Olympic dressage horse Indian Rock has been withdrawn from contention for the US squad heading to the 2026 Aachen World Championships.

Indian Rock was a regular at senior championships with his former rider Emmelie Scholtens, with whom he represented the Netherlands at the 2022 World Championships, 2023 Europeans and 2024 Paris Olympics.

He was sold to the US after Paris and has had success in the States with new rider Christian Simonson, winning their first eight international starts and finishing runner-up in both the grand prix and freestyle at the 2026 World Cup final.

On Thursday (4 June), the 13-year-old stallion’s owner Zen Elite Equestrian Centre shared the news that Indian Rock (“Rocky”) would not be available for selection this year.

“After a lot of discussion with the team, we’ve decided not to include Indian Rock in our summer championship team plans this year,” said a statement from Zen Elite.

“Rocky has given us an incredible season, and we couldn’t be more proud of everything he has accomplished. He has exceeded our expectations in every way, and we feel the best decision for him right now is to enjoy a well earned break and some time to simply be a horse.⁣

“We believe that building great horses for the long term means knowing when to continue forward and when to give them the opportunity to recharge. Rocky has taken us on an amazing journey this year (one we couldn’t have dreamed up any better), and we want to set him up for continued success in the years ahead.⁣

“We are incredibly grateful for the support of our entire team and the many people who have cheered Rocky on every step of the way.⁣”

The statement added that the team will be “proudly cheering on the rest of Team USA” this summer, including Christian and his other top ride Fleau De Baian, also owned by Zen Elite.

“Thank you for being part of Rocky’s story. Christian, Adrienne Lyle and I can’t wait to see what the future holds for this very special horse,” added the statement.

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A teenage girl was arrested in Las Vegas after three horses were “intentionally injured with a sharp object”.

The Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department (LVMPD) confirmed that the young girl was taken into custody in the early hours of 30 May and charged with 15 offences.

The US National Barrel Horse Association (NBHA) confirmed that the teenager was a competitor at the NBHA 2026 Professional’s Choice Vegas Super Show at the South Point Casino in Las Vegas.

In a statement, the NBHA said there was an “isolated incident during the early hours of Saturday, 30 May, involving the mistreatment of a limited number of horses by an event competitor”.

The situation was addressed immediately with police, security and the NBHA, the statement said, adding: “The individual involved has been removed and placed in the care of authorities and there is no ongoing threat of any kind.”

An LVMPD spokesperson said the department received a report that a horse had been injured at just after 2am on Saturday morning.

“Patrol officers arrived and learned that three horses had been intentionally injured with a sharp object,” he said.

“The LVMPD animal cruelty section was notified and responded to the scene. Through the course of the investigation, detectives identified a teenage girl as a possible suspect.

“The teen had access to the barn, and investigators believe she may have used a knife to inflict multiple injuries to the horses. While the injuries are not considered life-threatening, they are expected to prevent the horses from competing.”

The girl who was arrested was found by detectives at a hotel nearby and taken into custody. She was then taken to Clark County juvenile hall, where she was charged with 12 counts of wilful/malicious kill/maim/torture animal – horse, and three of felony malicious destruction of private property over $5,000.

It is understood the girl has made one court appearance and is due to appear again this week.

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US Olympic dressage rider Adrienne Lyle has paid tribute to her former top ride and London 2012 horse Wizard, who has died aged 27.

Adrienne and Wizard made their Olympic debut at London, finishing 35th individually. In 2014 they helped the US team to fourth place at the World Equestrian Games (WEG) in Normandy, France.

“Rest easy big boy. Wizard, you were larger than life and I loved you, and your many opinions, fiercely,” said Adrienne.

Adrienne got the ride on the Oldenburg gelding, owned by Peggy and Jane Thomas, through her trainer Debbie McDonald in 2007. They made their international grand prix debut together in February 2009 at the Burbank CDI-W in California.

Over the next few years Adrienne and Wizard were consistent on home soil, scoring wins at venues in California, Florida, Pennsylvania and New York, and rarely finishing outside the top 10.

“I will never forget the day Debbie first let me ride you in the jumper ring at River Grove. You were young and fiery and powerful, and I was in love,” said Adrienne.

“Because the Thomas family and the McDonalds chose to take a chance on a young girl from a farm in Washington state, my life was changed forever. Together you and I learned grand prix, became under-25 national champions and went on to represent the USA at the 2012 Olympics and 2014 World Equestrian Games.”

Wizard’s final international outing was WEG; Adrienne had hoped to aim for the 2015 World Cup Final, but she announced his retirement in January aged 16, after he sustained a field injury. He spent his retirement at home at the Thomas family’s River Grove Farm.

“You always kept life exciting and kept me laughing, while teaching me every day how to tame a dragon with love and patience,” she said. “I hope heaven knows what they are in for when you come charging through the gates.”

A spokesperson for US Equestrian said the governing body is saddened to learn of Wizard’s passing.

“USA Dressage sends our condolences to all who worked and loved Wizard throughout his life,” he said.

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America’s first Triple Crown winner for quarter of a century, Secretariat’s speed records from 1973 still stand today. Jamie Haase tracks the enduring significance of the bright chestnut who reset racing’s boundaries

More than half a century later, Secretariat’s records and reputation still reign supreme,” said Leeanne Meadows Ladin, author and president of the non-profit Secretariat For Virginia.

Today, Leeanne lives in the farm manager’s house at Meadow Stable, Virginia, surrounded by a landscape that once raised and conditioned a young Secretariat – his foaling shed and yearling barn, largely untouched, are preserved as historic landmarks.

Earlier this year, nearly 350 acres of adjacent pastureland, including “The Cove,” locally known as Secretariat’s nursery, were placed under permanent conservation easements. From this vantage, Leeanne lives alongside a legacy firmly grounded – not distant history, but uninterrupted, a continuum between yesterday and tomorrow.

Horseracing in the United States dates to the early 17th century, with Long Island’s Newmarket Course, established in 1665, marking the first organised racetrack in colonial America. Named for Britain’s racing capital, it was designed to formalise English racing tradition throughout the colonies. Three centuries later, on Saturday, 9 June 1973, American thoroughbred racing reached a pinnacle never before seen – and never replicated since.

At the summit stood a chestnut colt whose supremacy not only secured the Triple Crown, but reset the sport’s boundaries. For five extraordinary weeks, the record books were not simply rewritten but reimagined and today Secretariat’s official times still stand unchallenged.

‘Everything about Secretariat is out of this world’

Secretariat won the Kentucky Derby in 1min 59.4sec over 1¼ miles and the Preakness Stakes in 1min 53sec over 1³⁄₁₆ miles. At Belmont Park, he completed the sweep with one of the most dominant performances in sporting history.

“Secretariat set a world record for a mile and a half, 2min 24sec, which still stands, and won the race by 31 lengths,” his owner, Penny Chenery, later wrote in The New York Times.

The 1973 season was not built on soft opposition. Sham, Secretariat’s chief rival, possessed speed that eclipsed many past Triple Crown winners, yet his abilities were repeatedly obscured by unparalleled athleticism. At Churchill Downs, before a record crowd of 134,476, Sham finished second after recording an estimated 1min 59⅘sec – fast enough to have set a new track record and to have won virtually any other Derby in history.

Under the protocols of the era, however, only the winner’s time was captured, leaving Sham’s performance unacknowledged – and Secretariat standing between him and immortality.

The Belmont Stakes, above all others, captured the performance that fixed Secretariat’s name in the public imagination, carried as much by the moment as by the voice that delivered it.

Calling the race, broadcaster Chic Anderson found the words on cue to match what was unfolding: “Secretariat is widening now, he is moving like a tremendous machine.” More than half a century later, the call endures as faithfully as the record it immortalised.

Secretariat won 16 of his 21 starts, earning $1,316,808 (£989,000). Behind those figures stood a team whose influence shaped the colt’s rise and restraint. Trainer Lucien Laurin served as an anchor, guiding a talent that could easily have outrun its own narrative.

He once described Secretariat as “beautiful, everything about him is out of this world… in all his races he has taken the worst of it by coming from behind, usually circling his field”.

For those who worked closest to him, the relationship was personal. Secretariat’s exercise rider Charlie Davis later reflected on the bond they shared: “We didn’t make Secretariat. Secretariat made us.”

Genetics further fuelled the Sham and Secretariat rivalry through their grandsire, Princequillo – a transatlantic influence conceived in France, born in Ireland and safeguarded in the United States during World War II. Sired by Prince Rose, Princequillo was imported by Arthur “Bull” Hancock Jr in 1945 and later stood at Claiborne Farm in Paris, Kentucky, leaving an intercontinental imprint on thoroughbred stamina.

Princequillo’s bloodline converged at Meadow Stable just north of Richmond, Virginia, before it reached the racetrack. After establishing the farm in 1936 and constructing many of its buildings himself, Christopher Chenery built the Meadow into one of the industry’s most respected breeding operations. It was there, on 30 March 1970, that Somethingroyal, in foal to Bold Ruler, delivered the future 1973 Triple Crown champion.

In 1967, as his health declined, Christopher Chenery’s daughter Penny Chenery assumed control of the Meadow. With her siblings urging liquidation, she chose instead to safeguard the operation, motivated as much by loyalty as by conviction. Her resolve was vindicated in 1972, when the home-bred Riva Ridge won both the Kentucky Derby and the Belmont Stakes.

That same year, Riva Ridge’s Meadow stablemate, the two-year-old Secretariat, was crowned Horse of the Year, quietly setting the stage for what was to follow.

Breaking records on and off the track

In 1973, entering his three-year-old season, Secretariat did not find his stride immediately, but when it came, it came decisively. Ángel Cordero Jr, the Hall of Fame jockey who beat Secretariat in his maiden start at New York City’s Aqueduct Racetrack, recalled a colt still in development, not yet the phenomenon he would become.

“When Secretariat first entered the scene, the jockeys all knew he was special, a great horse,” Ángel tells H&H. “But it wasn’t until he competed at Saratoga in the summer of 1972, stringing together decisive victories in the Sanford Stakes and the Hopeful Stakes, that we recognised just how astonishing he was.”

Penny Chenery already knew as much. Anticipating both opportunity and obligation, she chose to syndicate Secretariat into shared stud ownership before the 1973 campaign even began. The record-breaking $6.08m (£4.57m) agreement was announced on 26 February, little more than a month after her father’s death in January.

Meanwhile, Seth Hancock, newly installed as Claiborne Farm’s third-generation president at just 23, was also navigating the recent loss of his father, Bull Hancock, while assuming responsibility for both the farm and the Secretariat syndication. Seth later told H&H that one of the reasons the deal succeeded was that friends of his father stepped in to buy shares because they “didn’t want to see me fail”, support that helped make the agreement possible.

On 28 October 1973, in Toronto, Ontario, with the Triple Crown secured and his times fixed in the record books, Secretariat made his final start in the Canadian International Championship Stakes on Woodbine Racetrack’s cold turf, surging effortlessly to win by 6½ lengths.

The venue was a fitting farewell. Both trainer Lucien Laurin and jockey Ron Turcotte were Canadian, but Penny Chenery’s choice carried deeper resonance, reflecting the long-standing relationship between her father and the Canadian breeder, EP Taylor, of Windfields Farm. An architect of Woodbine and breeder of Northern Dancer and his Epsom Derby-winning son Nijinsky, Taylor became a trusted adviser after Christopher Chenery’s death and an early backer of the syndication.

After his final lap in Toronto, Secretariat was withdrawn from training and sent to Claiborne to begin stud duties. There would be no gradual winding down, no four-year-old campaign. He left the racetrack not in decline, but at full speed, his legacy intact.

Secretariat at stud

With competition in the rear-view, the bloodline enterprise began. Carrying extraordinary expectations, Secretariat arrived at Claiborne on 12 November 1973, taking up residence in the stall once occupied by his sire, Bold Ruler.

From his early crops emerged high-class performers, including Kentucky Derby runner-up General Assembly, Breeders’ Cup-winning filly Lady’s Secret and dual Classic winner Risen Star.

Yet as his lineage evolved, it became clear that Secretariat was the exception, not the rule. For all his brilliance on the track, he could not reproduce himself in direct male succession, a familiar pattern in racing, where athleticism often proves easier to display than to transmit through DNA. His more enduring influence flowed through his daughters. As a broodmare sire, his impact shaped elite pedigrees worldwide, most notably Storm Cat and AP Indy.

That legacy extended into European Pattern racing, where a small but distinguished group achieved elite success. Athyka emerged as a leading ambassador with back-to-back victories in the Prix de l’Opéra, while Bluebook, trained by Sir Henry Cecil, won at Group level. In total, more than 90 of Secretariat’s progeny raced in Europe, with 11 becoming stakes winners.

Amy Zimmerman, a close friend of Penny Chenery and senior vice president and executive producer at Santa Anita Park, is in no doubt of the significance of Secretariat’s influence on the sport.

“He is the reference point by which all other horses are judged,” she says. “It is stunning that so many Eclipse Award winners, Kentucky Derby entrants and Breeders’ Cup runners over the past decade carry the name ‘Secretariat’ somewhere in their pedigrees.”

As the current fourth-generation president of Claiborne Farm, Walker Hancock says that the memories of Secretariat remain vivid within the farm itself.

“It may be known by some, but I don’t think people fully realise just how much he loved attention,” he says. “Secretariat was a complete ham for the camera. The moment someone pulled one out, he would come to life – posing, engaging and soaking it all in.

“He seemed to know he was special and fully embraced it. Everyone around him couldn’t help but love him and be awestruck by his presence. He truly was a rock star.”

That presence, Walker says, carries forward into a responsibility of stewardship.

“There is real pressure to ensure Secretariat is remembered and respected in the way he deserves,” he says. “He is the most famous horse in the history of thoroughbred racing, and we feel a responsibility to make sure his legacy endures.”

A cultural icon: “grown men wept”

On 4 October 1989, Secretariat passed away from complications of laminitis. A necropsy revealed that he possessed an unusually large heart, more than twice the size of a typical thoroughbred’s.

Dr William F Gilsenan, a board-certified equine internal medicine specialist at Rood & Riddle Equine Hospital in Lexington, Kentucky, outlines the potential effect of this anomaly.

“It is plausible – if not probable – that there is a hereditary basis for factors such as cardiovascular capacity and heart size,” he explains.

“Assuming normal cardiac function, a larger heart is capable of enhancing an animal’s oxygen-carrying capacity.”

Walker Hancock was born just two months before Secretariat passed, but the colt’s absence nonetheless weighed heavily throughout his formative years.

“Grown men wept long after his passing, and there was a real sense of loss – a void that was hard to fill after losing such a cultural icon,” he recalls.

In the years since, many champions have emerged, and comparison with Secretariat has remained unavoidable. What ultimately distinguishes him from the field is not excellence but permanence: many records fall when conditions align – his times remain insulated by the sheer scale of their margins.

Ron Turcotte captured it simply: “He was the greatest racehorse who ever lived, and I was the luckiest guy in the world to be on his back.”

In assessing Secretariat’s place among the greats, the language of ranking often fails, assuming a scale that shifts with eras and evolution. He instead occupies a fixed position. He is not merely measured against others, he defines the terms by which all others are measured.

