PhelpsSports.com (McLain Ward and Sapphire are leading the races for AGA Rider and Horse of the Year, respectively.) The 2007 American Grand Prix Association (AGA) tour is only five events old, but McLain Ward, a three-time American Grand Prix Association (AGA) Rider of the Year, has already put himself in a excellent position to take home a fourth title, following his impressive victory in the richest grand prix ever held in the United States. Entering its 29th year, the AGA Grand Prix Series...

The United States Equestrian Team (USET) Foundation awards many beautiful trophies throughout the year to various equestrian disciplines. One of the most coveted is the Fritz Cup, which is given to the national champion in show jumping every year. In 2006, the award was given to McLain Ward, who piloted Sapphire to the win in the Rolex/United States Equestrian Federation (USEF) National Show Jumping Championship at the 123rd National Horse Show and Family Festival on December 3. Ward and...

Randi Muster (McLain Ward and Sapphire) It came down to a four-rider jump-off speed round at the 2006 Rolex/USEF National Show Jumping Championship at the 123rd National Horse Show in Wellington, FL, on Sunday afternoon. And in a finish befitting the championships sponsor—Rolex—the crowds counted split seconds in the final speed test. When the last rider left the course and the points were tallied, McLain Ward and his Sapphire bested all challengers to win the title in a suspenseful, yet...

Team USA does it again by bringing home the Team Gold medal in reining. Pictured are: Dell Hendricks, Tim McQuay, Aaron Rahlston and Matt Mills. (By Ceci Flanagan-Snow) More than 38,000 fans of reining and driving descended on the 2006 World Equestrian Games on Friday to watch the exciting marathon phase of four-in-hand driving and the Team medal competition in the Western discipline of reining. It was a Gold-medal day for Team USA’s reiners, while three American drivers took to the...

The U.S. dressage team won a Team Bronze medal. (Bob Langrish) Aachen, Germany – Day two of grand prix didn’t give any of the remaining 43 riders much of an advantage when it came to weather, but it did not seem to affect the Americans, the Dutch, the Germans or the Danes. The crowd of 32,000 definitely got their money’s worth today witnessing the best piaffes, passages, pirouettes and transitions in the world. Because of the caliber of today’s riders, the photographers...

At the Blowing Rock Horse Show series, held July 26-August 6, Over the Hill Farm had more stellar performances from their horses and riders. They took home five grand hunter titles and five trophies from the horse show. Once again, young Taylor Ann Adams of Eads, TN, was the star of the show. Adams was named the Best Child Rider on a Pony and won the Evelyn O. Faulkner Trophy. She was also the Leading Point Rider on a Horse and Pony and will have her name etched on the Jennifer Cox Memorial...

PhelpsPhotos.com/USEF Archives (Kaitlin Campbell on Rockette during the 2006 USEF Pony Finals National Championships.) Lexington, KY – At the close of what was the longest and largest USEF Pony Finals National Championships to date, Kaitlin Campbell of Upper Black Eddy, PA, was one happy camper. The 14-year-old Campbell rode five ponies at this year’s event and ended her sixth year at Pony Finals with the Overall Grand Champion title in the Wild Horsefeathers/USEF National Hunter...

Amber Siegelman and The Waterboy Sailing To The Gold Medal (PhelpsPhotos.com/USEF Archives ) Lexington, KY – When Amber Siegelman was the last to go in the jump-off at the 2006 Adequan/USEF National Pony Jumper Individual Championship, you would have thought you were at a Western event by the sounds of the crowd. All night the crowd was clucking on horses to help them over the fences. But, when Siegelman’s ride looked to be the only clean of the five in the jump-off, the crowd got...

Lili Weik (Addison Phillips won the Hunterdon Cup at HITS Saugerties.) Addison Phillips of New York, NY, won the inaugural United States Hunter Jumper Association's (USHJA) Hunterdon Cup Equitation Class presented by World Equestrian Brands on Tuesday, July 25, 2006. Phillips, trained by Andre Dignelli, owner of Heritage Farm, rode to victory aboard her 11-year-old bay Warmblood gelding, Icon. Competing against 25 other riders and navigating her way through three rounds, with the last round...

Steve Schaefer of Maple Park, IL, and his horse, Winchester, out-jumped a field of 20 to win the $25,000 Grand Prix of Traverse City during Series I of Horse Shows by the Bay in Traverse City, MI. Eight horse-and-rider combinations returned to compete over the shortened course designed Sunday by international course designer Guilherme Jorge. Schaefer and Winchester crossed through the finish markers penalty-free and in a time of 46.486 seconds, almost two seconds faster than second-place...