Lexington, KY - The United States Equestrian Federation is pleased to announce the promotion of Sara Ike to the position of Managing Director of Eventing. Ike has worked at the USEF Gladstone office since 2003, and has served as the Eventing High Performance Director since March of 2007. Prior to that appointment she was the Director of Vaulting. In 2007 she was the Team Leader for the Eventing team which swept the medals at the Pan American Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. She also traveled to...

Cara Cheska, Alexandra Wolff, Lindsay Ramar and Tina Dilandri emerged as champions of the 2007 Show Jumping Hall of Fame Jumper Classic Series. The Show Jumping Hall of Fame Jumper Classic Series conducted its largest series ever in 2007, with classes at 102 horse shows across the nation. This gave competitors an abundance of opportunities to accumulate points throughout the year. The series featured separate divisions for amateur-owner and junior riders with standings kept separately for East...

One of the stallions available in this year's American Hanoverian Society Service Auction is Worthy Opponent (Waikiki-SPS Hoheit/Hohenstein), the highest-placing Hanoverian stallion at the recent 100-Day Stallion Performance Test at Paxton Farm. Bidding will open in mid-January and ends Sunday, February 17, 2008. A link to the bidding site will be provided on the American Hanoverian Society's website at www.hanoverian.org when the auction opens in mid-January. The annual AHS Stallion Service...

Founder of the Half Saddlebred Registry, Roberta Nye Busch, 89, of Medina, OH, died Monday, November 12, 2007. In 1970, Busch purchased a 15-year-old stallion named Flying Eagle Peavine. When owners of other breeds bred their mares to her American Saddlebred stallion, Busch perceived the need for a recording organization for these half-Saddlebreds. Thus, in 1971, she established the Half Saddlebred Registry and remained as its administrator for 25 years from her home in Coshocton,...

A report on the Olympic Test Event held in Hong Kong in August was presented at the International Equestrian Federation (FEI) Bureau meeting in Dubai. The goal of this essential event was to review the venue, layout and procedures for the three Olympic disciplines. Main issues requiring further work were lighting in the main arena; press officer and media operations; veterinary issues and confirmation of a weather protocol designed with Hong Kong Observatory; and communication between the FEI...

Lexington, KY – Plans are under way for the 2008 United States Equestrian Federation (USEF) Youth Convention, and registration is open, but space is limited for the convention. Already over half of the available spots have been filled for the first annual Youth Convention, which will be held January 12 in Louisville, KY. The Youth Convention will feature many notable speakers including experts in the equine industry as well as spokespersons from equine-related careers. This one-day convention...

The United States Equestrian Team (USET) Foundation is pleased to announce that Kelly Sult and Hollywood were presented with the Markham Trophy at the Fair Hill International CCI***, which ran from October 18-21, 2007. The prestigious Fair Hill Festival in Elkton, MD, hosted the United States Equestrian Federation (USEF) CCI*** championship, which is one of two three-star competitions in the country. The Markham Trophy is awarded to the highest-placed rider under the age of 21. Sult competed...

Lexington, KY - Moved by the tragedy of the wildfires in Southern California, Massachusetts based company, SmartPak generously donated $5,000 to the USEF Equine Disaster Relief Fund, further demonstrating their continued support and dedication to the welfare of individual horses and the industry as a whole. The Equine Disaster Relief Fund is dedicated to helping equines of any breed that find themselves victims of disasters, including but not restricted to hurricanes, tornadoes, floods,...

Following submission of its proposed slate to the Executive Committee and Board of Directors of the American Saddlebred Horse Association (ASHA) at their meetings on Wednesday, October 31, the list of nominees standing for election as directors of the association was released on November 5. In February 2008, six directors are to be elected for terms ending in 2011 from these eight candidates: Phyllis Brookshire (North Carolina); Victoria Gillenwater (Tennessee); Carl Holden (Kentucky); Tim...

Lexington, KY - The United States Equestrian Federation is pleased to announce that the following riders have been invited and have elected to compete at the World Endurance Championship Test Event in Malaysia, November 9-11, 2007. Unlike the Championships (scheduled for November 2008) where the Federation sends a team based on a selection procedure that is recommended by the High-Performance Discipline Committee and approved by the Federation, riders attending the Test Event were invited by...