Leonard Lusky, a longtime friend and associate of Penny Chenery and Ron Turcotte, frames it this way: “He has transcended his sport to become a timeless cultural phenomenon, for many, a veritable chestnut Elvis.”

For the modern reader and for generations to come, Secretariat’s most enduring achievement lies in the rare convergence of fate, circumstance, skill and spirit. He emerged at a moment when the United States was struggling politically and economically, and the clarity of his brilliance offered something steadier than the era itself.

It was not simply his decisive victories, nor the influence of his progeny, nor even the acclaim that followed. Secretariat instead left behind a standard so explicit and fully documented, and so scarcely realised that it crystallised definitively – the very notion of equine perfection.

Did you know?

• The bright chestnut with three white socks was nicknamed “Big Red”
• Only Derby winner to run each quarter-mile faster than the previous one
• Appeared on the covers of Time, Newsweek and Sports Illustrated in the same week
• In 2025, every Kentucky Derby starter traced their descent to Secretariat
• Equestrian clothing company Ariat is named after Secretariat, whose spirit inspired the brand’s founders
• His first foal was a spotted half-Appaloosa, named First Secretary, after there were question marks over his sperm quality and the stud wanted to test his fertility via a reliable Appaloosa broodmare
• He featured on a 1999 US postage stamp

Secretariat in numbers

76% strike rate

31 lengths – winning margin for his record-breaking Belmont victory

16.2hh – height

$6.08m – his value at syndication

Fact file

Foaled: 30 March 1970, Meadow Farm, Virginia

Sire: Bold Ruler

Dam: Somethingroyal

Breeder: Christopher and Penny Chenery (Meadow Stable)

Owner: Meadow Stable

Trainer: Lucien Laurin

Primary jockey: Ron Turcotte

Groom: Eddie Sweat

Died: 4 October 1989

Cause of death: laminitis

Burial: Claiborne Farm, Kentucky; buried whole (an honour reserved for only a few thoroughbreds)

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A gold medal-winning rider broke three world records in three days, with a horse she was competing for the first time – shortly after she underwent kidney surgery and spent seven weeks in hospital.

British-born US para dressage rider Fiona Howard took a hat-trick of victories in the week nine CPEDI3* at the Adequan Global Dressage Festival in Florida, US, with Kate Shoemaker’s Vianne, whom she rode for the first time days before the competition.

Fiona, who won team and two individual gold medals at the Paris Paralympics with Diamond Dunes, also led the US team to victory in Florida, setting a Grade II record in each of the three classes she contested last week. Fiona was born here, and won junior European team bronze in reining for Britain in 2013.

She and the 10-year-old Vitalis mare scored 78.85% in Friday’s (6 March) CPEDI3* para grand prix A test, then 80.444% in the grand prix B test on Saturday, when all three judges awarded at least 80%. They scored a 10 from every judge for the stretching walk half circle.

On Sunday, Fiona and Vianne scored 84.93% in the Grade II freestyle to win by over 18%.

The mare has been competing up to international big tour level with her owner Kate, who is Fiona’s long-term coach.

“Because I’d never shown Vianne before, I didn’t know what to expect, but Kate told me that I can totally trust her, and I trust Kate,” said Fiona, who had spent seven weeks in hospital after she underwent surgery in December.

“I’m super grateful to Kate for the opportunity to ride this horse. It was an incredible week, and it’s all testament to her training, her coaching and the team of the three of us coming together. To walk away with three world records is incredible.”

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A new system that will provide a “safety net” for horses by connecting them with people who want to offer support “if they should ever fall on hard times down the road” has been launched by US Equestrian (USEF).

USEF’s “lifetime care contacts” initiative is a free and voluntary system designed to allow the governing body’s members to add themselves to a horse’s USEF record, signifying that if the horse ever needs financial assistance or a home, they would like to be contacted.

“We understand that many breeders, owners, athletes and grooms care deeply for the horses who have touched their lives and want to be there for them if they should ever fall on hard times down the road,” said USEF chief executive Bill Moroney.

“We had media and member inquiries about such a system last year and realised this is a way we can help.”

A USEF spokesperson added that the lifetime care system is designed to act “as a safety net for horses” – and the goal is to “facilitate connections as needed”.

“US Equestrian isn’t positioned to require anyone to reach out to a horse’s lifetime care contact, but we are in a position to make it easier for a horse in need to be connected with someone who has expressed an interest in helping them,” said Mr Moroney.

To be added as a lifetime care contact to a horse’s record – or to check if a horse has a contact on its file – individuals must be a USEF member or have a free fan account.

“USEF is unable to require that someone consult a lifetime care contact before moving, selling or transferring a horse,” said the spokesperson.

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Verdades, the former world number one US dressage horse who won double world silver and an Olympic team bronze with Laura Graves, has died aged 23.

“I never thought this day would come. You were invincible,” said his rider Laura Graves yesterday (22 December).

Laura’s parents Ron and Freddie bought Verdades (Diddy) as a foal from the Netherlands and Laura produced him up the levels. But this was not without its challenges; Diddy was known for his sensitive nature. He broke his jaw as a young horse when he caught a tooth on a metal bar and pulled back, and he was known to frighten himself when he flicked the arena surface onto his chest with his hooves.

“None of these things made sense, but the actual feeling you got from the day he was backed was like he was trained — he just came round and went forward and it was like he knew what to do,” said Laura, in a 2018 interview.

Laura and Diddy made their international grand prix debut in 2014, and the same year started training with Debbie McDonald, a turning point for the pair.

“I was riding a national grand prix. We missed all of our changes, the piaffes weren’t happening, I had no money and I was walking back to the barn feeling totally defeated,” said Laura.

“Debbie came running up behind me and said, ‘Laura, I want to train you.’ I had been taking some lessons with her but she was always so busy. She said: ‘Any time you want a lesson, you just call me.’ That was the day it all changed.”

Laura and Diddy made their championship debut at the 2014 World Equestrian Games in Caen, where the US team finished fourth. Two years later they were part of the team that won bronze at the Rio Olympics, and finished fourth individually.

The pair continued to go from strength to strength. They started 2017 with back-to-back World Cup wins on home soil, and that summer they helped the US team to victory in the Rotterdam Nations Cup leg, where Laura and Diddy won the grand prix and freestyle.

In April 2018 they posted a personal best 89.08% freestyle in the Paris World Cup leg, then went on to win team and individual silver at the World Equestrian Games, in Tryon. Following this, they became the first American combination to top the FEI dressage world rankings.

Laura and Diddy’s final international competition was the Gothenburg World Cup leg in April 2019, they were runners-up in the grand prix and freestyle, on 80.11% and 87.18% respectively.

“Thank you for choosing me and being my friend for 23 years. I don’t know what a day looks like without you,” said Laura.

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Kentucky Three-Day Event tickets are now available for the 2026 event, which will be held 23–26 April 2026, and you can get them at an ‘advance sale’ price.

If you’re heading to the Defender Kentucky Three-Day Event, you’ll need a ground admission ticket to access the Kentucky Horse Park grounds, the Kentucky Three-Day Event international trade fair and parking. If you want to watch the dressage or showjumping in the arena, you’ll also need a grandstand ticket. The details for all ticket types, along with current pricing, are below.

Kentucky Three-Day Event entry tickets

Early-bird tickets are no longer available, but you can still save money booking in advance with the current ‘advanced sale’ rates. These are valid until 12 March 2026. From 13 March, tickets will be sold at full event price.

Grandstand ticket prices vary dependent on seat position. All prices listed include taxes and fees. Group discounts (6–50) are available.

Dressage day 1 (Thursday 23 April)

Ground admission: $28

Grandstand ticket: From $25.80

Dressage day 2 (Friday 24 April)

Ground admission: $28

Grandstand ticket: From $25.80

Cross-country day (Saturday 25 April)

Ground admission: $55.50

Showjumping day (Sunday 26 April)

Ground admission: $51.10

Grandstand ticket: From $28

Kentucky International CSI5* tickets

Returning for the eighth year, the Kentucky International is the $400,000 CSI5* invitational grand prix showjumping class held as part of the Kentucky Three-Day Event.

Grandstand ticket: From $27.50

Two-day hospitality package: $291

Three-day hospitality package: $391

Kentucky Three-Day Event season tickets

Four-day tickets (Thursday to Sunday)

If you plan to attend the whole event, a four-day season ticket will cost $130 per person. These need to be bought in advance and they do not include grandstand seating tickets.

Three-day tickets (Friday to Sunday)

These three-day season tickets cost $123 per person. These need to be bought in advance and they do not include grandstand seating tickets.

Parking

Parking is included in the price of the ground admission tickets, but if you would like to add preferred parking to your experience, this will cost $261 and is valid across the whole event.

Kentucky Three-Day Event hospitality tickets

There are three different types of hospitality available – Five Star Club, Lexington Club and Kentucky Club – as well as the Membership Pavilion, which is new this year. Prices start at $361.

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US Equestrian (USEF) has announced a ban on certain styles of safety stirrups – a change the federation has described as “controversial”, but aimed at reducing “preventable” injuries.

The change is the result of a review of the USEF’s safety data, which noted incidents in which “riders were injured because their clothing or body got caught on a stirrup with an upward-pointing projection in the course of dismounting from their horse”.

The rule, which comes into force on 1 December, states: “No piece of equipment shall be attached to a saddle that has a rigid upward pointing projection, hook, or similar object capable of catching a rider’s clothing or person when dismounting, including stirrups”.

“We understand this change is controversial,” said USEF chief of sport David O’Connor.

“Although injuries from safety stirrups are statistically uncommon according to our data, they can be significant and are preventable with the selection of certain styles. We believe this change to the rule allows members to use a breakaway style stirrup if they prefer while reducing the risk of unintended harm.”

USEF has issued guidelines with images to help riders determine whether their stirrups comply. These show two examples of stirrups no longer allowed, open-side stirrups with elastic band – known as peacock stirrups – and those that are fully open on one side.

• View the guidelines

“Stirrups should be examined for compliance in their non-activated state (meaning any latch or releasing portion of the stirrup has not been triggered),” said a USEF spokesperson.

“In this state, the stirrup should either have closed branches (meaning there are no gaps in the outside frame of the stirrup). Or, if the branches are not closed and there is a gap in the outline of the stirrup, the gapping branch must sit inside the plane of the stirrup so there is no upward-facing, rigid projection.”

The spokesperson added that the federation is aware that tack and equipment are constantly evolving and new designs may come on to the market in the future.

“The illustrations shown in these guidelines are not intended to be a representation of all possible safety stirrup designs. A USEF task force will meet twice a year, in January and June, to review any new designs,” he said.

Manufacturers can submit products to USEF “for review to determine compliance” by completing a design review form.

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A 19-year-old quarter horse with a salivary stone in his cheek was the “model patient” for a veterinary hospital’s new CT scanner.

Joe Juice, who is a member of the teaching herd at the UC Davis Center for Equine Health (CEH) in the US, developed the hard mass just as the William R Pritchard Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital’s (VMTH) diagnostic imaging service was preparing to open a new imaging centre. Part of that preparation included training sessions imaging animals on the new equipment, including a large-bore equine computed tomography (CT) scanner.

“Four years ago, Joe Juice had a sialolith removed from the right side of his face at the VMTH,” a UC Davis spokesperson said. “He recovered quickly and returned to his role as a member of the CEH teaching herd.

“Fast forward to the summer of 2025, when Joe Juice’s CEH care team discovered a visible bump on his cheek and suspected another sialolith based on his history.”

Sialolithiasis, or the formation of salivary stones, is uncommon in horses. The hard masses usually start small, as items such as small pieces of food make their way into the salivary duct and grow as layers of calcium form around them. As they grow, they can cause inflammation, infection and difficulty eating, as well as potentially altering saliva production and affecting digestion.

A study reported recurrence of sialoliths after surgical removal in 24% of cases, the average time to recur noted as just under three years.

“Since Joe Juice was already in need of imaging to confirm the sialolith, his veterinary team decided to utilise him as one of the first training models for the new equine CT scanner,” the spokesperson said.

The scan showed a large oval structure, of some 2x3x6cm in the soft tissue of Joe Juice’s cheek.

“Joe Juice was a model patient for our standing CT training,” said Mathieu Spriet, director of imaging services at the VMTH. “His sialolith was definitively diagnosed with the standing CT, giving surgeons a clear and concise assessment of the growth. This equipment’s ability to determine injuries and disease without full anesthesia is already proving to be tremendously valuable for our patients.”

The sialolith was removed, under standing sedation, by Scott Katzman, Stephanie Ortiz and David Orozco-Lopez, and Jo Juice was able to go home to the CEH shortly afterwards.

“Joe’s case is a great example of the importance of routine check-ups for your animals,” said Dr Katzman. “His first sialolith was discovered during a routine procedure several years ago, and this second one was discovered early because his care team routinely examines him for abnormalities. It’s also a great example of what we’re able to do with sedated standing procedures, instead of full anesthesia.”

The new equine CT scanner allows more diagnostic capabilities for horses and other large animals, the UC Davis spokesperson said, adding that the previous machine could only scan the limbs and heads of fully anesthetised horses. This one is integrated onto a platform that can be moved vertically and horizontally, so horses’ heads and limbs can be scanned under standing sedation, and it allows scanning of the stifles, pelvis and entire vertebral column.

“We’re so grateful for the imaging, anesthesia, and surgery expertise at the VMTH,” said CEH director Carrie Finno. “Joe Juice has been a star member of our herd for 17 years. He is one of our go-to horses when it comes to teaching veterinary students. His kindness and patience help them learn about everything from lameness exams to cardiology.”

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Former Olympic dressage rider Cesar Parra has been suspended for 15 years for repeatedly abusing multiple horses in his care in a “deeply unsettling case”.

The FEI Tribunal has announced today (6 August) that US rider Parra, 62, has been sanctioned for “actions violating the principles of horse welfare”. He had been provisionally suspended since February last year; H&H reported at the time that US Equestrian (USEF) had been sent video clips “documenting [Parra’s] abhorrent abusive training techniques” at his private training yard in Florida.

“US Equestrian had received multiple allegations along with numerous videos and photographs showing Parra engaging in abusive behaviour and training methods involving several horses,” an FEI spokesperson said.

“The FEI, in coordination with US Equestrian, launched an immediate investigation into the allegations that Parra had repeatedly and deliberately subjected the majority, if not all, of the horses he owned and trained to recurring and serious abuse over a number of years.”

The long-running investigation involved reviewing “extensive video and photographic material”, and statements from multiple witnesses. The FEI initiated formal disciplinary proceedings against Parra in May 2024 on three charges: abuse of horse, conduct that brings the FEI and/or equestrian sport and the FEI into disrepute and breach of the FEI code of conduct on the welfare of the horse.

“This case is deeply unsettling, not only because of the recurring nature of the abuse, but also because of the number of horses affected,” said FEI legal director Mikael Rentsch.

“That such behaviour came from a top-level athlete makes it all the more troubling. Our athletes are expected to represent and uphold the highest standards of horsemanship. Horse welfare is the foundation, not an add-on, of equestrian sport.

