SafeSport, governance, and idea-sharing were up for discussion at a recent first-time gathering of the United States Olympic Committee’s national governing body (NGB) presidents, including United States Equestrian Federation President Murray Kessler. "There were a lot of similarities, but also many differences, which made for great learning and sharing of best practices,” US Equestrian President Murray Kessler (standing, far right) said after the summit. There were three major...

Lexington, Ky. - The United States Equestrian Federation (USEF) is excited to announce the expansion of the Equestrian Athlete Lettering Program to include a component for junior high students in grades five through eight. Students in grades nine through 12 are eligible to participate in the USEF High School Equestrian Athlete Program and can also apply retroactively for the junior high program, providing that they have met the requirements for each year. The USEF Junior High and High School...

South Dakota State's equestrian team was chosen as this year's NCEA sportsmanship award winner. An example of the Jackrabbits sportsmanship this year was towards the University of South Carolina during the teams' Nov. 23, 2013 competition in Brookings, S.D. Several Gamecock student-athletes and staff members still had missing luggage the morning of the meet, but South Dakota State's student-athletes and coaches agreed to move back the competition and offered to provide the...

Rio de Janeiro, Brazil - The Federation Equestre Internationale (FEI) General Assembly opened in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on Friday, November 11, 2011, with a meeting of the FEI Bureau, the first in four days of meetings culminating in the General Assembly on Monday, November 14, 2011. At its meeting Friday, the Bureau unanimously agreed to a proposal from the Dressage Committee to withdraw the proposed addition to Article 430.7.6: evidence of blood in the arena, in order to allow the Veterinary...

Tampa, FL - With only a few days until the Gene Mische American Invitational, presented by G & C Farms, often called the "Super Bowl of Show Jumping," the excitement is building. The Invitational, now in its 39th year, brings together a star-studded international group of equestrians to compete for one of the greatest titles in all of show jumping. Held at the Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, the event takes place on Saturday, April 9, 2011, at 7:30 p.m. A fun-filled afternoon begins at 3:30 p.m....

Shelburne, VT — The American Morgan Horse Association (AMHA) was pleased to honor an following individuals at its annual convention, which took place February 23-26, 2011, in Boston, MA. The Breeders' Hall of Fame honors a breeder(s) who has produced Morgans that have had a significant impact on the breed. Honored were Vincent and Kathy DeFazio, Orcland Farm, and Mary Jean Vasiloff. Eitan Beth-Halachmy and Beverley Olson were inducted into AMHA's Hall of Fame for their many years of devotion to...

Lexington, KY - The United States Equestrian Federation (USEF) is pleased to announce that beginning this year, it will assume responsibility for fielding and supporting the U.S. Saddle Seat Equitation Team for the Saddle Seat Equitation World Cup. The USEF will also assist in hosting the competition when held in the United States. "This is what USEF does," said Federation President David O'Connor. "It just makes sense for us to be involved with this." The bi-annual competition originated in...

Boston, MA - More than $95,000 was earned at the 2011 AMHA/WMF Stallion Service Auction, which took place as part of the AMHA Annual Convention in February. The event took place at the Park Plaza Hotel in Boston with Bill Carrington serving as auctioneer and David "Tuffy" Owens reading the pedigrees. The overall top-winning bid went to Dan Kelley of Victory Lane Morgans for his bid of $10,000 for the cover of the November/December issue of The Morgan Horse magazine. Bill and Sammi Hazen...

Wellington, FL - Dressage rider Tina Konyot, and her World Equestrian Games partner Calecto V, turned in brilliant performances in the Grand Prix classes at the Wellington Classic Dressage Spring Challenge CDI to ride into the winner’s circle. Konyot also rode away with the “Rider Wellness Award” from The Wellington Institute, awarded to a rider on the Florida dressage circuit who is healthy looking and physically fit. Calecto, a magnificent black stallion that represented the U.S. at WEG,...

Alida D'Angona, Miss Massachusetts 2011. (Photo courtesy AMHA.) Shelburne, VT — Alida D'Angona, 24, from Bolton, MA, recently was crowned Miss Massachusetts 2011, and will be a presenter at the American Morgan Horse Association's annual awards banquet on Saturday, February 26 in Boston. Born in California, D'Angona traveled with her family as a child across the world to live in Hong Kong before settling in Bolton. With an interest in music as well as the sciences, D'Angona quickly became...