With just 24 hours to go to the London 2012 Paralympic Games Opening Ceremony, excitement and great expectations are building up in the Olympic venues dotted around the city whilst record ticket sales – over 2.2 million tickets sold – are already hailing this edition as the greatest ever. This will be the fifth time Para-Equestrian Dressage is on the programme but it is the first time it is held in a country with such a strong Para-Equestrian culture, so strong that since it became...

Lexington, KY - Many of the top reiners in the United States are headed to Tulsa, Oklahoma this week to take part in the Adequan/USEF National Open Reining Championship on August 31. The Championship class will be run as a CRI3* and held in conjunction with a CRI2* and CRI*, all held during the Ariat Tulsa Reining Classic. The Championship will feature a rematch between Shawn Flarida and Tom McCutcheon, who finished first and second respectively in April's Ariat Kentucky Cup CRI5*. The two...

Bridgehampton, NY - I nternational veteran Jeffery Welles of Pound Ridge, N.Y., ruled the Grand Prix Ring on Tuesday at the 37th Annual Hampton Classic. Welles won both the afternoon’s American Eurocopter $7,500 1.45m Open Jumper class and the fist section of the morning’s Newsday $7,500 1.40m Open Jumper class. Welles, 50, won the more difficult afternoon class on Merlin in a time of 61.80 seconds, defeating Darragh Kerins on S&L Farms’ S&L Zeppelin (62.06) and Shane...

Shane Sweetnam took the lead in the 2012 Hagyard Challenge Series during the $10,000 Hagyard Welcome Stake at the KHJA Horse Show. (Shawn McMillen Photography) Lexington, KY - It was a thrilling Welcome Stake for the final week of the Kentucky Summer Series, during the KHJA Horse Show. It was Shane Sweetnam who rode to the top of the standings for the 2012 Hagyard Challenge Series. Sweetnam's first place finish knocked Kaitlin Campbell into the second place position, with Reed Kessler...

Lexington, KY - The best young hunters in the country will meet on both coasts in the coming days to compete for the National Hunter Breeding Championship and regional titles at the 2012 Sallie B. Wheeler/US National Hunter Breeding Championships. Young horses on the West Coast will make their way to the Showpark All Seasons Summer Tournament in Del Mar, California on August 29 to compete against each other for the title of best in the West. Last year the winner from the West, Ooh Ah, was named...

Bridgehampton, NY - The Hampton Classic hosted the championship finals for the Long Island Horse Show Series for Riders with Disabilities on Monday, with riders in three divisions competing for year-end titles. In the advanced independent division, Todd Pritscher, 30, of Yaphank, N.Y., riding Robin Hood, won the championship over Joe Penzel, 19, of Huntington, N.Y., riding Diamond. In the beginner independent division, Tiffany Kahles, 18, of East Meadow, N.Y., riding Gryffindor, won the...

Bridgehampton, NY - Horses stabled on Long Island had their day in the spotlight on Sunday, competing in the local hunter divisions in the newly renamed Anne Aspinall Ring or in Hunter Ring 2. The brightest star of the day was Mariano, owned by Stephanie Riggio and ridden by Sandra Ferrell. The pair won the Local Hunter Professional Championship on the way to winning the Grand Local Hunter Championship, awarded to the horse who earns the most points on the way to his divisional championship. To...

Beezie Madden and Coral Reef Via Volo win 2010 American Gold Cup. (Kenneth Kraus/PhelpsSports.com) North Salem, NY - When the American Gold Cup makes it much anticipated return this year at Old Salem Farm in North Salem NY, it will be a star-studded lineup of world-class show jumpers that will compete for the 2012 title. The show, now just a couple of weeks away, is scheduled for September 12th through the 16th, 2012, with the famed $200,000 American Gold Cup as the highlight event on the final...

Bridgehampton, NY - Molly Ashe-Cawley, of Wellington, Fla., rode Kennzo to first place in both rounds of the $50,000 USHJA International Hunter Derby, presented by MeadowView Farms, to earn the blue ribbon on the first day of the Hampton Classic. Their total score of 373.5 edged out teenage sensations Victoria Colvin on Inclusive (368.75) and Lillie Keenan on Monterrey (368.0). Colvin also finished 11th on Listen (271.0) and 12th on VIP Z (268.0) in the 35-horse field. This was first time that...

Meg Sleeper and Syrocco Reveille on race day (Merri Melde-Endurance.net) Newmarket, UK – Saturday, August 25 started out pleasant at Euston Park, but throughout the day the weather deteriorated into heavy downpours and severe thunderstorms. Due to the extreme weather, officials had to call the race off for the safety of the horses and riders. In an unusual finish to an endurance race, several riders were placed based on the position they were in at the time that the race was called, but...