“The investigation demanded significant time and resources due to the volume and complexity of the evidence, which had to be meticulously verified. The 15-year suspension sends a clear message that regardless of profile or position, those who violate the principles of horse welfare will face serious consequences.”

Cesar Parra represented Colombia at the 1999 Pan American Games, the 2004 Olympics and the 2002 and 2006 World Equestrian Games. He switched nationalities in 2008 and competed for the US at the 2011 Pan American Games.

Rule change

A USEF spokesperson said that when the federation received the complaints about Parra in early 2024, it did not have a rule allowing it to take action on welfare issues outside sanctioned competitions. It referred the case to the FEI, which did have such a rule, and has since passed a change expanding its jurisdiction to “unethical treatment that occurs on or off the grounds of a federation competition”.

“As a federation, we have strengthened our rules to ensure we are within our jurisdiction to pursue disciplinary action for behaviour and actions endangering horse safety and welfare, both on and off competition grounds,” said USEF CEO Bill Moroney. “Parra’s documented and repeated behavior has no place in our sport, and we will ensure the enforcement of the FEI Tribunal’s decision. We appreciate the FEI’s diligence and expertise in pursuing this matter.”

The FEI said Parra’s suspension, from all national and international competition, related activity or training of FEI-registered riders or horses until 1 February 2039, is part of “one of the most significant sanctions issued by the FEI Tribunal”. He has also been fined CHF 15,000 (£13,947) and ordered to pay CHF 10,000 in legal costs.

H&H has contacted Parra.

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Tamie Smith’s five-star hero Mai Baum signed off from his stellar career with a win at his final event.

Rebecca Farm in Montana had been earmarked for Mai Baum’s swansong and the 19-year-old gelding waved a glorious farewell to his sporting career with victory in the CCI4*-S at The Event. The pair added only time-faults to their dressage score of 22, sealing the win before a retirement ceremony after prize giving on Sunday (20 July).

Alex Ahearn, who owns “Lexus” with her parents Eric Markell and Ellen Ahearn, rode him in the lap of honour and the retirement ceremony. His saddle was then removed and a wreath placed around his neck, before he posed for photos with fans and enjoyed a stroll with groom Alyssa Dobrotin.

The north west of the US and Rebecca Farm have been a major part of Mai Baum’s career – this win was his third victory at the venue – and Tamie said that it felt “very fitting that he have his last hurrah in the very place he began”.

“He has nothing to prove and deserves to retire as healthy as he is. Lexus isn’t a commodity to us, he is our family, and he deserves to finish his competition career with a massive party,” said Tamie, when his retirement plans were announced.

“Mai Baum has been my magic carpet and I feel so privileged for all he and I learned together. He is the horse that put me on the map, helped me earn that pinque coat, and win medals at many team championships and Nations Cups.”

She added that although it was his last competitive outing, but he will stay in work when he returns home to California as “he loves to bounce around”.

Michele Pestl and Ellen Ahearn found Mai Baum at the Munich Auction in Germany and imported him to the US. He started his career with Alex, who initially worked for Michele in Washington state and who then later moved with the horse to Tamie’s base in Temecula.

Alex and Mai Baum made their international debut at Rebecca Farm back in 2013, finishing ninth in the CCI1* (now CCI2*-L), and she produced him to two-star (now three-star) before Tamie took on the ride.

Winning the Defender Kentucky Three-Day Event in 2023 was a career-defining moment in his and Tamie’s journey. Their CV also boasts team gold at the 2019 Pan American Games, world team silver in 2022, and ninth at Badminton.

The gelding finished in the top 10 on 27 of his 35 international starts, including 14 wins and seven other podium finishes. He also recorded a ninth place finish at Kentucky CCI5* in 2021 and travelled to Tokyo as the alternate for the US Olympic team the same year.

“I am very grateful to have had the journey we’ve had together along with Eric, Ellen and Alex,” said Tamie. “It’s been one hell of a ride, from the highest of highs to the lowest of lows and a lot in between.

“But what has been the best of this amazing journey has been the many places we’ve travelled to and the many people we have met throughout the years. Lexus and I broke through many glass ceilings to achieve what we did. I think it’s a testament to his heart and my perseverance, as well as his amazing team who helped all along the way.

“I owe so much to Mai Baum and his family. I owe so much to everyone who has believed in me throughout the years and I can’t wait for the next chapter.”

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US Equestrian (USEF) has introduced hair testing and changes to protocols – as it is thought people are using euthanasia drugs as calmers.

USEF has approved a change to allow horses’ hair, as well as blood and urine, to be tested from 1 July.

“Hair testing allows regulators to detect certain prohibited substances such as barbiturates (including the euthanasia drug) more readily and for a considerably longer time than blood or urine,” a USEF spokesperson said.

The board also approved a modification to rules on horse collapses at hunter, jumper and hunter/jumper competitions, to “ensure our equine partners receive appropriate care and are fit to compete before they return to the ring after an unexplained collapse”.

“This will address concerns about the impermissible administration of substances and ensure there is sufficient time for a licensed vet to examine the horse and evaluate their fitness to compete,” a USEF spokesperson explained.

This means, from 1 July, any horse or pony who collapses at a hunter, jumper or hunter/jumper event may not compete for seven days, and then only once a vet confirms it has been examined and is fit to compete.

“We have received reports suggesting that people may be administering barbiturates (including the euthanasia drug) to achieve a perceived performance advantage by quieting a horse,” USEF chief veterinary officer Stephen Schumacher told H&H.

“While these reports are limited, the two changes are designed to work in concert to protect our horses and prevent this kind of abuse.”

Detecting any of the banned substances will mean the trainer and other responsible parties will face sanctions.

“A sick part of the industry”

Marjory Berkache, who runs a boutique horse-selling yard in Florida, said she was disgusted to hear of the need for this rule – but not surprised.

“It’s normalised; people will look you in the eye and say they do this,” she told H&H. “That’s the sick part of the industry; they don’t see an issue with it.”

She said she does not understand why herbal calmers, many of which have no negative effect on horses, are banned; she believes if they were allowed, the edge could be taken off sharp horses safely.

“But I think the only way we’re going to get away from this is to profoundly change the judging criteria,” she said.

“If you change it to, ‘We’re going to sanction this look where the horses look drugged’ – there’s no question, you watch those horses and they don’t look like your horse or my horse – and instead reward expression, horses who are a bit ‘up’, that’s what will get you the money, ribbons and prestige, and people will stop injecting the drugs. I think that’s the only way it will work.”

Marjory said there is so much money involved – a lower-level hunter might sell for $150,000 (£111,000), a juniors’ horse for over $1m or a successful one leased for $300,000 a year – there is motivation for unscrupulous people to find a “quick fix”.

“If people have zero ethics, they’ll find a new way to cheat,” she said. “For the welfare of horses, change the sport then people will have no incentive to use those methods.”

She added that some very wealthy clients are just billed for “meds” and do not query what these are; if more riders were to ask, and take a stand, trainers might change. If punishments for riders and trainers were stricter, it would help.

“It would only take one or two very wealthy clients to be banned for a year or two, or five; make it painful enough, and I’m not saying everyone would stop using drugs but it would be a wake-up call. They’d be so scared of losing clients and jobs, the risk would be too big,” she said.

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State officials in Delaware, US, are investigating and working with the community after the reported deaths of 16 horses were connected to contaminated feed.

Vets in central Kent county reported neurological disease and deaths in horses at a number of properties, in four weeks in April and May.

The Delaware Department of Agriculture (DDA) released a statement last week (30 May) to notify horse owners of the issue.

“Many of the cases have been associated with feeding a corn-based feed,” the statement said. “Anyone using feed purchased in April is encouraged to contact their supplier to see if they are aware of any related concerns.

“Symptoms from equine cases were recorded by area veterinarians between 22 April and 17 May. The office of the state veterinarian and a local equine veterinarian submitted three samples of feed fed to affected horses for toxin analysis. All samples returned with levels of a fungal toxin called fumonisin. The levels in the samples significantly exceeded five parts per million (ppm), the maximum level recommended by FDA [the US Food and Drug Administration].”

Fumonisin is a toxin produced by mould that grows on corn; contamination levels vary and are affected by weather at harvesting time. Horses and rabbits are particularly sensitive to fumonisin, which can cause “softening” of the brain and neurological signs including a wobbly gait and progression to recumbency and death.

The samples submitted in this case had levels ranging from 31-101 ppm; a safe, quality feed should not have levels exceeding one ppm.

A spokesperson for the DDA told H&H the impact has been concentrated in the Amish community, and much of the information the department has gathered is second-hand, via vets and word of mouth.

“So we consider the number [of fatalities] an estimate and continue to interact with area vets and other stakeholders to gather information,” he said. “There have been no new reports of illness or fatalities since 17 May so, while we are still continuing to investigate, DDA is confident that the source was localised and that suspect product has been removed from commerce. There has been significant cooperation and communication within the community in response to this incident and DDA continues to work with the community, FDA and others to protect the health of horses and other livestock.

“The investigation is focused on preventing further impact from this incident but will also identify steps to be taken to prevent future issues.”

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A tiny foal who was found unable to nurse as she had somehow smashed her lower jaw on both sides was saved by expert vets – who bolted external plates on to her face.

Breeder Amanda Johnson was confronted by a “frightening scene” in her yard, in California, US, late February; she found her five-day-old filly Quincy with a bloody face and her lower jaw hanging, broken on both sides.

Amanda called her vet, who recommended Amanda take the foal to the University of California, Davis (UC Davis) veterinary hospital.

When Quincy arrived, vets found that other than the obvious injury, she was “alert, responsive, and in good health”.

“X-rays showed complete displaced fractures of both of her mandibles,” a UC Davis spokesperson said. “The injury left the foal unable to nurse, so a nasogastric tube was placed for feeding. Faculty surgeon Sandra Valdez manually reduced the fractures and bandaged the wound for short-term stabilisation until surgery.”

A CT scan helped classify the fractures and allowed the surgeons to plan their approach.

“After discussion with Amanda Johnson, it was determined that the fractures would be stabilised with external fixators,” the spokesperson said. “Faculty surgeon Scott Katzman and surgery residents Bridget Ratliff and David Orozco-Lopez reduced the fractures and placed locking compression plates on the exterior of her face.

“Quincy recovered well from anesthesia and was able to nurse just one day after surgery. She was hospitalised for the following week before being discharged to continue her recovery at home. X-rays at her two re-check appointments showed appropriate healing, and the fixators were removed five weeks after surgery.”

Amanda said she was pleased with the foal’s recovery and “looks forward to her foal’s bright future”.

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Former NFL superstar Vernon Davis has moved from American football to equestrianism, opening a training and livery yard – to honour the legacy of his late brother.

Vernon, who won the Super Bowl 50 with the Denver Broncos in 2016, has set up DHG Equestrian, in Waldorf, Maryland, a “full-service facility where passion for horses meets excellence in training and care”.

A spokesperson for Vernon said the principles that “fuelled his sporting career” – discipline, purpose and passion – are now the basis of his new venture, run with his expert team.

“As an athlete, I’ve always believed in the power of physical connection, mental strength, and dedication,” Vernon said. “The equestrian world embodies all those values and more.

“With DHG Equestrian, we’re inspiring and empowering riders of all ages and backgrounds through access, education, and elite horsemanship. Whether it’s a young rider chasing competitive dreams or a family discovering the joy of horses, our doors are open.”

The spokesperson said the venture is committed to harmony between horse and rider, achieved through care and training, and “ethical, compassionate care, treating every horse with kindness and respect”.

He added: “DHG Equestrian is more than just a business venture – it’s a deeply personal tribute to his late brother, Vontae. Guided by his memory, the brand is dedicated to fostering healing, empowerment, and personal growth through the transformative power of the equestrian experience.”

Vontae Davis was also an NFL star who was then committed to creating opportunities for underprivileged young people. He died unexpectedly, aged 35, last year, and a “chance opportunity” to buy the Maryland property came about shortly afterwards. DHG Equestrian is a tribute to Vontae, who “dreamed of creating a space for animals”.

“As I step into the equestrian world, I do so with Vontae in my heart,” Vernon said. “He was a quiet force – disciplined, thoughtful, and deeply committed to personal growth. DHG is a tribute to that energy and a way to honour his legacy and share that spirit with others. It’s a space for healing, for learning, and for discovering what’s possible when you build trust – between horse and rider, and within yourself.”

Vernon told H&H he walked through the property and “knew it was perfect”.

“If he was here, he’d find joy in this property,” he said. “DHG honours his legacy by fostering healing and empowerment.”

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A mare who was rescued in a “significantly malnourished” state with an uncertain future has become a “rocket pony” who loves jumping and has become a family member.

As reported by Horse Network, Ulyssa was seized by law enforcement officers in the US in March 2023, from a home where she had been living alone in “less than ideal” conditions. Concerns had been raised about her welfare, and when her condition deteriorated, a vet examined her and gave her a body condition score of two out of nine.

The 13-year-old coloured mare went to Days End Farm Horse Rescue (DEFHR) in Woodbine, Maryland, where she “quickly thrived under DEFHR’s expert care and blossomed into a bright, engaging, and personable pony”.

DEFHR trainer Leigha Schrader said 13.2hh Ulyssa had little to no experience under saddle so she restarted her from the beginning.

“I loved working with Ulyssa and nicknamed her ‘Rocket Pony’,” Leigha said. “She was keen and always down for adventures and learning new skills.

“She was forward-thinking, and whenever I start ponies under saddle, I have kids in mind. Safety is my priority, and I always want to give ponies a solid foundation to help them succeed as safe, fun mounts for younger riders.”

Leigha worked with Ulyssa, slowly introducing her to jumping.

“She had scope and a knack for the work over fences,” she said. “I knew she would make a great pony jumper, eventer, or Pony Club mount. I started taking her offsite as much as I could to get her used to different environments. From schooling shows to cross-country to trail rides, I wanted to prepare Ulyssa for a competitive home and find a junior rider or small adult that was as bold as she was; someone looking for their next adventure.”

Teenager Samantha Everett and her mother Amy spotted Ulyssa’s adoption listing titled “Meet Rocket Pony” online, and “fell in love with her right off the bat”. They drove five hours to meet her, in December 2023.

“The search for a perfect horse was a challenge as we looked at many,” said Amy. “When Samantha rode Ulyssa, it was like they were meant to be together. Her size, markings, and disposition were what sold us; she was the perfect pony for our family.”

Leigha said she was proud to have handed over Ulyssa’s reins to Samantha, 14, in January 2024, adding: “They have been having a blast together!”

Samantha said Ulyssa is a very forward pony, who “loves her job”, and her favourite thing is jumping but she also likes hacking out.

“Ulyssa also loves her home and her herd, as well as jumping, eating, and rolling,” she added. “She has made an impact on our family with her friendly hugs and fist bumps with her muzzle. We thoroughly enjoy her company and look forward to spending many more years with her.

“DEFHR is an amazing organization that really cares about its horses. I would recommend them to anyone looking to adopt.”

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World number five showjumper Ben Maher took a major victory in the US just after he broke his foot in a freak – not horse-related – accident.

