Andre Thieme and Coco 135. (ESI Photography©.) OCALA, FL - On a perfectly beautiful afternoon at HITS Post Time Farm in Ocala, FL, German show-jumping icon Andre Thieme riding Seth Vallhonrat's Coco 135 captured the victory in Sunday's $50,000 Purina Mills Grand Prix, presented by Pfizer Animal Health, to close out the Ocala Finals. Thieme's win marked the first time this season that a rider captured more than one victory in a Sunday Grand Prix, his first being aboard his own Cesar three weeks...

Allison Springer and Arthur. (Photo by Leslie Threlkeld.) Tallahassee, FL - It's only fitting that the winner of the first event of the 2011 Adequan USEA Gold Cup Series would be decided on the final moments of the competition on Sunday afternoon, drawing out the nail-biting excitement to the very last jump. Overnight leader Allison Springer must have breathed a huge sigh of relief to cross the finish line with all the rails still neatly in their cups, solidifying her victory at the prestigious...

Joel Kiesner. (Photo by Stuart Vesty.) Welcome to the second of many features profiling various people in equestrian sport - athletes, trainers and more. The profiles are published regularly in the United States Equestrian Federation's Week in Review e-newsletter. This week meet Joel Kiesner, whose lifelong experience has evolved into training methods focused on maximizing the best assets and talent of the Arabian horse. His exceptional talent and abilities have resulted in numerous awards -...

Rodrigo Pessoa and Let's Fly. (Photo by Sportfot©.) Wellington, FL - Saturday Night Lights at the FTI Winter Equestrian Festival brought a crowd of more than 4,200 spectators out to the Palm Beach International Equestrian Center this weekend to watch Brazil's Rodrigo Pessoa and Let's Fly jump to victory in the $231,000 FEI World Cup™ Grand Prix CSI 4*-W Presented by Bainbridge Companies. Pessoa earned the winning cut of prize money after an exciting jump-off of many of the top horses and riders...

Steffen Peters and Ravel (SusanJStickle.com) Wellington, FL – Before a sold-out crowd, the Jim Brandon Equestrian Center continued to play host to World Dressage Masters Palm Beach CDI5* presented by the International Polo Club. After Thursday’s Grand Prix and Friday afternoon’s Grand Prix Special, eight of the top riders from across the United States and Europe rode their freestyles on a cool Florida evening. And, by the luck of the draw – the best was saved for last. Steffen Peters and Ravel...

Pierre St. Jacques and Lucky Tiger (SusanJStickle.com Photo) Wellington, FL - The second day of the World Dressage Masters Palm Beach presented by the International Polo Club got underway with the Grand Prix Special on a glorious day in South Florida. Nine horse-and-rider combinations went forward to the Special after Thursday’s Grand Prix and the remaining eight will contest the Freestyle this evening. Polish rider Michal Rapcewicz proved unbeatable, winning the Special on 69.771% on Randon....

Lexington, KY - The American Saddlebred Horse Association (ASHA) has established the standards and criteria for the Saddlebred Record Equitation Champion program. In 2010, the Directors of ASHA and the American Saddlebred Registry (ASR) approved the addition of an equitation section to the Saddlebred Record program. For equitation achievements, a horse can be honored by affixing a "CH-EQ" designation in permanent ASR records. In some cases, equitation results may not have been received or the...

Tracy Fenney and MTM Timon. (ESI Photography© .) Ocala, FL — In a season where a different High-Performance rider has claimed each of the 10 Grand Prix held so far at HITS Ocala, Tracy Fenney just put an end to that pattern with her second victory of the Circuit. Fenney was able to stave off a challenge in the jump-off by Tracy Magness to capture Thursday’s $25,000 SmartPak Grand Prix, presented by Pfizer Animal Health, aboard MTM Farm’s MTM Timon. Fenney of Flower Mound, TX, and MTM Timon were...

Lucy Davis and Nemo 119. (Flying Horse Photography©.) Theramal, CA - Week V of the HITS Desert Circuit in Thermal, CA, was a blockbuster. The show grounds were a buzz for a sold-out week where record number of entries filled popular classes starting as early in the week as Tuesday with the Level 2, 3, and 6 jumpers and the Low Hunters, each drawing huge numbers as everyone seems to be loving life in desert. It was also the final week of World Cup Qualifiers which means riders enjoyed their last...

Lexington, KY - The United States Equestrian Federation (USEF) will host a Forum on March 10th, 2011 for Eventing Long Listed Athletes* to hear directly from the short-listed applicants for the position of Eventing Chef d'Equipe/Technical Advisor beginning in 2013. The two short-listed candidates recommended by the Search Committee are Leslie Law and David O'Connor. The process to select a new Chef d'Equipe/Technical Advisor for Eventing has been underway since the summer of 2010. In August of...