Aachen, Germany – The U.S. Para Dressage Team, comprised of Rebecca Hart (Wellington, Fla.) riding Floratina ; Fiona Howard (Boston, Mass.) and Diamond Dunes ; Kate Shoemaker (Wellington, Fla.) aboard Vianne ; and Marie Vonderheyden (Wellington, Fla.) on Fan Tastico H have won a thrilling team gold medal at the 2026 FEI Para Dressage World Championship on Saturday, August 22, in Aachen, Germany. After four FEI Para Grand Prix B tests across Grades I through IV over two days, a final team...

Aachen, Germany – Marathon day commenced on Saturday, August 22, at the 2026 FEI Driving World Championship for Four-in-Hands. It was a rainy day in Aachen, Germany adding a new level of challenge to the already precise eight-obstacle course. The Defender U.S. Driving Team is currently placed fifth on a combined score of 333.26 and will contest the final phase of competition tomorrow where they will be back in the ring for individual and team medals. Chester Weber (Ocala, Fla.) drove his...

Aachen, Germany – The Icon Global U.S. Jumping Team held on for a fourth-place finish at the 2026 FEI Jumping World Championship in Aachen, Germany, on Friday, August 21, 2026, anchored by a clear round from six-time U.S. Olympian McLain Ward (Brewster, N.Y.) riding Michael Smith’s High Star Hero to finish on a team total of 16.85 penalties. “McLain showed us tonight why he's the anchor: he's done it before, and that's why he goes last,” said Chef...

Aachen, Germany – U.S. Para Dressage athletes made a strong showing in the FEI Para Grand Prix Test B for Grades I, II, and III on Friday during the first day of team competition at the 2026 FEI Para Dressage World Championships in Aachen, Germany, running through August 23, 2026. Cumulative scores currently have the U.S. Para Dressage Team sitting in medal contention overnight with one more team ride to come. Topping the FEI Grand Prix Para Test B for Grade I on a personal best score of...

Aachen, Germany – Sixteen-year-old JJ Torano (Wellington, Fla.) made a storybook debut in Aachen’s main stadium by winning the STAWAG-Prize CSIY for Young Riders aboard Lyon 50 during the 2026 FEI World Championships hosted in Aachen, Germany, and running through August 23, 2026. “That was so much fun,” mused Torano after his round. “There's no better place to win than Aachen. When we heard about this opportunity [to compete during the FEI World Championships],...

Aachen, Germany – The Defender U.S. Driving Team sits in third place on a combined score of 81.84 at the 2026 FEI Driving World Championship for Four-in-Hands, held in Aachen, Germany, from August 17-23, 2026. Chester Weber (Ocala, Fla.) and James Fairclough (Newton, N.J.) drove down centerline Friday in the historic venue, finishing the dressage phase for the Defender U.S. Driving Team. Weber brought the drama as he broke his own World Championship Dressage record, scoring an 81.083%,...

Lexington, Ky. – US Equestrian is pleased to announce seven-time Olympian Phillip Dutton has been appointed the USEF Eventing Development Program Advisor. Dutton will join in the advisory role under the continued leadership of USEF Eventing High Performance Manager and Chef d’Equipe Leslie Law, and report to US Equestrian’s Managing Director of Eventing, Amber Braun. Dutton is set to begin the role this month. Law, who previously held the position of USEF Development Coach for...

Aachen, Germany – The Icon Global U.S. Jumping Team will advance to the Team Final sitting second after the first two rounds of competition at the 2026 FEI Jumping World Championship hosted in Aachen, Germany, and running from August 17-23, 2026. On an overnight score of 4.85 penalty points from Wednesday, the team produced three clear rounds from Laura Kraut (Royal Palm Beach, Fla.) riding Baloutinue ; Katie Dinan (New York, N.Y.) with Out of the Blue SCF ; and Lillie Keenan (New York, N....

Aachen, Germany – Two-time U.S. Paralympian Kate Shoemaker (Wellington, Fla.) and her own Vianne , a 2016 Hanoverian mare (Vitalis x Ramiro’s Bube) cared for by Jessica Martin-Legg, won individual gold in the FEI Para Grand Prix Test A - Grade IV at the 2026 FEI Para Dressage World Championships in Aachen, Germany. The pair delivered a personal-best performance on Thursday, scoring 78.889% to break the Grand Prix Test A world record for Grade IV and clinch the gold medal. “The...

Aachen, Germany – The Defender U.S. Driving Team started its Four-in-Hand campaign at the 2026 FEI Driving World Championship, hosted in Aachen, Germany, from August 17-23, 2026. Taren Lester (Citra, Fla.) was the first U.S. athlete to drive down the centerline for the team, completing his championship debut dressage test on the opening day of competition. Lester and his team earned a 51.44 to sit in eight overnight and will contest the marathon phase on Saturday, August 22. Competing in...