Molly Sweeney. Photo Courtsey of the Sweeney Family. Lexington, KY – Known as a visionary with an incredible passion for horses and learning, Molly Sweeney, of Hockley, TX, has been chosen as the 2011 recipient of The EQUUS Foundation Humanitarian Award for her local and national-level volunteer work for over two decades in the equine assisted activities and therapies (EAA/T) field. Sweeney recognized the importance of professional research to support the results from EAA/T. To that end,...

Isabelle Leibler and Watson 108 National Young Rider Dressage Championships. Photo: SusanJStickle.com. Lexington, KY - Isabelle Leibler and Watson 108 came in second in Sunday's B Final in the Freestyle, representing the U.S. at the FEI Young Rider World Cup Dressage Final in Frankfurt, Germany. Leibler (Greenwich, CT) scored 68.700 on the 14-year-old Westphalian gelding, just behind Simona Aeberhard, representing Switzerland. "The competition was absolutely amazing," Leibler said. "Watson...

Isabelle Leibler and Watson 108 National Young Rider Dressage Championships. Photo: SusanJStickle.com. Lexington, KY - Isabelle Leibler and Watson 108 performed flawlessly Friday while representing the U.S. at the FEI Young Rider World Cup Dressage Final Grand Prix, and are moving forward to the B Final on Sunday in the Freestyle. "We were mistake free and I finished the first day very proud of myself and of Watson for staying focused throughout the exciting distractions," Leibler said. "The...

Lexington, KY - The United States Equestrian Federation (USEF) is proud to announce the names of five equestrians who have been selected to receive the year's most coveted awards. Presented by the USEF, the Lifetime Achievement Award, Junior Equestrian of the Year, and the Pegasus Medals of Honor will be presented during the Pegasus Awards gala on Saturday, January 14, at the Hilton Cincinnati Netherland Plaza. Additionally, the Equestrian of the Year Award will be announced at the Pegasus...

Lexington, KY - The first of six pre-Olympic Games Dressage Clinics kicked off at beautiful Epona Farm in Thousand Oaks, CA. These clinics, a joint effort by the United States Equestrian Federation (USEF) and the USET Foundation will help prepare horses and riders for the 2012 London Olympic Games. Linda and Michael Fowler were gracious hosts at Epona Farm. A gift from Betsy Juliano to the USET Foundation helped make this series of clinics possible. Nine horses (with seven riders) worked with...

The All American Cup pays through 16 places - the most places ever paid in any Saddlebred competitions. Lexington, KY - The Ninth Annual All American Cup (AAC) Stallion Review and Auction will be held at Claudia Sanders Restaurant in Shelbyville, KY, on Saturday, January 21. Dinner and festive activities are scheduled to begin at 4 PM. A total of 175 stallion services are set to be auctioned by Mr. Walt Robertson starting at 6 PM. The list of stallions, Reservation Forms, and Absentee Bid Forms...

Lexington, KY - The American Saddlebred Horse Association (ASHA) is pleased to announce the unveiling of a brand new Saddlebred blog on the ASHA website . Featured in this week's blog is the first in what will be a series of entries about a three-year-old American Saddlebred filly, who began as a show horse, but is now learning how to jump. Future blog posts will include an array of subjects from fun facts to helpful hints, reflections, and more! To suggest ideas to the blog or to make a...

Team USA's first training ride in Abu Dhabi. Photo courtesy Kelly Kimbler. Lexington, KY - The U.S. finished fourth among 19 teams Saturday in Abu Dhabi, UAE, at the FEI Junior and Young Rider World Endurance Championship despite an uphill battle that included an injured horse at the first inspection. "What an exhilarating team effort and realistically an unexpected result - but privately hoped for," said Chef d'Equipe Emmett Ross. Unexpected, in part, because Natalie Muzzio's horse...

Lexington, KY - Following submission of the proposed slate to the Executive Committee and Board of Directors of the American Saddlebred Horse Association (ASHA), the list of nominees standing for election as Directors of the Association for terms beginning in February 2012 was released. In February 2012, six directors are to be elected by ASHA members for terms ending in 2015, from the following 11 candidates: Susan Aschenbrenner (Iowa), Betsy Boone (North Carolina), Randall Cates (Oklahoma),...

Greenwich Park, pictured here at the London Prepares Test Event in July, will provide a spectacular backdrop for the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games. Photo: Kit Houghton/FEI. Sales of Paralympic Equestrian tickets for the London 2012 Paralympic Games have broken records, with more than 40,000 tickets already sold. And there is a further opportunity for spectator numbers to increase with remaining tickets going on sale at 1pm GMT today (2 December). The number of tickets sold to date...