The three-time Olympic gold medallist rode Point Break to win the Adequan WEF Challenge in week 12 of the Winter Equestrian Festival at Wellington International in Florida, USA.

The class was on 27 March – two days after he fractured his foot.

“I opened the back of the car and a heavy piece of machinery fell on it,” said Ben, whose broken bones are in alignment. He is wearing a riding boot with a supportive synthetic sole to allow him to compete.

Ben and Pamela Wright and Charlotte Rossetter’s 11-year-old Action-Breaker stallion, who flew to the US the previous Sunday (23 March) and returned to Europe the day after the class, were late to go in the 16-strong jump-off.

Six of the world’s top 10 riders were vying for the honours in the $116,100 (£90,000) class, in which Ben beat home rider Kent Farrington with Toulayna into second by 1.15sec.

“I didn’t watch Kent today; I’ve made that mistake a couple of times this season already,” said Ben.

“I think the distances were quite forward for me; I was always moving and always going forward. Everything came up nicely today and it was great to get a win on board for the team.

“It’s sometimes the timing, I’ve had a lot of second places with Enjeu [de Grisien] and Dallas [Vegas Batilly] in the grands prix here, so sometimes you feel you just need that one result to change the mentality of the team and give us all a little hope.”

Point Break was due to return to Europe with plenty of time before the World Cup Final (2-6 April), in which he and Ben and Robert Whitaker and Vermento are the British representatives.

Harry Charles also had a week 12 WEF win; he and Stall Zet and his father Peter’s 12-year-old Sherlock won the five-star 1.40m speed class by almost six seconds.

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British-born US Paralympic gold medallist Fiona Howard has set a new grade II freestyle world record.

On Sunday (9 March) 27-year-old Fiona, ranked fifth in the world para dressage rankings, scored 83.27% at the Adequan Global Dressage Festival, in Wellington, Florida, with her triple Paris gold medallist Diamond Dunes.

The test, to the music from Avatar, surpassed the 80% personal best scored by the pair in the freestyle in Paris which helped the USA secure team gold.

“It was our first competition after the Paralympics, so I just wanted to get back out there and back in the groove,” said Fiona, who also scored a new 77.30% personal best in the grand prix A test on Friday (7 March).

“Dunes gives so much every single time I come in the ring. He’s never shown here, so it was a new ring, but he tried so hard for me. He’s pretty special.”

Fiona, whose mother is American and father is British, was born and raised in England. She competed on British reining teams as a junior, before immigrating to the USA in 2016 and taking up para dressage in 2021.

Fiona and 12-year-old gelding Diamond Dunes, owned by the Kasselmann family, made their international debut together last March after Francois Kasselmann suggested Dunes would make a good para horse. The pair have gone from strength to strength, winning 13 out of 15 starts.

“We were looking, but not actively. I had another horse in Germany that we were qualifying for Paris, but we went to take a look,” said Fiona.

“His brain was so good, and he wanted to do what was right. I fell in love with Dunes from that day. Francois was really generous to let me try to qualify him for Paris and he got better and better and better. It’s pretty awesome to have a personal best in Paris and then come out here in March and have a world record. He’s amazing.”

Fiona was accompanied in Wellington by her Paris teammates Roxanne Trunnell and Rebecca Hart, along with her support network.

“It was a special show for me to have so many people there,” said Fiona.

“A lot of my family lives in England, so they’re super far away but I have an incredible team here. It gave me an extra boost because I wanted to make them proud. It’s special to be able to share these moments with them all.”

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Olympic rider Doug Payne has called time on his eventing career and switched to showjumping.

Doug was part of the US eventing team at the Tokyo Olympics with Vandiver, the now 21-year-old three-time four-star winner whom Doug piloted at five-star, and the highest-placed US eventing competitor at the Games (16th).

His top placings at the highest level included third at Kentucky 2022 with Quantum Leap and fifth at the same event with Vandiver in 2019. Doug had multiple top-10 finishes with both horses at five-star.

He was also part of the side that won team gold at the 2019 Pan American Games, where he finished fourth individually with Vandiver.

“Along with the new year comes new experiences and a wrap on my eventing career. It’s been an incredible lifetime journey taking me places I couldn’t have dreamed,” said Doug, adding that he is “struck by the support of countless people”.

Doug calculated that he has jumped more than 34,600 cross-country fences in competition in his 1,385 career starts. He counts 157 wins and more than 138 hours in the dressage arena.

“Looking forward my goals remain, and they are to represent the USA, now in the jumping arena,” he said.

“We’re lucky enough to have three FEI horses at the moment, two of which jumped their first CSI5*s in 2024. In addition, we are using the same development pathway as we have for eventing, with a bunch of younger horses with exceptional promise.

“I certainly can’t thank all who have helped me, but I can’t thank you enough. Most importantly all of the horses that have stood by me and gave their all. Now looking forward to the future!”

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US five-star rider Andrew McConnon has been provisionally suspended by the FEI following allegations of horse abuse.

Today (9 January) the FEI said it had opened disciplinary proceedings against Andrew following allegations involving “numerous horses over an extensive period of time”.

In September H&H reported that USEF had passed relevant reports and materials regarding alleged horse abuse to the FEI – and at the time the FEI confirmed it was investigating but could not provide any further information.

The FEI case status table, updated today, cites violations of the general regulations: abuse of horse, conduct that brings the FEI and/or equestrian sport into disrepute, and breach of the FEI code of conduct on the welfare of the horse as reasons for the suspension.

“Mr McConnon has been provisionally suspended, effective from the date of notification (8 January 2025), meaning that he is suspended from participation in any events or activities related to the FEI and/or any national federation, in whatever capacity, as long as his provisional suspension has not been lifted by the FEI Tribunal,” said an FEI spokesperson, adding that “for the avoidance of any doubt”, training FEI athletes and or FEI horses – at FEI events or anywhere else – is considered an FEI-related activity.

“Persons are entitled to train their own horses at their own facilities or at private facilities (i.e. not linked to any FEI or national events/trainings’ facilities).”

The FEI spokesperson said that to “ensure the integrity of the ongoing legal proceedings”, no further comment will be made.

A US Eventing Association (USEA) spokesperson said the organisation will be issuing a “reciprocal suspension” pending the final outcome of the FEI investigation.

“We support the decision made by the FEI to thoroughly investigate this matter and the USEA will continue to cooperate with both US Equestrian and the FEI, the governing bodies that hold responsibility for investigations and disciplinary proceedings under the rules of our sport,” said USEA chief executive Rob Burke.

The USEA spokesperson added that “matters such as these require time to fully investigate” and USEA will provide updates as they become available.

Last year Andrew finished 17th at the Kentucky Three-Day CCI5* with Wakita 54 and 23rd on Ferrie’s Cello. He and Wakita 54 were 17th at Burghley 2024.

H&H has attempted to contact Andrew for comment.

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Headpieces that do not have continuous padding across the poll will no longer be allowed in some US dressage competitions, in a decision described as “baffling” by one manufacturer.

Under the US Equestrian’s (USEF) rule change that came into force on 1 September, the crownpiece (headpiece) may be padded and may have elastic inserts, but “must be smooth and continuous across the poll, and rectangular or in the same shape as the crownpiece”. Padding must not extend 1.5cm beyond the dimensions of the crownpiece.

The rule applies to USEF and US Dressage Federation-licensed dressage competitions. A USEF spokesperson said athletes competing in CDIs would be required to follow FEI rules for permitted saddlery/equipment. And an FEI spokesperson confirmed to H&H that there are “no specifications in the FEI regulations regarding the shape and size of the padding of the crownpiece”.

A USEF spokesperson told H&H that the dressage committee put forward the rule and members were able to comment on this in spring before it was approved. The rule was proposed by USEF’s rules working group in “reference to studies being conducted around the application of pressure of the crownpieces to the poll”.

“The contact area of the crownpiece is important for dissipating the force applied to the horse’s head by the weight of the bridle, especially when using a double bridle, which is considerably heavier than a snaffle bridle,” said Hilary Clayton, USEF committee member and vet at Michigan State University.

Ms Clayton is a biomechanics expert and has published seven books and more than 200 peer-reviewed manuscripts in equine research.

“Ideally, the headpiece should distribute the force evenly over a large area. This is accomplished by having a wide headpiece lined by a continuous layer of padding. If the headpiece itself or the padding beneath it are incomplete, poll pressure increases.”

The USEF spokesperson confirmed to H&H that the rule is currently only in dressage – and does not apply to the dressage phase in eventing. But she added that this does not mean “it can’t change in the future or that other disciplines won’t follow suit with a similar rule”.

A WOW Saddles spokesperson said the company “cannot understand the ruling” and described it as “baffling”. WOW has redesigned a USEF-compliant interchangeable headpiece in response.

“As designers of tack, and horse owners and riders, we have never seen a horse go badly in a headpiece that relieves the mane and nuchal ligament. Their concern is that the edges of the pads cause pressure points. However, the mane sticks up from the natural curvature of the poll and this in turn makes all headpieces, that do not have the relief, apply more pressure on the mane or bridle groove,” he said.

“Countless bridles are now made with nuchal relief; this is not fashion, it is because through anecdotal and scientific evidence we have learnt that horses prefer the pressure not to be on the support structure of the spine.”

The PS of Sweden Nirak bridle headpiece is not permitted under the new rule, and PS of Sweden chief assortment officer Jenny Eliasson told H&H that “our commitment to horse welfare comes first in every design decision”.

“With the recent update to the USEF rules in dressage, we immediately moved to ensure our bridles remain both compliant and true to our principles of comfort and support,” she said.

“In response to the new regulations, we are introducing a new headpiece that meets the requirements while retaining our high standard of anatomical comfort. This is already in production and will be released in the coming months.

“It will be available with the Nirak bridle and as a separate item, allowing riders to update their current bridles easily.

“We remain dedicated to supporting both horses and riders with innovative, welfare-focused solutions that align with the latest standards.”

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Towels don’t fit through donkey bowels, as vets treating a miniature filly found out.

Specialists at the Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine at Virginia Tech, US, had to operate on three-month-old Harper, as it turned out she had eaten a whole towel.

A spokesperson for the hospital said Lexi Tarpy, manager of Stone Ridge Stables, brought Harper in after she developed a fever and showed signs of colic.

“We brought her in here because our vet said it was an emergency situation,” Lexi said. “Come to find out when they went in for surgery, she ate a towel — an entire towel.”

Vets performed an exploratory celiotomy, a surgical procedure to enter the abdomen, and removed two pieces of towel that were blocking Harper’s colon.

“Removing foreign bodies from the digestive tract of an equine like a horse or donkey is uncommon,” said Elaine Claffey, assistant clinical professor of large-animal surgery.

“They’re usually pretty good at sticking to the things that they should normally eat; we don’t do as many foreign body removals as a small animal veterinarian would because dogs, as we know, are indiscriminate eaters and eat all sorts of things that they shouldn’t.”

Harper’s condition improved quickly after the surgery but her dam Daisy then went downhill.

“Daisy arrived the day after surgery to allow Harper to nurse and put them back together,” Dr Claffey said. “But she developed a couple of fevers and had some medical issues, developed a little bit of enteritis, which is inflammation in the intestines.

“When we recognised she had these additional illnesses, our internal medicine team took over and took primary care for her case, which was great, because we really needed their expertise for her.”

Daisy was treated with IV fluids, antibiotics and anti-inflammatory medication and both she and Harper made a full recovery.

“It’s been hard because we couldn’t come up and see Harper and Daisy so often but they were in great hands, and we’re ready for them to come home,” Lexi said.

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The Olympic and world medal-winning dressage horse Suppenkasper has bowed out of competition aged 16 to enjoy retirement with his owners.

Akiko Yamazaki and Four Winds Farm’s KWPN gelding “Mopsie”, who helped the US to Olympic team silver in 2021 and world silver in 2018 with Steffan Peters, is one of the most successful horses in US dressage history.

“He earned the viral moniker Rave Horse for his popular freestyle from Tokyo 2020, becoming a highlight for viewers tuning into the Games,” a spokesperson for US Equestrian said. “In total, Suppenkasper competed in more than 80 international competitions with Steffan and earned 59 victories in grand prix CDI competition.”

Steffan said it had been a “true honour” to be part of Mopsie’s life and career.

“It’s hard to explain how much appreciation I have for Akiko for purchasing him eight years ago and then supporting us to compete around the world together,” he said.

“The historic silver medal in Tokyo was, of course, the highlight of our career together. For me, it will always be one of the proudest moments of our partnership – to have Mopsie deliver for our team that night in Tokyo.

“The individual victories were amazing, but I always felt the proudest delivering for our team, and it meant the world when we accomplished that in Tokyo. Mopsie became the Rave Horse; that’s still special to me because he connected so many people. They recognise him and his accomplishments, and there’s really no reason to mention my name, but it’s Mopsie’s character and energy which made people gravitate to him.

“The journey we’ve shared together is quite hard to put into words, but thoughts of gratitude, thankfulness, and friendship come to mind, both for Mopsie and Akiko, and I’m so privileged to have been a part of this journey with them.”

Steffan and Mopsie also represented the US at the 2022 World Championships, where the team finished sixth, and the Paris Olympics.

Akiko said she had been watching Mopsie “basking in the sun” from his window.

“As we mark 20 years together as a team, the time has come to end this amazing journey and it is with deep gratitude to Steffen, the horses and everyone that has been part of this journey that we now end this excellent adventure and long ride with this team,” she said.

“With Steffen as our rider, and with a number of horses, including Lombardi, Ravel, Legolas, Rosamunde, and Suppenkasper, our team has travelled around the world and had the honour of representing the USA in multiple international championships and events.”

A USEF spokesperson added: “Four Winds Farm and Yamazaki’s support of US dressage has produced tremendous international success over the years, with the highlight of the team silver medal from the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, which Suppenkasper and Peters played a significant role in helping to secure. Suppenkasper will now spend his days at Four Winds Farm in Woodside, California.”

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Brands who sponsored or supported Andrew McConnon have been severing ties with the US five-star eventer, after it was confirmed he is being investigated for alleged horse abuse.

US Equestrian (USEF) confirmed that it had passed relevant reports and materials to the FEI, which is looking into the matter. USEF said it will enforce any disciplinary action taken by the FEI.

“USEF takes all reports of equine abuse very seriously and prioritises the safeguarding of horse welfare,” a spokesperson said. “We received an anonymous report at the beginning of the summer regarding US eventing athlete, Andrew McConnon, and were sent materials showing abusive behaviours shortly after the report was made. After determining USEF did not have jurisdiction over the matter because it did not involve misconduct at a USEF competition, USEF promptly referred the matter to the FEI, where it is under investigation.

“The FEI’s jurisdiction and ability to pursue disciplinary action is broader regarding reported incidents of animal abuse occurring outside of licensed competitions.”

The spokesperson added that “abuse in any form, at any time, is unacceptable in our sport”, and that the USEF board in June approved a rule change extending USEF’s jurisdiction to cover reports of abuse out of competition. The rule will come into force on 1 December.

A spokesperson for the FEI told H&H: “The FEI takes all allegations of horse abuse very seriously and has been made aware of the allegations against Andrew McConnon. We are currently investigating the matter and can therefore not provide any further information or comments at this point in time.”

