Annual Meeting and Youth Conference will be held Thursday–Friday, February 14-16, at the Embassy Suites in Lexington. The weekend ends with the annual Saddlebred Ball at Keeneland Race Course. Open meetings and forums with committees begin Thursday, as is customary, and the Charter Club Council will also conduct a workshop. Thursday evening is highlighted by a Welcome Reception sponsored by the FEI & Emerging Disciplines Committee. Friday...

The United States Hunter Jumper Association (USHJA) has implemented an Equitation Awards program through its Affiliate Organizations Medal Classes primarily offered at local and unrecognized horse shows. The goal of this program is to increase the USHJA membership and outreach in the equestrian community, by further informing and educating individuals who partake in equestrian sports at the unrecognized and local horse show level and demonstrating that USHJA has something to offer them through...

The Beijing Organizing Committee for the Games of the XXIX Olympiad (BOCOG) has started to receive applications from the domestic spectators for the tickets to the opening and closing ceremonies of the Beijing Paralympic Games. According to the ticketing plan, there will be 21,000 tickets for the opening ceremony and 26,000 tickets for the closing ceremony available. Their bookings will end on December 30. No time preference will be given to any application and all applications will enjoy the...

The United States Dressage Federation (USDF) is pleased to congratulate all of the winners of the 2007 General Member Organization (GMO) Awards, which were presented during the Board of Governor’s General Assembly at the 2007 Adequan/USDF Annual Convention at the end of November. These awards are given annually to recognize outstanding GMO newsletter and website layout and design, first person experience articles, general interest articles, and volunteers. Also included are the winners of the...

The United States Equestrian Federation (USEF) will present two clinics in 2008 for veterinarians involved with national level horse shows. These clinics will share information and material to interested show veterinarians, testing veterinarians and senior veterinary students. The clinics will discuss the veterinarian’s relationship with USEF, explain USEF Drug and Medications rules and how to become a testing vet, give advice for vets treating horses on the show grounds, explain responsibility...

Lexington, KY ­– The United States Equestrian Federation (USEF) is pleased to announce that Lizzy Chesson has been promoted to the position of Director of Show Jumping High Performance Activities. Chesson, 30, is deeply rooted in international equestrian sports. She groomed for her mother and was part of two World Championship Driving Teams in that capacity and in 1999 she was selected to drive a pair of horses in the World Pair Championship in Hungary. “Lizzy has been a great addition to the...

Lexington, KY - The United States Equestrian Federation’s Eventing High Performance Committee has approved the following horse and rider combinations to participate in the Developing Riders Program to be instructed by World Equestrian Games Individual Bronze medalist Amy Tryon. The Developing Riders Program is available to riders of any age who aspire to compete at the highest levels of the sport. To qualify, each horse/rider combination must have completed a CCI** or above. Precedence is given...

Kent Farrington and Up Chiqui (Randi Muster) Wellington, FL – The only clear round in the second leg of the Rolex/USEF National Show Jumping Championship presented by Equine Motorcoach wasn’t enough to wrestle the title away from the consistently impressive combination of Kent Farrington and Up Chiqui. They were the fastest of the four faulters on Sunday, but their stellar performance in the first round on Friday compounded into the best score over the two days. Last year’s...

Lexington, KY - The United States Equestrian Federation’s Eventing High Performance Committee has approved the following horse and rider combinations for the Eventing Winter Training List. These riders will have the opportunity to train with Chef d’Equipe, Capt. Mark Phillips and Laura Kraut, a member of the U.S. Show Jumping Team, in preparation for the 2008 Olympic Games. Building on the success at the 2007 Pan American Games, the Winter training sessions are an opportunity to fine tune...

Lexington, KY—Kathy Meyer, longtime officer and administrator of the United States Equestrian Federation (USEF) and professional sport events marketer, has been named Senior Vice President of Marketing and Communications for the USEF, effective January 13, 2008. She fills the position vacated by the retirement of Maria Partlow earlier this fall. Meyer has a lengthy and experienced career in high-end sports and special events management. In addition, she has almost two decades of firsthand...