When show jumping returns to HITS Culpeper for two consecutive weeks in late August, all eyes will be on the third annual United States Hunter Jumper Association (USHJA) Tad Coffin Zone III Junior Equitation Finals that will take place on August 23 during the Winston National. Following a ringside dinner reception hosted by Bridgewater College, around 35 talented exhibitors will take aim at the course set in the majestic grand prix ring at HITS Commonwealth Park in Culpeper, VA. “HITS has taken...

Tim Hadaway has been appointed as the London 2012 Organizing Committee’s Sport Competition Manager for equestrian events at the London 2012 Olympic Games and Paralympic Games. These will take place at Greenwich Park in southeast London. Tim will be responsible for the planning, organization, and management of the Olympic and Paralympic Equestrian events in 2012—show jumping, dressage, and eventing. Commenting on his appointment Tim said, "I'm thrilled to have this once in a lifetime opportunity...

Winner’s of the 2008 Markel Amateur Winter Dressage Championships presented by The Paddock Saddlery were notified this week. The Markel Amateur Winter Dressage Championships recognizes leading amateur’s accomplishments over the winter show season in South Florida. The 2008 awards ceremony will be a virtual presentation. Photographs of winners with their awards will be viewable on The Paddock Saddlery’s website, www.paddocksaddlery.com . The idea for an amateur championship was the brainchild of...

At the Oaks Blenheim Classic, Karen Healey's riders were major players and very successful. Starting with the jumpers, in the $5,000 1.45m classic, Hannah Selleck of Thousand Oaks, CA, and her horse Bauer rode their way to victory. In addition, her name has been added to the Young Riders team for Zone 10 at the 2008 North American Junior and Young Rider Championships (NAJYRC). Shelby Wakeman of Westlake Village, CA, and Pandoer, were named as the alternates for the junior team. They finished...

LaBaule, France - A Dutch show jumper will be first into the ring as the 2008 Samsung Super League with FEI series gets underway in La Baule, France tomorrow afternoon. At the draw held this morning, the order of go was decided as follows: 1. The Netherlands 2. USA 3. Switzerland 4. Sweden 5. France 6. Germany 7. Belgium 8. Ireland 9. Great Britain. A number of nations have nominated five riders but Switzerland and Germany have sent just four so Steve Guerdat, Christina Liebherr, Jane Richard...

29 April 2008 Dear Members of the Equestrian Community, This past weekend at the Rolex Kentucky Three-Day, Laine Ashker suffered a serious fall during the cross-country stage of the competition. She is currently in critical condition at the University of Kentucky hospital in Lexington. Laine’s horse and another involved in a separate accident had to be euthanized. These accidents come just a month after Darren Chiacchia, an Olympic rider, had a serious fall at an event in Tallahassee, Florida....

Georgina Bloomberg of New York City, set to embark on an extensive summer tour of show jumping, took time out last week to participate in the 2008 U.S. Olympic Team Media Summit, held April 13-16 at the Palmer House Hilton in downtown Chicago, IL. The hotel, which opened in 1871, is one of Chicago's landmarks in the heart of the city's downtown. The U.S. Olympic Team Media Summit was a four-day opportunity for print, broadcast, internet and photo journalists to conduct interviews and photo...

With three Americans competing at "Porsche Dressage Trophy," a German national indoor dressage tournament held in Paderborn, Germany, on November 2-4, Todd Flettrich of Coatesville, PA, and Wellington, FL, rode Amadeus to third place in the grand prix special, earning the distinction of being the highest-placed American in the FEI classes at the show. "Amadeus did everything I asked. He was very good," said Flettrich of his grand prix special ride, which held the lead for most of the class. "I...

Elkton, MD - Just before the event horses got underway in the show jumping at Fair Hill International, four USEF National Champions were crowned in advanced combined driving. In the third and final portion, the cones, a carefully designed course tested driver control and steering as well as the horses’ attentiveness and training. In the National Pair Horse Championship, Larry Poulin and Lisa Singer were neck and neck throughout the entire weekend. Poulin, who had won the competition six times...

Todd Flettrich of Coatesville, PA, and Wellington, FL, competed Amadeus in two grand prix classes at an indoor national horse show in Zierow, Germany, on October 6-7, and successfully finished in the top three on both days. On Saturday, Flettrich and Amadeus contested the short grand prix and finished with 800 points (65.70%), placing third in a field of 14 horses. On Sunday, Flettrich and Amadeus competed in the grand prix, earning 961 points (66.70%) for second place on the roster of 14...