Andrew was given a $50,000 (£38,379) grant at the US Eventing Association year-end awards last December, and competed at Defender Burghley Horse Trials last week with Wakita 54, finishing in 27th place. Since news of the investigation broke, US equestrian businesses Gallops Saddlery, Equine Bonnets, Hound & Hare and Correct Connect will no longer sponsor him. World Equestrian Brands said he would “no longer be part of our trainer team”.

H&H has approached Andrew for comment.

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Personal best scores by Fiona Howard in grade II on Diamond Dunes (80%) and Rebecca Hart in grade III on Floratina (78.57%), added to the score already set by teammate Roxanne Trunnell in grade I on Fan Tastico H, to secure team gold for the USA at the Paris Paralympics.

But even if they hadn’t won team gold, this still would’ve been the USA’s most successful Paralympics ever. Two more golds on the final day took their total tally to seven medals overall – five golds, one silver and one bronze. That absolutely smashed their previous Games best of two golds and a bronze achieved at Atlanta 1996.

It’s also only three years since they won their first-ever Paralympic team medal, with bronze in Tokyo.

Their meteoric rise over the last three Games is more than impressive – it’s unprecedented.

That’s why, once all the medals had been dished out, we spoke to the athletes and the coaches to learn the secrets behind their success, and one name kept cropping up – Michel Assouline.

Michel has been US Equestrian’s head coach for para dressage since 2017. But before that he spent 12 years as head coach to the British team who were dominant during that period.

“I think it all comes from Michel,” said Roxanne following her team test. “He got us into shape, and all his experience has helped us.”

Fiona agrees, adding that their programme has been revamped since the 2016 Games in Rio.

“He’s been wonderful in developing our athletes and our infrastructure,” she explained. “We’ve always had talented people, it’s just a matter of structuring our programmes so we can get the best out of everyone.

“It’s also his belief in us, he’s always like ‘You can do this’, and I think that’s such a great quality to have in a coach and it’s passed on through our whole team. We all support each other, and we push each other, and we’re there for each other in the ups and downs.”

Michel explained that he’d used the experience he gained in Britain to re-develop the para dressage programme in the USA.

“When I took the job I knew we had a hard climb because when I started we were 12th in the world,” he said.

“But I like challenges, and I had done GB for so long, and winning gold after gold after gold, I thought it’s time to move on.

“It’s been a slow process, we won some medals at the World Championships in 2018, and then in Tokyo we got the team bronze – you could see that we were just inch-by-inch getting there.

“I’ve developed a completely new strategy, we had to revisit everything. I’ve had to develop a coaching programme specifically for para coaches because they didn’t have that before – as well as judges, training camps, and so on.

“I learnt a lot with ParalympicsGB, I worked really well with the world class performance director Will Connell. I was very lucky to be selected for an elite coach course with UK Sport and I’ve also got a sports degree back in France so I knew I had all the elements in my head to build a plan to give us the best chance ever.”

Michel added that as well as the long term redevelopment of the USA’s para infrastructure, he also had a shorter three-month plan specifically for the Paris Games. The team were based in Europe, competing at CPEDI3*s together at Hagen, Fontainebleau and Mannheim, with their scores climbing with each outing.

“This was important, because in the USA we’re so isolated,” Michel explained. “There are not a lot of riders over there and they were all competing against themselves, so there’s nobody else to compare with.

“I think we have maybe 18 [international] para riders in the whole country, it’s a very small pool. But I’ve always felt that they have a really good equestrian culture and there was a good base to work with.”

As well as new training programmes, the USA has been able to effectively source the horsepower needed to win medals. Just as their able-bodied counterparts did, Team USA invested in several new combinations for Paris – but with significantly more success.

Roxanne and Fan Tastico H have only been together since March, the same month Fiona and now triple-gold-medallist Diamond Dunes made their international debut. Kate Shoemaker made her debut in February with Vianne, who is a former finalist at the World Breeding Championships in Ermelo, while Rebecca teamed up with Floratina – who is a former able-bodied small tour Pan American Games medallist – in 2023.

“It takes a lot of travelling to find them,” Michel explained. “To tell the truth my wife Mette – who was the one to find Athene Lindebjerg for the British team and several other Lady Joseph Trust horses – is fantastic for that, she is my strongest ally.

“She’s always travelling the world looking for horses, and when she finds one she tells me and we go to try them. But it’s not just about finding a horse, it has to be rideable and suitable for a particular grade, and she has great feel for that.

“But it still takes a long time, it’s a difficult process. Sometimes you see 10 horses and it doesn’t work – it’s like a puzzle, everything has to be exactly right.”

On whether he could be tempted back to a role in Britain to revitalise their medal chances, Michel added: “There are always hundreds of possibilities, we’ll see what the world gives.

“For me, it was a test with the USA, but I know now that what I’ve got on the books is a system that works.

“And I hope that our colleagues in Britain know that Mette would always be happy to help find horses.”

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The company that delivered feed to a US farm at which more than 40 horses have died has admitted it contained a substance toxic to horses – 20 months after contamination caused deaths in a deer herd.

It has been reported that up to 70 horses died at Beutler & Son Rodeo Company in Oklahoma at the end of August, and the Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food & Forestry confirmed it was investigating.

On 31 August, Livestock Nutrition Center (LNC) president Ronnie Castlebury put out a statement to say the company is “truly sorry for what the Beutler family is going through”.

“Our preliminary tests show a load of feed delivered to Beutler & Son Rodeo Company in Elk City contained monensin, which can be toxic to horses,” the statement read. “This likely occurred due to a combination of a failed cleanout procedure and a sensor malfunction. We have confirmed this is an isolated incident to this single load of feed from a single facility and no other feed has been impacted and is safe for animal consumption.

“We take this seriously and are working with the state departments of agriculture in Oklahoma and Kansas and the FDA [US Food & Drug Administration] to get to the root cause of the problem and will take any and all corrective actions needed.

“Words are cheap but we are dedicated to assist and support the Beutler family and make this right because our customers and employees expect and deserve it.

“Our deepest sympathies go out to Messrs Bennie and Rhett Beutler and family and everyone affected by the recent tragic event at their ranch. The loss of so many valued animals is devastating.”

On 15 December 2022, the FDA sent LNC a warning letter relating to an inspection of its Texas manufacturing facility that August. The letter, which was published online, said the inspection was a result of a consumer complaint “involving multiple illnesses and deaths in one of your customer’s fallow deer herds after consuming a non-medicated deer feed… that was manufactured by your firm and shipped to your customer”.

The letter said the LNC’s third-party lab analysed samples of feed from the customer “as well as your retention samples” and reported the presence of monensin sodium, “a medicated feed ingredient, which the deer feed was not formulated to include”.

“Medicated cattle feed containing monensin is safe for use in cattle only and may result in toxic reactions if consumed by unapproved species, such as deer,” the letter said.

“Based on the sample results, necropsy reports, and other diagnostic findings from the deer that consumed this feed, the evidence indicates that the deer died from monensin toxicity. Your firm conducted a recall of this deer feed on July 27, 2022.”

The FDA said the inspection found “significant violations” of good practice, hazard analysis and “risk-based preventive controls” measures, and details the ways in which the LNC’s responses to the FDA’s observations were inadequate.

“This letter notifies you of our concerns and provides you an opportunity to address them,” the letter states. “Failure to adequately address this matter may lead to legal or regulatory action, including without limitation, seizure and injunction.”

A spokesperson for LNC confirmed to H&H that the FDA carried out a compliance follow-up inspection at the facility in May 2023. The FDA considered the evidence and issued a “close-out” letter that July, stating: “It appears that you have addressed the violations” mentioned in the warning letter.

“This letter does not relieve you or your firm from the responsibility of taking all necessary steps to assure sustained compliance with the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act and its implementing regulations or with other relevant legal authority,” the close-out letter states.

“The agency expects you and your firm to maintain compliance and will continue to monitor your state of compliance. This letter will not preclude any future regulatory action should violations be observed during a subsequent inspection or through other means.”

• To stay up to date with all the breaking news throughout the Paralympic Games, Burghley, Horse of the Year Show and more, subscribe to the Horse & Hound website

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Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

US rider Steffen Peters has responded to criticism of his “disappointing” performance in the Paris Olympic dressage grand prix on Wednesday (31 July).

The six-time Olympian and 16-year-old Suppenkasper, who were part of the silver-medal winning team at the Tokyo Games, scored an uncharacteristic 66.49%. This meant they came ninth of 10 in group F – and out of the qualifying scores for the individual medal-deciding grand prix freestyle on Sunday (4 August).

Steffen and Suppenkasper started off positively, with their marks trending above 70%, but at the end of the extended walk Suppenkasper appeared to spook, and from then the pair had a tricky ride. In the last centre line they struggled to get the piaffe, and the halt was not immobile.

After his test, Steffen said it was “tough” and that Suppenkasper had been “a little too much on fire”.

“He’s been in places like this before, and I thought right after the walk I had him, and he got more and more excited, and even on the last extension he was drifting a little right,” said Steffen.

“He saw something on the short side, and [it] gave him from behind so much energy for that last passage, and I knew that could be trouble for the last piaffe.”

US chef d’equipe Christine Traurig said that she shared Steffen’s disappointment, “especially taking into consideration what this combination has done for this sport, our country, and worldwide, bringing so much positive engagement to and energy to dressage over the past few years”

“It became obvious to me during their test, ‘Mopsie’ was not himself. Once he returned to stabling after cool-down, he was taken care of by his team and our team US Equestrian veterinarian and is starting to feel more himself, which is the most important thing,” she said.

In an update today (1 August) Steffen thanked everyone for their support leading up to Paris, and he addressed the pair’s performance.

“Of course it wasn’t a good performance yesterday, and I just wanted to clarify, Mopsie came in pretty relaxed and did a good halt. We started with beautiful extensions and half passes, but as soon as the walk came around, you could clearly see the tension,” he said.

“For some reason Mopsie got hotter and hotter towards the end of the test, and unfortunately the big disaster on the last centre line.”

Steffen said that he wanted to be “upfront and clear” that the test was “a very painful disappointment”.

“I woke up this morning at 3am and you hope it was just a bad dream, but it was very obvious that it was the reality, and the reality hurts,” he said.

“I know from the past that if I hold on to the negativity and disappointment; I know exactly how damaging it can be. It’s going to take a few days, maybe even a few weeks, to let go of this. But I will let go.”

Steffen added that “as far as my riding, there were some negative words”.

“I totally accept this. And I will always accept the criticism. But what I won’t accept is if Mopsie’s criticised, because he will always be my ‘rave’ horse,” said Steffen, referring to the pair’s upbeat freestyle performances for which they have become fondly known.

“And he’ll always be my best friend,” he said.

The US dressage team has had a tough time in Versailles. As well as claiming silver in Tokyo, the US won bronze at the Rio Olympics in 2016, and silver at the 2018 World Equestrian Games, but in Paris they have failed to qualify for the team or individual finals.

Marcus Orlob and 10-year-old mare Jane were eliminated during the grand prix on Tuesday (30 July) under the blood rule, as the mare sustained a “very minor cut” when she knocked herself prior to entering the arena. As all three combination scores count, this meant the team did not make it into the team medal-deciding grand prix special on Saturday (3 August).

Adrienne Lyle and 12-year-old gelding Helix scored 72.59% in the grand prix on Tuesday, to finish third in the group C. Only the top two from each group qualified for the freestyle, followed by the six next highest-scoring combinations, and Adrienne missed out; sixth place went to Poland’s Sandra Sysojeva and Maxima Bella, who scored 73.42%.

• To stay up to date with all the breaking news throughout the Olympic Games, Burghley, the Horse of the Year Show and more, subscribe to the Horse & Hound website

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The rescue of a horse who had fallen through his stable floor and was suspended for hours was described as a “great save by all” – and a reminder to be prepared for emergencies.

Rescuers in Massachusetts, US, were called at about 9.30am on Monday (3 June) to reports that eight-year-old Lipizzaner gelding Valcour had fallen.

“Upon arrival, crews located [Valcour], whose entire hindquarter had fallen through a hole in the floor of its stall and hung suspended above the stable’s lower level,” a spokesman for Ipswich Fire Department said.

“For the safety of Valcour and that of the rescuers and staff, due to the size and position, the 1,200-pound horse was sedated for the entirety of the operation.

“Crews began an immediate rescue response, with assistance from the Essex County Fire Chief Associations Northeast technical rescue team, and used a small crane to lift the horse as rescuers worked to cut through and secure the floor.”

MSPCA-Angell’s large animal rescue team and the first responders safely extracted Valcour by about 1.30pm.

“It took about four hours and the help of everyone, but we were able to get this sweet horse out with no life-threatening injuries,” a spokesperson for the humane charity said.

“Valcour is expected to make a full recovery and his owners say he’s already walking around normally today. Thanks to the Ipswich Fire Department, SRH Veterinary Services, and the Northeast Massachusetts Technical Rescue Team – we couldn’t have done it without them!”

Ipswich Police and the Ipswich Department of Public Works also responded, and Rowley Fire Department provided station coverage, along with off-duty and on-call Ipswich firefighters.

Fire chief Paul Parisi said: “I would like to thank our mutual aid partners for their assistance and response in safely extricating this horse. While this was a challenge given the size of the horse, it was an overall team effort and great save by all.

“Our agencies went above and beyond in their efforts to safely remove Valcour from the floor; by working as a team we were able to bring this operation to a successful conclusion.”

The MSPCA-Angell spokesperson added: “We work hard to train first responders on how to handle these kinds of emergencies, and they know they can call us. But this is also a good example of why it’s important that everyone with pets (including horses) knows what to do when emergencies happen. Our team offered specialised large animal rescue training that uses innovative rescue equipment to conduct hands-on workshops.”

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Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

Elastic-sided safety stirrups can cause horrific genital injuries to children and should be banned.

This is the opinion of an American physician, lawyer and former international showjumper, who knows a child who was badly injured, and who told H&H he has heard of other similar incidents.

Armand Leone wants US Equestrian (USEF) to ban the stirrups, which are also popular in the UK for children, which feature a hook to which an elastic loop is attached. The idea is that the elastic will detach if the rider has a fall, to prevent a foot becoming stuck. 

But Mr Leone said there is a greater risk to safety when the child is dismounting.

“In 2014, a child dismounted at a horse show, and the hook ripped through his breeches and degloved his penis,” he said. “He was 11 or 12.

“I started looking into it and it appears there’s an average of about one incident every six months.”

Mr Leone said the young rider he referred to had to have skin grafts. He recovered but Mr Leone said it could have been worse. He has also been contacted about young female riders whose genitals have been ripped by the hooks.

“Most of the time they just catch clothes or a belt but injuries happen, and there’s no reason for it,” he said. “There’s a hook sticking straight up; put it somewhere else or get rid of it. Even though it’s not sharp, it’s sharp enough, and if you’re coming down off the horse; it was horrific when it happened.”

Mr Leone added: “These stirrups are ubiquitous; there’s no one manufacturer but they could say that type of stirrup is not allowed.”

A spokesman for USEF told H&H: “We have not received direct outreach from Armand Leone regarding the peacock safety stirrup safety concerns or a rule change proposal.

