GCT Estoril (GCT Press Office) Estoril, Protugal - There was joy and heartbreak tonight as Sweden’s Henrik von Eckermann seized his first Grand Prix win as Portuguese rider Luciana Diniz narrowly missed out on a home victory. After one of the toughest Grand Prix of the season so far, in sizzling temperatures in Estoril, von Eckermann and Gotha came out on top with Scott Brash and Hello Sanctos the only other combination to jump three clear rounds. The local crowd went wild with excitement...

Ammeretto and David Beisel (Tricia Booker Photography) Traverse City, MI - Ammaretto and David Beisel cruised to the blue ribbon in the $2,500 CMJ Sporthorse 1.40m Jumper Speed Stake, one of Thursday's featured classes at Horse Shows by the Bay. Over a Chris Brandt-designed track, Beisel and the bay Dutch Warmblood (Numero Uno--Ranna) jumped clear in 63.61 seconds as the 11th of 12 competitors in the ring. Beisel, of Goshen, OH, has ridden the 8-year-old stallion for the past five years and...

Sarah Tyndall and Jack Black (Phelps Media Group, Inc. International) Halifax, MA - The Plymouth Rock Hunter/Jumper Classic ended today with the much-anticipated $10,000 Fieldstone 3'3" Hunter Derby and both the Child and Adult Hunter Classics. The derby has always been both a competitor and crowd favorite at the Fieldstone Show Park in Halifax, MA, and today's class was no exception. Riding to two impressive scores and the blue ribbon in the derby were Emily Bickford and KEC Kool Kat....

John Pearce and Johnny B Good (Mary Adelaide Brakenridge) Parker, CO - A crowd of spectators gathered to watch spectacular show jumping at the much-anticipated $30,000 Nutrena Summer in the Rockies III Grand Prix in the Kathy and Brad Coors Family Grand Prix Arena at the Colorado Horse Park on a perfect Colorado Saturday afternoon. In the first round of the event, 19 horse and rider combinations battled it out over international course designer Alan Wade's track, attempting to progress to...

Kent Farrington and Zidane (Phelps Media Group, Inc.) Lexington, KY - Capturing a ribbon was no easy task during today's $20,000 Bluegrass Classic at the Kentucky Spring Horse Show. Forty-two entries gathered at the Rolex Stadium to compete in the 1.45m Open Jumper event, but when 23 qualified for the tiebreaker the results came down to a foot race. Besting the clock and the course was Kent Farrington aboard Zidane, breaking the beam at 38.879 to take home the winning prize. Ramiro...

Reed Kessler and Mika (Rebecca Walton for Phelps Media Group, Inc. International) Lexington, KY - The top horses and riders from across the country have returned to the Kentucky Horse Park this week for the start of the Kentucky Spring Horse Shows. The first day of competition kicked off with the Open Jumper divisions in the Rolex Stadium. Olympian Reed Kessler led the way in the 1.45m Open Jumper class aboard Mika with a double clear effort, while the victory in the 1.40m Open Jumper speed...

(l-r) St Lawrence Univ, Skidmore College, and Stanford Univ (LA Pomeroy) Harrsiburg, PA - "Sharing is better than losing to her," joked Mary Drueding, coach of defending Intercollegiate Horse Show Association Collegiate Cup team, St. Lawrence University, about good friend and even better rival, coach Cindy Ford, whose Skidmore College team turned up the heat in the homestretch like true Thoroughbreds on the first Saturday in May and brought the 2013 Collegiate Cup at the 40th annual IHSA...

Quotable and Holly Orlando (Anne Gittins Photography) Wellington, FL - The hunters have officially taken over the International Arena during week seven of the FTI Consulting Winter Equestrian Festival (FTI WEF). Week seven showcases hunter competition at its finest as riders and horses go head-to-head as they battle to qualify for Saturday night's USHJA World Championship Hunter Rider (WCHR) Peter Wetherill Palm Beach Hunter Spectacular. Holly Orlando and Kelley Farmer took home an...

Finalists for the 2013 PagePlay Equestrian Social Media Awards were announced today with the United States Equestrian Federation and USEF Network each recieving one nomination. Ten finalists have been nominated in each of the 33 categories and voting is now open to the public. Winners will be determined 75% from scores give by this panel of judges , and 25% from votes of the public. The United States Equestrian Federation is a finalist for the "Best Use of Social Media in North America" award....

Toronto, ON – It was a class, and a course, befitting a champion. Befitting the legacy of Hickstead. The inaugural $100,000 Hickstead FEI World CupTM Grand Prix tested each horse and rider every step of the way, and in the end, it was veteran Canadian Olympian Jill Henselwood (Oxford Mills, ON) with her young horse George, who rode away victorious. The biggest Grand Prix class of the Royal Horse Show was renamed during last year’s event, in honour of Hickstead, Eric Lamaze’s...