Brooke Banks and Brodeur (Sportfot) Wellington, Fla. - While it's far from Brooke Banks' maiden season in Wellington, she is jumping her first fences as an amateur rider this week. When the clock struck 12 on New Year's Eve, she shed her junior status and set her sights once again on the 2015 Winter Equestrian Festival, this time as an amateur. Not letting her new title faze her, however, Banks jumped her own eight-year-old Mecklenburg gelding Brodeur to the championship in Section...

Lexington, Ky. – The United States Equestrian Federation will be hosting another #USEFTalk twitter chat on January 14th. That will be during the USEF Annual Meeting in Lexington, and freshly named US Dressage Youth Coach George Williams will be the star. George will be taking over the @USEquestrian account on twitter to answer questions and chat with followers from 3-4pm ET. If you’re interested, you can get his attention by using the #USEFTalk hashtag. In the press release...

A First of its Kind World-Class Competition The first Best Performance Team Invitational will take place on Friday evening, February 20, 2015, under the lights in the International Arena during week 7 of the Winter Equestrian Festival in Wellington, Florida. Darragh Kenny, Laura Kraut, Beezie Madden, Rodrigo Pessoa and McLain Ward are among the grand prix riders forming teams to compete over a jumper course judged on style and performance by the legendary George H. Morris and Katie Prudent....

Sydney Collier (USA) and Wentworth at the Adequan Global Dressage Festival Photo (Lindsay Y. McCall) Wellington, Fla. - FEI Ground Jury can expect to see multiple top international athletes at the Adequan Global Dressage Festival CPEDI3* January 7-11, 2015, in Wellington, FL. Para-Equestrians from Canada and the United States will face off at the first CPEDI3* in 2015. The Van Kampen covered arena at the Global dressage Festival will be busy starting Thursday, January 8, with the Horse...

In the first 1m45 class of the 2014 CHI-Geneve, the Prix des Vins de Genève, both Reed Kessler & Lauren Hough jumped clear over two rounds and into the top five. With Soraya De l’obstination, Kessler (Lexinngton, Ky) was clear over the jump off course in 30.17s, less than one second off the winning pace. She finished in third place. Watch video of Kessler & Soraya at the Pennsylvania national Horse Show . Less than .20s behind Kessler were Hough (Wellington, Fla.) and...

Joan Hamill Gladstone, N.J. - The United States Equestrian Team Foundation is pleased to announce the naming of the Hamilton Farm Rotunda "The Joan and Corwith Hamill Rotunda". Their commitment to equestrian sport began in the 1950s, when Joan was an integral part of the transition of the USET from the U.S. Army to civilians. This naming is made possible through a generous gift of $1.5 Million made to the Gladstone Fund by the The Hamill Family Foundation. Joan grew up in Chicago riding in...

Sydney Collier riding Willi Wesley (SusanjStickle.com) Lexington, Ky. - The United States Equestrian Federation (USEF) is pleased to announce Sydney Collier as the 2014 Junior Equestrian of the Year. Seventeen-year-old Collier is a talented Para-Equestrian who competed at the international level in 2014, including the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games. A native of Ann Arbor, Mich., she was diagnosed at the age of seven with a rare congenital birth defect called Wyburn-Mason Syndrome. In spite...

Emily Wagner and WakeUp (Ron Berg) The Dressage Foundation is pleased to announce that Emily Wagner of Overland Park, KS, and her American Warmblood stallion, WakeUp, have been selected to receive this year's $25,000 Anne L. Barlow Ramsay Grant. The purpose of the Grant is to showcase talented American-bred horses ridden by United States citizens, by providing money to train and compete in Europe. Emily and WakeUp won the 2011 National Championships for six year olds, finished as 2012...

Caroline Martin and Quantum Solace (Mike McNally Photography) Lexington, Ky. - The United States Equestrian Federation (USEF) hosted 12 up-and-coming riders in the inaugural Eventing 18 Program in 2014. All Participants put the lessons learned in January’s Training Sessions with U.S. Team Coach David O’Connor and respected eventing professionals to the test throughout the year to reach new heights of excellence in competition and all around horsemanship. Caroline Martin (Miami...

Las Vegas, Nevada - Las Vegas Events, Inc., producer of the 2015 FEI World Cup Finals, has announced the list of officials for the 2015 Longines FEI World Cup™ Jumping Final, which takes place at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas, Nevada, next April 15-19 alongside the Reem Acra FEI World Cup™ Dressage Final. Heading the list of officials for jumping is Kim Morrison of Canada who will be President of the Ground Jury. She will be joined by Ground Jury Members David Distler,...