“We have also not received any reports of accidents involving peacock safety stirrups. We will reach out to him directly and request he provide a report and any evidence of the peacock safety concerns to the USEF human and equine safety and welfare committee and encourage him to submit a rule change proposal.

“Safety and welfare of our human and horse athletes is our priority, and we take this issue and all safety concerns very seriously.”

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Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

Salvino, the world and Olympic silver medal-winning ride of the USA’s Adrienne Lyle, has been retired from sport aged 17.

The Sandro Hit stallion was ruled out of action in February 2023 with a “minor injury”, but did not return to international competition. Before that he had won four international starts in a row, including scoring +85% in the World Cup freestyle at Wellington in December 2022.

Yesterday (4 April) Dressage-News reported that Salvino had been retired. His owner, Betsy Juliano, told the publication that Salvino is “still quite fit and energetic” but that the process leading up to the Paris Olympics “would not be in his best long-term interests”. Salvino will “transition to a life of retirement”, including breeding.

Adrienne paid tribute to the “best friend, teammate, and partner anyone could ever have”.

“Salvino, I don’t begin to have the words to describe the depth of my love and gratitude for you. You were an absolute warrior in the ring,” she said.

“You had my back every time we went down the centre line… if I was nervous you took the lead and showed me there was nothing to be afraid of. If I messed up, you picked up the slack and did it right anyway, if I doubted myself, you reminded me that we could make it happen, and when we turned up the final centre line and I would whisper under my breath, ‘Take it home, buddy’… I could always feel you raise another foot off the ground and give it your absolute everything.”

Salvino was competed as a young horse by Spain’s Susana Mostaza and Antonio Porras, and Adrienne took on the ride in 2017. They were part of the US Nations Cup team in Aachen that year, finishing second.

In 2017 Adrienne and Salvino were on the team that won silver at the World Equestrian Games in Tryon, alongside Steffen Peters and Suppenkasper, Laura Graves and Derdades and Kasey Perry-Glass and Goerklintgaards Dublet.

At the Tokyo Games, Adrienne and Salvino and Steffen and Suppenkasper were joined by Sabine Schut-Kery and Sanceo to deliver the US dressage team’s best Olympic finish in 73 years, winning team silver.

Adrienne added that Salvino taught her that “if you really believe in something, keep your head down and work until the rest of the world believes in it too”.

“I am so glad I get to still greet your beautiful face every morning and saddle up for fun rides together, for years to come,” she said, adding thanks to Betsy.

“Betsy, none of this would have been possible without your vision, dream, dedication, and unwavering commitment to Salvino. I am so thankful for your amazing support. And to Debbie McDonald for the years of expert guidance and help. None of this would have been possible without such an amazing team.”

The Paris Games are still in sight for two-time Olympian Adrienne, with new rides 13-year-old gelding Lars Van De Hoenderheide and 12-year-old gelding Helix, for owner Heidi Humphries. Lars was formerly campaigned by Lottie Fry, and Helix was previously based with Swedish rider Marian Mattson.

Adrienne made her international debut with both horses last month at the Wellington CDI3* in Florida, finishing second in the grand prix with Helix and third with Lars. She then won the grand prix special on Lars on +73%.

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Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

Is this the coolest tack room you’ve ever seen?

It’s the creation of British-born Sarah O’Hanlon, and it stands proudly in her home in Virginia, US, from where it has caught the attention of thousands. Sarah posted pictures of her unconventional tack room on social media, in a post that has been liked by more than 11,000 people and shared hundreds of times.

“I had no idea it would blow up so much,” Sarah told H&H.

Sarah explained that she bought the phone box, an aluminium replica made from the mould of an original British one, over a year ago.

“I’d wanted one for so long but never got one so I decided to buy it for my birthday,” she said. “It’s been so much fun; some people visit and get their picture taken in it, others are more ‘Why do you have one’, or ‘Does it smell like wee?’ No, it doesn’t, nobody’s weed in it! It was a lifelong goal; I thought ‘I’m not getting any younger, I’m doing it’.”

The question then was what to do with it, Sarah said; she considered some uses to which others had been put, such as a wine store, but was not inspired.

“I have a horse farm but no tack room, so I had my saddles in the foyer,” she said. “It was no big deal but I wanted a home for them that would allow me to use my foyer as a foyer – and I suddenly wondered if they would fit [in the phone box].

“It was a random idea and I thought ‘What the heck, I’ll try’. So I dismantled the rack and stuck it back up, put the hooks on, put it all in there and thought ‘That is so cool’! It looks great.”

Sarah said the phone box is made of aluminium, so it weighs about 650lbs rather than the 2,000lb originals, which “you’d need a crane to lift”.

The replica is still heavy enough to deter thieves, who would also be stumped as it is so wide, she had to take doors off to get it to where it is. And as it was made from an original mould, all the original irregularities can be seen.

Sarah added that she was born in Guildford, Surrey, and her early riding career was on donkeys thanks to her mother’s passion for them, and moved to the US when she was eight.

“My mum was so excited to see the phone box,” she said. “But on the day it came, my birthday, she wasn’t feeling well. I took her to hospital that morning, and she never came home, so she missed seeing it by a few hours. That breaks my heart. But I think of her every time I see it.”

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Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

Heading on a horse riding ranch experience holiday? Lucky you – it will feature high up on many a horsey bucket list! I was lucky enough to spend a week in Wyoming on a ranch experience for Horse & Hound last year – and as soon as I found out I was going on a ranch holiday, one my first questions was what to wear.

Here’s essentials you’ll need to pack for the riding parts of your ranch holiday. I’ve included some specific suggestions of items I was grateful I took with me, plus some things I wish I’d had before I went.

What to wear on a horse riding ranch holiday

You could, of course, go in your everyday riding gear that you wear at home, but for ultimate comfort and the real cowboy experience, here are some things you’ll want to consider packing for the riding parts. Think, too, about what time of year and where in the States you’re travelling – there is a lot of variety here.

• Hat
• Boots
• Legwear
• Shirts
• Layers
• Other handy accessories

Hat

The most important thing you’ll need to wear on a horseback safari is a correctly fitted riding hat. To ensure that you’re covered by your insurance you’ll need one that’s up to standard – and most ranches recommend you wear one.

However, having a cowboy hat is part of the experience and if you decide you want to wear one for riding, find one with a stampede string so that it doesn’t fly off the moment you pick up the pace. While a real cowboy might be able to spin around and swoop the hat from the floor without getting off, chances are you’ll need to dismount to retrieve a lost hat.

You might also want a cowboy hat for visiting the rodeo or relaxing on the ranch. Check out these Stetson cowboy hats (available on Amazon), which are the most famous brand when it comes to cowboy headwear.

Boots

You don’t have to wear cowboy boots – your favourite pair of riding boots will be absolutely fine – but if you‘re looking to blend in with real western riders then a pair of cowboy boots is a must. Ariat have a very wide range of western boots (which you can view here) that are available in half sizes and are designed for comfort and performance rather than just look.

Legwear

Real cowboys wear jeans – in fact, I didn’t see a cowboy in anything other than jeans, boots, shirt and hat in the whole time I was there. If you’d like to ride in jeans, Wranglers are a good choice as they’re designed with cowboys in mind and they don’t have the double-sewn inside leg seam, which makes them more comfortable in the saddle.

If you’d prefer to wear breeches, I would suggest considering a pair of the best denim breeches – this was my compromise between wannabe cowgirl and home comforts.

Shirts

All cowboys wear shirts and I found myself to be cooler in a shirt (with the sun kept off my skin) than in a T-shirt. Even when we were riding out in 33°C, I never really felt uncomfortable so I would definitely recommend getting your hands on a couple.

Layers

The weather can be really changeable in some areas, so a rain jacket is worth packing – and one that packs away neatly or can be tied to your saddle is ideal. If you’re heading out on early rides or in cooler parts of the year, a warmer layer is also worth taking. The western saddles have lots of ties so that you can secure any layers you shed to your saddle.

Gloves

I found that holding the reins in one hand meant that the pressure was in a slightly different place that my hands were used to, so I did get a small blister on the first day that I didn’t wear my gloves. The time of year you’re going will have an effect of what type of gloves you take – in the summer you’ll want something light (check out our guide to the best summer riding gloves), but you’ll be better with something more standard in weight for spring and autumn.

Cap

There will likely be breaks for lunch and other refreshments and if you’ve been wearing a proper riding hat you’ll want to give your head a moment to breathe. If you’re like me, you’ll want to hide your hat hair, so a cap that can attach to your saddle is the perfect solution.

Sunglasses

Sunglasses are a must, but it’s best to opt for a pair that are safe ride in and won’t shatter and cause you injury in a fall. Glasses designed for sport will also fit nicely under your helmet or cowboy hat.

Bandana

A bandana or Buff will help protect you from the sun (or keep you warm if it’s chilly), but you can also pull it up over your mouth and nose if it’s particularly dry and dusty.

Riding hat camera

You can, of course, take a phone or digital camera with you to document your trip – and you’ll only need one hand on the reins, so this is very doable. But if you’d rather not be fiddling about and would like to record at speed, it would be worth checking out one of the best riding hat cameras. The Cambox V4 Pro is super-lightweight, discreet so won’t stand out in your photos, and it will attach to a cowboy hat, too.

Bum bag

They might look pretty retro, but you can’t deny how handy a bumbag will be on a riding holiday. You’ll have easy access to your phone or camera, a power pack, some sun cream and I highly recommend packing a lip balm with SPF (like this one on Amazon).

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Top tips for a ranching holiday

H&H's deputy news editor Charlotte White gives her top tips for a ranching holiday after spending four days on the

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Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

United States Equestrian (USEF) is proposing to strengthen its rules to cover horse abuse outside competition, and mandate reporting of such incidents.

USEF released an extraordinary proposed rule change days after it emerged that US rider Cesar Parra was being investigated in relation to videos of what USEF described as “abhorrent abusive training techniques”.

The federation said one proposed change, submitted in September, had the intention of “increasing the scope of jurisdiction of USEF to pursue investigation and disciplinary action for reported horse abuse occurring outside of the competition environment”.

The extraordinary change “is intended to increase the scope of jurisdiction for equine abuse, further define actions that are considered equine abuse, require mandatory reporting of equine abuse, and amplify the ability for competition management and licensed officials to impose disciplinary actions during a competition for matters of equine abuse”.

The proposal states: “Vital to the continued success of a partnership between equestrian athletes and their horses is the respect and wellbeing of the horses. There is no place in equestrian sport for abuse towards our equine partners.”

It adds that “distasteful” videos and pictures shared on social media have made people “question how our horses are cared for in our sport”, adding: “In an effort to protect our sport, and our horses, we need to act now.”

The rule change, which would apply from 1 January 2024, would mean USEF could take disciplinary action against anyone who abuses a horse at any time, or in any place, adding that enforcement would be based on USEF members who witness abuse.

Read the full proposal

The rule adds to the definitions of what constitutes abuse, and also states that those who witness it must report it, to officials if at a competition, or to USEF. It would allow officials to take “swift action”, such as issuing a written warning or eliminating a combination, if abuse occurs at a competition.

A USEF spokesman told H&H the timing of the proposal should allow plenty of opportunity for member and stakeholder feedback.

“Social licence is a vitally important issue for our industry, and further oversight of training practices outside of competition has been an important topic under consideration,” she said. “The Cesar Parra concerns are an example of why this is an important issue to address.

“USEF takes horse abuse very seriously. Horses are our trusted partners in sport and in life. The goal of the extraordinary rule change is to ensure that USEF has broader oversight of horse welfare outside of competition.”

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Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

Dressage rider and trainer Cesar Parra has been suspended from national as well as international competition as footage of “abhorrent abusive training techniques” is investigated.

H&H reported last week that US rider Cesar Parra had been provisionally suspended by the FEI after video clips were shared of horses’ being trained under saddle and from the ground.

This week US Equestrian (USEF) provided an update.

“On Thursday (1 February), USEF received video clips documenting abhorrent abusive training techniques by FEI dressage athlete and trainer Cesar Parra at his private training facility in [Florida],” the spokesman said.

“USEF immediately coordinated with the FEI. The following day, the FEI imposed a temporary suspension against Cesar Parra, which is being enforced by USEF at the national level, prohibiting him and his horses’ participation in competition.”

The spokesman added that USEF is cooperating with the FEI on its investigation and “supporting their efforts”.

“The training practices documented in the videos cannot be tolerated in our sport,” she added.

“USEF is steadfast in its commitment to horse wellbeing and has committed its resources to supporting the FEI in bringing this matter to resolution as expediently as possible.”

Cesar Parra is from Colombia but took US citizenship in 2009, and has competed at the Pan American Games, the Olympics and World Cup Finals.

He was unavailable for comment.

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Horse & Hound magazine, out every Thursday, is packed with all the latest news and reports, as well as interviews, specials, nostalgia, vet and training advice. Find how you can enjoy the magazine delivered to your door every week, plus options to upgrade your subscription to access our online service that brings you breaking news and reports as well as other benefits.

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

New Zealand five-star eventer Monica Spencer is making a “sink or swim move” to the United States as she “gives it her all” for Paris 2024.

This week Monica, who was part of the New Zealand bronze medal-winning squad at the 2022 World Championships, flew to the US with her husband Andrew, and the couple’s two-year-old son Gus, on a “family adventure with a high performance twist”.

Last year Monica was based in Pennsylvania at Somehowe Yard with her top horse Artist, but she has now made a more permanent move, and will be based in Ocala, Florida, at the same stable as her countryman Edward Ewbank.

Former racehorse Artist is already in Florida and is being hacked out by Edward in preparation for the start of the season. Monica’s up-and-coming rides, Marvel (owned by Sanda and David Ray, and Monica and Andrew), Aviator (owned by Monica and Andrew) and Valkyrie (owned by Ken Quigley, and Monica and Andrew), depart for the US on 12 February.

“Some may think I am mad taking three two-star horses up there with me but I am covering my bases. I think all of these horses have Olympic potential,” she said.

“This is the big move – sink or swim!”

The plan is that Monica and her family will be based in the US through to the LA Games in 2028.

“Artist will only be 16 then too, so may be a contender as well,” said Monica.

Monica is now focusing on the CCI5* Defender Kentucky Three-Day Event on 25 to 28 April, which she will be targeting with Artist. It will be the pair’s Kentucky debut, and third start at five-star together. They were seventh at Maryland 5 Star in October.

Monica has found the US “hugely welcoming”.

“There’s a real hype around eventing there and they have two five-stars now so that’s cool,” she said.

“The climate suits me and I see it as a good place to build a business and prepare for pinnacle events. It is certainly close enough to Europe with US riders having made it pretty easy to shoot over and do the big ones. There is a lot of opportunity in the US and that excites me.”

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Horse & Hound magazine, out every Thursday, is packed with all the latest news and reports, as well as interviews, specials, nostalgia, vet and training advice. Find how you can enjoy the magazine delivered to your door every week, plus options to upgrade your subscription to access our online service that brings you breaking news and reports as well as other benefits.

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

The FEI has provisionally suspended a former Olympic rider as it investigates an “appalling and abhorrent training video”.

