Leipzig, Germany - The Reem Acra FEI World Cup Final got underway Thursday evening with the grand prix presented by Sparkasse. The U.S. sent three combinations to the arena in Hall One of the Leipzig Exhibition Hall. The American horse/rider combinations did not disappoint in the field of 17. First in the arena for the U.S. was Jan Ebeling and Ann Romney’s Rafalca. This veteran pair demonstrated fluid trot work emphasized by a solid half-pass and had a consistent canter tour. Throughout...

Gladstone, NJ - April 12, 2011 - The United States Equestrian Team Foundation is pleased to announce that Ali Wolff of New Albany, OH, has been selected as the 2011 recipient of the Maxine Beard Show Jumping Rider Award. Wolff received the Maxine Beard Award trophy at the American Invitational on April 9, 2011, at the Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, FL. The selection was based on Wolff's competitive record and future potential to represent the United States in international competition. The...

Wellington, FL - January 17, 2011 - The first week of the 2011 FTI Winter Equestrian Festival (WEF) was a great success with horses and riders from around the world competing at the Palm Beach International Equestrian Center. It was a record opening week for the FTI Winter Equestrian Festival, with the number of horses showed increased by 11% from last year. The competition, held in 12 different rings all now on the North Grounds, was fantastic, and spectators and exhibitors enjoyed the venue...

U.S. Team Supporters Look On at the Games. (Photo by Shannon Brinkman for USEF.) Lexington, KY - Week One of the 2010 Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games proved to be an exciting and action-packed experience for the thousands of fans who witnessed the international competition firsthand. The Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, KY, welcomed visitors beginning Saturday, September 25. ENDURANCE The 100-mile endurance race was the first competition to award medals. More than 110 horses from 30 nations...

As a member of the press, I especially enjoy press conferences. Of course, prior to these events I try to think of things that I’d like to ask or have explained in more detail than what is on the surface. Today, the World Equestrian Games Foundation held a press conference during a lunch break of the first day of dressage at the Rolex Kentucky Three-Day Event to bring the press up-to-date on preparations for the big event. One thing I especially enjoy about press conferences is the...

The 2010 FTI Winter Equestrian Festival (WEF) was full of top competition during week eight, held March 3-7, 2010. The week featured the USEF Selection Trials for the U.S. Show Jumping Team for the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games #3, #4, and #5, presented by Fidelity Investments, and the $75,000 FEI Nations Cup, presented by CN, along with a full schedule of hunter, jumper, and equitation classes. The week eight title sponsor was CN. The $150,000 CN U.S. Open Grand Prix, CSIO**** was...

Photo by Ken Braddick (Steffen Peters and Ravel) Lexington, KY – Talk about busy. 2009 has been a whirlwind, new champions of all kinds, title defenders, legends and innovators made headlines this year. The line between winning and losing has become increasingly fine as all the USEF competitors in every discipline continue to up their game, hone their skills and make the US Team proud both locally and across the globe. With the 2010 Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games (WEG) looming on the...

Faye Wuesthofen aboard Kiss of the Zodiac (Photo by Howard Schatzberg) In what many are describing as a historic event, the United States Equestrian Federation’s (USEF) Saddle Seat Medal Final came down to a workout of the top two riders—Faye Wuesthofen and Ellen Medley Wright—on exchanged horses. Add to that the fact the top two riders shared the same trainer, DeLovely’s Lillian Shively, and it was one for the record books. The arena erupted with excitement and...

Seventeen-year-old Jessica Springsteen was the biggest star at the Pennsylvania National Horse Show as her famous parents cheered her on. She bested 237 riders over two rounds of competition, and a four-ri Jessica Springsteen (Photo by Al Cook) der work-off to win the nation's top equitation prize, the Pessoa/USEF Hunt Seat Medal Final. Course designer Steve Stephens, in conjunction with judges Ellen Raidt and Leo Conroy, were very specific about the distances they required between related...

Two Champions "Three-Peat" as Breed Show Wraps Up When individual breed classes took center stage on day three of Dressage at Devon 2009, two horses who had dominated the news in the prestigious show's first two days continued to grab headlines. Perfect Qredit, a yearling colt by Quaterback, added an 83.80% win in the Oldenburg (GOV) division to his Grand Championship, Young Horse Championship, Colt Championship, and Yearling Colts and Geldings title for owner Michelle Coursin, an air-traffic...