Gotham and Hunt Tosh during their winning trip in Round 1 of the Pre-Green Incentive (Amanda Oppold/Phelps Media Group) Lexington, Ky. - The second annual 2014 USHJA Pre-Green Incentive Championship kicked off with an opening round Tuesday at the Kentucky Horse Park. While there were many new riders and horses competing in the round, it was the championship's 2013 winner, Hunt Tosh, who took top honors in the opening class, showing the field of 130 how it is done aboard the Douglas Wheeler...

Westport, Conn. - Thanks to Ariat International and the dedication of three volunteers in the Champions Equine Service program, three well-deserving charities devoted to horse welfare and the horse-human bond are receiving grants. Individuals who volunteer a minimum of 24 hours in a year for an equine charity on the EQUUS Foundation Equine Welfare Network are recognized as Champions and automatically entered into a drawing where the winners have the opportunity to select their charities to...

Reid Patton and Sincere (E.Riden/Phelps Media Group) Lexington, Ky. - - After an extremely successful junior career, Reid Patton has found continued success - and a more relaxed atmosphere - in a new division: the Amateur-Owner 18-35 3'3" Hunters. She dominated the division Friday at the Kentucky Summer Horse Show, sweeping the over fences classes and finishing second under saddle with her own Sincere. "The transition to the amateurs has actually been great," Patton said. "The juniors were...

McLain Ward and Dulien Van De Smeets fly to a win (©ESI Photography) Saugerties, N.Y. - When McLain Ward climbed down from the tack of Dulien Van De Smeets after winning the $25,000 SmartPak Grand Prix presented by Zoetis, he didn’t look for congratulations, but marched straight to the mare’s owner, his godmother. Susie Heller stood clutching a winner’s trophy and was scooped up by Ward’s embrace. Every win is special, but this was divinely special. This week marked the...

Todd Minikus and Arino Du Rouet jump to their second HITS Saugerties win this year in the $50,000 Horze Equestrian Grand Prix presented by Zoeti (ESI Photography) Saugerties, N.Y . - Todd Minikus knows when the likes of McLain Ward, Ronan McGuigan and Laura Chapot follow him in a jump-off, winning will be no easy feat. He proved twice-over, however, that while a fight against some of the greats is a challenge, he is up to the task. Minikus bested a star-studded order on Sunday to collect first...

Brianne Goutal and Nice de Prissey (Rolf Stenberg/ Rockmountain Studios) Lexington, Ky. - The Furusiyya FEI Nations Cup presented by Longines at CSIO5* Falsterbo took place Friday in an exciting showdown, with the U.S. team closing the competition tied for third place with Spain. Eight teams took on the 12-obstacle course designed by Christian Wiegand, including the American team of Ashlee Bond-Clarke, Catherine Pasmore, Georgina Bloomberg, and Brianne Goutal, led by Chef d’Equipe DiAnn...

Devon, Pa. - Seventeen-year-old Caitlin Boyle of Hampshire, IL took the Dixon Ring at the Devon show grounds by storm maintaining the lead through each of the three rounds of the USHJA/Essex Classics Hunterdon Equitation Cup Classic. Boyle rode to the head of the pack of 59, scoring a 92 aboard Michaela Kennedy's 14-year-old Mecklenburg gelding, Loredo. This year's Hunterdon Cup, held during the East Coast U.S. National Junior Hunter Championships, saw a challenging 3'6" track which...

Courtney Calcagnini and Elementary (Phelps Media Group, Inc.) Parker, Colo. - Consistency is crucial for success in the hunter ring, especially when the horses are required to jump several courses over multiple days. In a sea of many capable professional hunters, one particular bay gelding captured the judge's eye. The powerhouse duo of Courtney Calcagnini and Elementary won all four First Year Green Hunter over fences classes over the past two days of the Summer in the Rockies IV at the...

Will Connell (teamgb.com) Lexington, Ky. - United States Equestrian Federation Chief Executive Officer Chris Welton announced today the culmination of an expansive search for the USEF Director of Sport Programs by naming Will Connell to the post. From 2003 to present, Connell served as the British Equestrian Federation Performance Director with responsibility for the coordination and delivery of the UK Sport-funded World Class Program for disciplines of eventing, dressage, jumping, and...

Lexington, Ky - The FEI and USEF would like to notify U.S. organizers that Longines has agreed to partner with the FEI to create a new, reformatted Longines FEI World Cup™ Jumping North American League, beginning with the 2015-2016 season. There will be seven (7) Events on the East Coast and seven (7) events on the West Coast, for a total of fourteen (14) events in North America (including USA, Canada and Mexico). The organizers will be selected through a competitive bidding process in...