The footage shows a horse being hit twice on the neck or head while in ridden training, and a long whip being used with another horse on long lines.

The videos have since been shared to YouTube and a United States Equestrian USEF spokesman told H&H it is aware of the situation.

“We are aware of the appalling and abhorrent training video posted yesterday. We have notified the FEI and are working with them to initiate the investigation of this serious matter,” the spokesman said.

“USEF stands strongly against training methods which are abusive to horses. For more information on reporting equine abuse, and the role of USEF in preventing equine abuse [visit the USEF website].”

An FEI spokesman told H&H dressage rider Cesar Parra has been “immediately provisionally suspended while the FEI investigates the disturbing and abhorrent images and videos in relation to his training techniques that have recently emerged”.

“Equestrian sport is built on a foundation of respect for our equine partners, with a duty of care to ensure their mental and physical wellbeing comes first, ahead of all competition and/or training ambitions,” the spokesman said.

“Through the FEI’s rules and regulations, the welfare of the horse, and any action or omission which causes or is likely to cause pain or unnecessary discomfort to a horse constitutes a violation of our rules and will be sanctioned. The FEI remains resolute in its commitment to upholding the highest standards of equine welfare and sanctioning behaviour which deviates from these principles, and will be actively investigating this case as a matter of urgency.

“As this is an open investigation, no further comment will be provided in relation to the alleged offences while the investigation is ongoing. The FEI is also collaborating and liaising with US Equestrian and the FEI’s provisional suspension and any subsequent sanctions will be recognised at the national level.”

Cesar Parra is originally from Colombia, but was given US citizenship in 2009. He was on the US team that won gold at the 2011 Pan American Games, represented the US at the 2006 World Equestrian Games and has competed at World Cup finals. Before he took US citizenship, he competed at the 2004 Olympics.

H&H has approached Cesar for comment.

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Subscribe to Horse & Hound magazine today – and enjoy unlimited website access all year round

Horse & Hound magazine, out every Thursday, is packed with all the latest news and reports, as well as interviews, specials, nostalgia, vet and training advice. Find how you can enjoy the magazine delivered to your door every week, plus options to upgrade your subscription to access our online service that brings you breaking news and reports as well as other benefits.

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

Zen Elite’s Bohemian, the former medal-winning partner of Cathrine Dufour-Laudrup, is to be cloned.

The 14-year-old Bordeaux 28 x Samarant gelding recently arrived in the United States, having been sold to Zen Elite Equestrian Center, for Florida-based US rider Endel Ots to campaign for the Paris Olympics.

“Bohemian isn’t wasting any time leaving his mark on the USA,” said a Zen Elite spokesman.

“Follow along with this journey, and stay tuned for an adorable Bohemian clone. We can’t get enough of this special horse and are excited for the future.”

Bohemian is best known for his partnership with Denmark’s Cathrine Dufour-Laudrup. The pair won individual bronze at the Tokyo Olympics, and the same year won team bronze, individual bronze, and an individual silver at the Europeans in Hagen. As a six-year-old, the Bohemian was eighth in the final at the World Breeding Championships in Ermelo, under Katrine Kraglund, before Cathrine took over the ride in 2017.

In January 2023 Bohemian was sold by Cathrine’s long-time supporters, the Zinglersen family, to Sportfede Galleria as South Korea’s Dong Seon Kim’s Paris hopeful. When months later Dong announced he was stepping away from the sport Sweden’s Patrik Kittel took on the ride. Bohemian was then put on the market, along with Rossetti and Vincent Maranello. The three had been due to be sold at auction, but were withdrawn following online backlash, and in December Zen Elite announced it had bought Bohemian.

Bohemian is not the only top horse Zen Elite has sourced lately; it has bought Lars Van De Hoenderheide, the upcoming grand prix ride of Lottie Fry, and Helix, a Swedish Nations Cup team horse, for Adrienne Lyle to campaign.

Cloning horses

A clone horse is a genetically identical replica of another horse, with no programmed changes to their DNA. The pair are genetic twins. Top horses who have been cloned to date include showjumpers Gem’s Twist and Cruising, and eventers Chilli Morning and Tamarillo. In 2012 the FEI changed its stance and allowed cloned horses in international competition.

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Subscribe to Horse & Hound magazine today – and enjoy unlimited website access all year round

Horse & Hound magazine, out every Thursday, is packed with all the latest news and reports, as well as interviews, specials, nostalgia, vet and training advice. Find how you can enjoy the magazine delivered to your door every week, plus options to upgrade your subscription to access our online service that brings you breaking news and reports as well as other benefits.

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

US Equestrian (USEF) is conducting a review, after concerns were raised about a trainer in a recent clinic.

Video of former top rider Katie Monahan-Prudent giving group gymnastic jumping training on 6 January was live-streamed and posted online. An edited compilation of some of her comments made during the coaching was later shared online, sparking much debate.

Comments in the compilation included: “I have this thing with my stick and I call it ‘smack and back’. When a horse does a disobedience – the reason we have the stick is to use it correctly, and horses need it. All these animal rights activists who know nothing about horses. They need a good licking sometimes.”

Some of Katie’s comments that in the edited compilation may be incomplete or not in context include: “Don’t you dare turn that corner. You crash him into that fence rather than letting him turn”, and “I personally would be flipping him over backwards. He wouldn’t dare go around that corner with me.”

She also told the clinic riders: “You guys – either you don’t listen or you’re birdbrains.”

In her competition days, Katie was a member of the US team that won gold at the 1986 World Championships. She competed at World Cup finals and won major grands prix across the US, and has since been a coach of top and up-and-coming riders.

In a statement on 14 January, USEF said: “The safety and wellbeing of both horses and riders are of the utmost priority to US Equestrian.

“Effective communication between trainer, horse and athlete is critical to safety and success in equestrian sport. At times, direct words are needed to get this across when coaching; however, under no circumstances does US Equestrian condone training techniques that do not put hose and rider wellbeing first.

“We are aware of concerns regarding the recent clinic and are conducting a review of this matter.”

As well as critical comments online there were those in support of Katie, including one rider who had lessons from her in the past, and said: “I never once felt as though she would even consider putting myself as a young jumper rider or the stallion I was on in jeopardy. Nor did I ever feel as though her words were abusive during my time riding with her.”

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Subscribe to Horse & Hound magazine today – and enjoy unlimited website access all year round

Horse & Hound magazine, out every Thursday, is packed with all the latest news and reports, as well as interviews, specials, nostalgia, vet and training advice. Find how you can enjoy the magazine delivered to your door every week, plus options to upgrade your subscription to access our online service that brings you breaking news and reports as well as other benefits.

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

The Billy Stud has said an “especially challenging farewell” to William Funnell’s much-loved 18.2hh “gentle giant” and five-star ride Equine America Billy Diamo, who has been sold to the United States.

The 14-year-old gelding, by Cevin Z and out of Andiamo mare Annagroff, will join a young rider in Florida.

Billy Diamo was bred by the Billy Stud and started his early career with the stud’s rider Lucy Townley, before William took over in Diamo’s seventh year. Diamo jumped his first World Cup qualifier with William at Olympia, the London Horse Show, at the end of 2018, and the following year they made their first Nations Cup team appearance for Great Britain, at St Gallen, Switzerland.

Diamo continued to compete in grands prix at top venues and shows around the world. In 2021 William and Diamo were shortlisted for the Tokyo Olympics, but ruled out when William broke his ankle in a fall from the gelding during the Nations Cup of Sopot weeks before the Games. The following year they won the Hickstead Derby Trial, and last year they were third in the Hickstead Derby.

William told H&H Diamo is the “most honest, genuine horse you can find”.

“For me he was a fantastic horse; being third in the Rolex grand prix at Royal Windsor in 2019, jumping clear in the Hickstead Derby, winning a three-star grand prix – over the years we’ve had some pretty good results. It’s nice for another horse we’ve bred to be at the top of his sport,” he said.

“These horses are your best friends, I have had a lot of pleasure from him and I think it’s important when they’ve given you so much to make sure they end up going to a good home. With me taking the job training in the UAE, I’m not going to have as much time to jump this year so it seemed the right time, and the opportunity came up to sell him to an up-and-coming young rider. He’s going to do a super job of bringing her up from doing 1.30s through the levels.

“He’s been loved all the way through, and it’s nice to find a home for him where he’ll be loved again. He’s in warmer weather in Florida now.”

A Billy Stud spokesman added that “farewells are never easy, but this one is especially challenging”.

“Billy Diamo has had such a remarkable journey at the Billy Stud and has been an invaluable member of William’s string for many years,” he said.

“We can’t thank Diamo enough for the countless memorable moments we shared, and we look forward to following his future successes. Wishing him and his new owners all the luck and happiness in the world together as they begin their journey together in the USA.”

You might also be interested in:

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Subscribe to Horse & Hound magazine today – and enjoy unlimited website access all year round

Horse & Hound magazine, out every Thursday, is packed with all the latest news and reports, as well as interviews, specials, nostalgia, vet and training advice. Find how you can enjoy the magazine delivered to your door every week, plus options to upgrade your subscription to access our online service that brings you breaking news and reports as well as other benefits.

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

Thousands of healthy American horses are being “butchered in a secretive, inhumane trade”, welfare campaigners say, as it emerges that almost 18,000 were sent from the US to Mexico for slaughter last year.

US Department of Agriculture figures show that in 2023, “kill buyers” transported 17,997 horses from Arizona, New Mexico and Texas to slaughterhouses south of the border.

Welfare organisation Animal Wellness Action is calling on the US Congress to ban live export to Mexico or Canada for slaughter for consumption.

“Not one of these horses was raised for slaughter,” a spokesman for Animal Wellness Action said. “They were, for the most part, raised for pleasure, show, work, or racing and opportunistically collected and redirected to Mexico for slaughter.”

Wayne Pacelle, president of Animal Wellness Action and the Center for a Humane Economy, said: “We are sounding the alarm to Congress that healthy American horses are being butchered in a secretive, inhumane trade to Mexico.

“Not one more year of this trafficking of these iconic animals should be tolerated. The animal welfare community and the thoroughbred racing industry are united in demanding an end to this archaic, miserable, sickening trade.”

Last month, New York governor Kathy Hochul signed a bill to ban horse slaughter in New York, and barred the sale, transportation, and export of horses for slaughter. New York joins California, Texas and Illinois – four of the five biggest US states – in banning slaughter of horses for human consumption.

Domestic horse slaughter has been banned in the US since 2007, and there are bills with Congress to codify the ban on slaughter, and to ban live exports.

“If it is wrong to slaughter horses in Dallas or Yuma or DeKalb, it is wrong to slaughter them in Calgary or Quebec City,” Mr Pacelle said.

An investigation a year ago by the Center for a Humane Economy and Animals’ Angels found “immense suffering” of equids transported for slaughter, “with results showing a lack of care, deficient delivery of food or water, and transport in cramped, dangerous, and unsanitary conditions”.

A USDA spokesman told H&H: “The USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) issues health certifications to ensure horses being exported meet the import requirements of the receiving country. APHIS does track the final destination of the animals in the receiving country.”

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Subscribe to Horse & Hound magazine today – and enjoy unlimited website access all year round

Horse & Hound magazine, out every Thursday, is packed with all the latest news and reports, as well as interviews, specials, nostalgia, vet and training advice. Find how you can enjoy the magazine delivered to your door every week, plus options to upgrade your subscription to access our online service that brings you breaking news and reports as well as other benefits.

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

Non-horsey other halves: this is your moment.

Anyone looking for a (very) last-minute Christmas present, whether that’s a rider looking for some help or a beloved hoping to provide it, this could be the answer.

An entrepreneurial trainer and rider in the US has launched “Horse Husbands” – a crash course for partners of equestrians, stating “horsewomen everywhere rejoice as menfolk are groomed”.

The tongue-in-cheek online training, which comprises videos and written lessons, is the brainchild of Cori Nichols, who told H&H she rode and competed as a child and teenager, till “I took some time off for college and ‘another life’”.

“Click to 1999 when my husband and I were living in New York City and decided to cut ties and head to the countryside,” she said. “In 2000 we bought a dilapidated farm in Hudson Valley and put our hands to work.

“There I resumed my riding career and began a small teaching business that quickly blossomed into a fully fledged program with 25 horses and a full roster of riding students. I was also bringing along a few young sport pony prospects and competing on the weekends.”

Cori said one morning, she woke up with flu and realised she had become solely responsible for all the horses.

“That day I looked at my husband, willing but clueless, and grew uneasy!” she said “He was a writer, musician and marathon runner, and I had never properly ‘groomed’ him for the job of standing in or helping out.”

Cori set about teaching her husband so he would be safe around the horses, and help out of needed. Then, when Covid hit, she discovered e-learning, and Horse Husbands arrived.

Other halves can work their way through lessons including “parts of the horse: front, back and beyond”, “holding and leading the horse, and not getting yelled at” and “show and event etiquette: a guide to being cool”. There are also sessions on “loose horse: s**t happens”, and haynet mastery – for an extra credit.

“It’s been a ton of fun!” Cori said. “2024 will host a horse husband of the year award and maybe an added surprise here or there.”

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Subscribe to Horse & Hound magazine today – and enjoy unlimited website access all year round

Horse & Hound magazine, out every Thursday, is packed with all the latest news and reports, as well as interviews, specials, nostalgia, vet and training advice. Find how you can enjoy the magazine delivered to your door every week, plus options to upgrade your subscription to access our online service that brings you breaking news and reports as well as other benefits.

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

Top US showjumper and coach Rich Fellers has been jailed for sexually abusing an underage girl who was his student.

The 63-year-old, who represented the States at the 2012 Olympics, was sentenced on 12 October, to 50 months in a federal prison, and five years’ supervised release.

In a statement, the District of Oregon US Attorney’s office said: “According to court documents, from late 2019 until the summer of 2020, Fellers maintained an intimate sexual relationship with a minor female equestrian student who he had been coaching since the student was 14 years old.

“The relationship, which began when the student was 16 years old, culminated with a multi-day road trip in June 2020 to an equestrian event in Michigan. Investigators later learned Fellers planned the trip so he could engage in sexual conduct with the student.”

The age of consent in Oregon is 18. On 24 May 2023, Fellers was charged by criminal information with one count of travelling across state lines to engage in illicit sexual conduct with a minor. On 13 July 2023, he pleaded guilty.

“Fellers has a pending state criminal case in Washington County Circuit Court where he is facing four counts of second-degree sex abuse for illegal sexual conduct with the same minor student,” the US Attorney statement read.

“As part of a global resolution with the US Attorney’s Office and the Washington County District Attorney’s Office, Fellers’ federal prison sentence will run concurrently with any state prison term imposed when he is sentenced on 27 October 2023, in Washington County.

“Fellers was ordered to voluntarily surrender into the custody of the US marshals service following sentencing.”

The case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Justice Department to “combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse”.

Rich Fellers is best known for his success with Flexible; they competed in seven World Cup finals, finishing in second in 2008 and winning in 2012. They competed at the London 2012 Olympics, where the US team finished sixth and Fellers was eighth individually.

You might also be interested in:

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Subscribe to Horse & Hound magazine today – and enjoy unlimited website access all year round

Horse & Hound magazine, out every Thursday, is packed with all the latest news and reports, as well as interviews, specials, nostalgia, vet and training advice. Find how you can enjoy the magazine delivered to your door every week, plus options to upgrade your subscription to access our online service that brings you breaking news and reports as well as other benefits.

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

A 25-year-old Arab who was “born for dressage” – and who had eight feet of intestine removed this year – is happy back in work.

Kaitlyn Bonis’ “miracle horse” Sunny defied the odds to survive surgery when a tumour was found strangulating his guts a few months ago.

“It was a typical Saturday several months ago when 19-year-old Kaitlyn Bonis completed a dressage workout with Sunny, her 25-year-old Arabian horse,” a spokesman for the University of California Davis School of Veterinary Medicine said. “But the next day, her family received a call from Sunny’s barn that he didn’t appear well, and the veterinarian was on his way. The horse Kaitlyn had owned since she was 11 was fighting for his life.”

Kaitlyn and Sunny started competing together in hunter-jumper events, in 2016, with “varying results”. Their trainer suggested they try dressage, in which Sunny “truly found his calling”, winning at their first show. The pair moved up the levels, winning four regional championships and standing reserve national champion, until Sunny’s semi-retirement last year.

“Kaitlyn’s mother, Andrea Bonis, describes Sunny as the kind of horse who doesn’t come along very often – Kaitlyn’s horse of a lifetime,” the spokesman said.

“It is clear they were willing to do whatever it took to save Sunny.”

The spokesman said Sunny showed no improvement after initial treatment for colic, and the vet referred him to the veterinary hospital.

“Upon arrival at UC Davis, Sunny was immediately examined by an extensive team of faculty critical care and surgery specialists, residents, technicians, and students,” he said.

“He appeared uncomfortable and showed signs of colic with a distended abdomen. A belly tap revealed peritoneal fluid with signs of septic peritonitis, a potentially life-threatening inflammation of the abdominal cavity.”

The team carried out exploratory surgery owing to Sunny’s pain, and found a lipoma, or fatty abdominal tumour. Lipomas, which are more common in older horses, strangulate the intestine, cutting off the blood supply. In this case, eight feet of small intestine was affected.

“Due to the seriousness of his condition, the anesthesiologists maintaining Sunny under general anesthesia had to work extremely hard to keep him alive while we performed the surgery,” said Isabelle Kilcoyne, chief of the equine surgical emergency and critical care service. “Drs Harriet Flynn and Manuel Fernades-Barrientos did a tremendous job in helping to save Sunny’s life.”

The surgeons removed the section of intestine and connected the healthy ends. Sunny spent 10 days in hospital, after which he was allowed home. A month of box rest followed, with in-hand walking after a fortnight, then Sunny was allowed out, first in a small area, then in a field, “completing all levels of recovery without complications”, the spokesman said.

“He’s our miracle horse, and we owe this to the UC Davis team – he couldn’t have been in better hands,” said Andrea. “Everybody was very kind, understanding, and professional, and they all took excellent care of our little boy. For a horse who was given a 10% chance to make it, you’d never know by looking at him now what an ordeal he underwent.”

Sunny has since had his 25th birthday, and Kaitlyn is back on board.

“She hopes to enjoy Sunny as a pleasure horse for many years to come,” the spokesman said.

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Subscribe to Horse & Hound magazine today – and enjoy unlimited website access all year round

Horse & Hound magazine, out every Thursday, is packed with all the latest news and reports, as well as interviews, specials, nostalgia, vet and training advice. Find how you can enjoy the magazine delivered to your door every week, plus options to upgrade your subscription to access our online service that brings you breaking news and reports as well as other benefits.

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

A “wonderful, respected” rider has died as the result of a fall at a showjumping event in the US.

Wayne Barr, 59, suffered a fatal accident on Saturday (22 July) while he was competing at the Saratoga Summer Celebration in Stillwater, New York.

A spokesman for Saratoga Horse Shows said Mr Barr was riding his eight-year-old Belgian warmblood gelding Pacco in a training jumper class when the “distance to the jump came up wrong”.

“In the jump-off, the horse had an awkward jump that unseated Wayne off to the right,” the spokesman said. “Wayne managed to hold on for several strides, but subsequently, he fell off the horse. The ambulance was on site within minutes, and he was immediately transported to Albany Medical Center where he later passed. Wayne’s sons, Thomas and Spencer, along with the entire Kulak Equestrian family, are truly heartbroken.”

Mr Barr was president, chief executive and director of INNOVATE Corp, which extended its sympathies to his family.

Trainer Marcia Kulak said: “There are no words to adequately express how we feel. We can take some solace in knowing that Wayne loved his family and his equestrian endeavours with his horses. He was truly a special gentleman, and his passing has left an enormous hole in our hearts.”

The horse was uninjured, said the event spokesman, who added: “The Saratoga Horse Shows team wishes to extend our sincere, heartfelt, and deepest condolences and sympathy to Mr Barr’s family and friends. Wayne was a wonderful, well-respected exhibitor, and we too are heartbroken.”

Horse & Hound magazine, out every Thursday, is packed with all the latest news and reports, as well as interviews, specials, nostalgia, vet and training advice. Find how you can enjoy the magazine delivered to your door every week, plus options to upgrade your subscription to access our online service that brings you breaking news and reports as well as other benefits.

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

Wine and horses – could there be a more perfect partnership? Many riders have long thought along these lines, and now a manufacturer has followed suit.

US brand Stomping Horse has released a white Chardonneigh, and a red Thorougblend, inspired by, and supporting, former racehorses.

The company was founded by Dawn Page, its CEO (chief equine officer), Steven Shewbrooks and Byron Brewer.

Dawn told H&H she was a “horse-crazed girl” who became a “horse-crazed woman”, and also liked a fine wine.

“What if there were wines with silly names or ‘neighmes’?” she said. “Has anyone thought of horse-related twists on real wine varietals? That would be so fun! Having had horses for most of my adult life, and having enjoyed wine almost as long, I thought the two made a perfect pairing.”

She owns Trouper, a former racehorse who was “born into a family of professional athletes of which he was not destined to be”.

“His racing career was three races with a purse of $455. He was no longer of value,” she said. “His life nearly ended as a starvation case with seven other horses. He is not a ‘type’ thoroughbred. His neck is not long and slender, nor are his legs, but boy, can he move fast! He just has no interest in running in circles.

“His hooves sound like thunder as he gallops full on from the back field. Having known hunger, sometimes he becomes impatient and ‘stomps’ while awaiting his meal. Stomping led to grapes being stomped. My mind conjured up a silly visual of a dancing horse in a vat of grapes.”

An image of Trouper galloping in from the field became the Stomping Horse logo, which features on its labels.

“Horses are about dreams and never giving up,” Dawn said. “By being himself, Trouper found his calling as the spokeshorse and model of a wine label, and what better way to help other horses than with a portion of the proceeds going to helping them find their paths to second careers and forever homes?”

Stomping Horse donates a percentage of its profits to equine rescue centres to support former racehorses in their retraining for different careers.

“Our goal is to support equine wellness and awareness through such rescues, to assure these horses are given every opportunity to become their best selves and live happy, healthy lives,” a Stomping Horse Spokesman said.

Dawn added that she has spent many hours watching her horses interact with her, each other, and their surroundings.

“Horses can be very social creatures, wandering from one to another as if attending a cocktail hour of sorts,” she said. “Wine is a form of of celebration and relaxation, both things horses and humans enjoy and deserve.”

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HH Azur, the phenomenal ride of US showjumper McLain Ward, has retired from competition aged 17.

The announcement came yesterday (2 July) after McLain pulled HH Azur up during the first round of the Rolex grand prix, when the pair knocked down the second and third fences. Going into Aachen, McLain was the live contender for the Rolex Grand Slam of Showjumping, having scored back-to-back grand prix wins at CHI Geneva and then the Dutch Masters, with “Annie”.

“Dear Annie, I knew this day would come but somehow you always were able to reach deep inside and achieve greatness time and time again,” said McLain.

“We all know there comes a time when your mind and body disagree but it is still hard to let go. You have given all of us so much but it’s time to say goodbye to our sport and retire in good health.”

Annie was bred in Belgium by Nathalie Beaufort, and was competed in young horse classes by Nathalie’s husband Pedro Nolasco. When she was bought by Francois Mathy in 2014, Annie’s international career began with Francois’ rider Perez Bilbao, before she was flown to America in early 2015 to begin her career with McLain, under the co-ownership of Double H Farm.

McLain and Annie’s first international victory together was a CSI5* 1.50m at Spruce Meadows in June 2015. The pair’s first team event was the Rome leg of the Nations Cup the following year, where they won the grand prix and helped Team USA to second place in the team competition. They made their Olympic debut together at Rio that summer, where they won team silver and were ninth individually.

In 2017 Annie and McLain became World Cup champions. Annie was named US Equestrian’s international horse of the year, and McLain won equestrian of the year, after the pair had not a single fault in team competition in 2017. The following year they were fourth in the World Cup final, and had continued to rack up five-star wins and placings around the world since.

“I knew from our beginning you were better than me and that it would take every bit of my ability to not let you down. Your wings carried all of us whose lives you have touched on an incredible journey that is the epitome of why we seek such lofty goals and pursue them with such passion,” said McLain.

“You are the very definition of a queen. It was a privilege to have been the one to ride on your wings, to be your partner and to be part of your life.”

McLain added a “special thank you” to those who had been involved in Annie’s career; Lee, Erica, Virginie, Kirstie, the Mathy family, the Harrison family, and all the “incredible team”.

“I would like to thank everyone who has been involved in Annie’s and my journey. Without each and every one of you the story we’ve written would not have been possible,” he said.

“I’m forever grateful for your contributions and I have no doubt Annie has touched your life in a positive way as she has everyone’s. Happy retirement, my Queen.”

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Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

Top eventer Buck Davidson hopes his recent suspension for an expired therapeutic use exemption (TUE) will act as a warning for others – as the FEI “explores options” to issue renewal reminders.

US championship rider Buck, 47, was suspended on 2 June when a drug test at the Kentucky Three-Day Event on 30 April returned an adverse analytical finding for prohibited substance amphetamine.

Buck confirmed to H&H the substance was a prescribed medication he has been on since childhood, and his TUE had expired without his knowledge. Under FEI rules, if a medication an athlete is required to take for an illness or condition is included in the World Anti-Doping Agency’s (WADA) prohibited list, a TUE allows the athlete to take it, and comply with anti-doping rules. Each TUE has a specific duration, after which it expires automatically.

Following the suspension, Buck applied to the International Testing Agency (ITA), which handles FEI human anti-doping cases, for a retrospective TUE. This request was referred to WADA, which needs to give its agreement pursuant to the International Standard for Therapeutic Use Exemption. On 15 June, Buck’s retrospective TUE was granted.

“The case is therefore not considered as an anti-doping rule violation and no consequence will be imposed. Accordingly, the provisional suspension has been lifted with immediate effect,” an ITA spokesman told H&H.

Buck Davidson on his suspension: a “simple, honest mistake”

Buck told H&H it had been a “simple, honest mistake”, and he hopes by talking about it he can help other riders avoid a similar situation.

“I don’t drink, I don’t do drugs. I knew without a shadow of a doubt that I was totally fine, and I knew exactly what [the substance] was,” he said.

“I have a secretary, doctor, team doctor, federation, and the expired TUE did not come up on anybody’s radar – we had no idea. I’m not blaming anyone, and it’s my responsibility, but something fell through. I think it needs to be made clear where riders can find out when TUEs are up; I’ve never seen it and I’ve had this TUE for more than a decade.

“Mistakes can happen, but It sucks to be looked at like you’re a drug cheat for a messed-up paperwork issue. Why are we not innocent until proven guilty?”

An FEI spokesman told H&H the “responsibility to apply for a TUE lies on the athlete”.

“Athletes who require a TUE renewal must apply for it before the current TUE expires,” said the spokesman, who added that this is stated on the FEI website.

“The ITA and the FEI are, however, exploring options to send systematic reminders to athletes (where relevant), keeping in mind that ultimately it will be up to the athlete to submit an application for the renewal (providing relevant medical records).”

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Subscribe to Horse & Hound magazine today – and enjoy unlimited website access all year round

Horse & Hound magazine, out every Thursday, is packed with all the latest news and reports, as well as interviews, specials, nostalgia, vet and training advice. Find how you can enjoy the magazine delivered to your door every week, plus options to upgrade your subscription to access our online service that brings you breaking news and reports as well as other benefits.

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

A 15-year-old girl suffered fatal injuries when the horse she was riding tripped and had a rotational fall on the flat.

Hannah Serfass was competing at the Fox Lea Farm Spring Concours I in Venice, Florida, US, on Sunday (30 April) when the horse fell.

A spokesman for US Equestrian (USEF) said: “Hannah, was riding Quaxx 2, a 12-year-old Holsteiner gelding, in an equitation class when the horse tripped and suffered a rotational fall. The fall was unrelated to a jumping effort.

“The [emergency medical technician] EMT responded immediately, and Hannah was transported to Sarasota Memorial where she was pronounced dead. The horse was uninjured in the accident.”

USEF said Hannah, from Webster, Florida, was a “very talented up-and-coming young rider who trained with Robin Swinderman”.

“She was known for her passion for horses, her natural ability, and her work ethic,” the spokesman added..

“The USEF, [US Hunter Jumper Association] USHJA, and Fox Lea Farm team wish to extend our deepest condolences to Hannah’s family, support team, and friends.

“The federation takes every accident very seriously and will be reviewing the accident thoroughly to learn what we can do to minimise risk and increase safety in equestrian sport.”

Fox Lea Farm said in a statement: “We send our sincere condolences to the family, trainer, friends and the whole equestrian community. We are all heartbroken.”

Horse & Hound magazine, out every Thursday, is packed with all the latest news and reports, as well as interviews, specials, nostalgia, vet and training advice. Find how you can enjoy the magazine delivered to your door every week, plus options to upgrade your subscription to access our online service that brings you breaking news and reports as well as other benefits.

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

Karen Golding, the former US Olympic groom and FEI steward died on 14 April, aged 83.

Born in Wolverhampton, Ms Golding learned to ride from a young age and enjoyed showing horses and ponies.

In 1970 she met US team rider Bernie Traurig and his wife Tiff, and was employed to care for their horses on four separate flights to the US that year. Ms Golding remained in the US and worked for the Traurigs at Bloodstock Farm for three years, where she cared for horses including the hunter Royal Blue, and showjumper Springdale.

Ms Golding then worked at Winter Place Farm, and in 1974 joined trainer Jerry Baker and showjumper Michael Matz at Erdenheim Farm. During her time there she attended every Olympic Games from 1976 to 2000, except in 1984, grooming for Michael or the US equestrian team. She also attended a number of World Championships, Pan American Games and World Cup finals. She cared for top showjumping horses including Bon Retour, Chef, Grande, Jet Run and Mighty Ruler.

In 2000 Ms Golding became an FEI steward, and she was respected among national and international athletes for keeping horse welfare a top priority. She served as the chief steward at the World Cup finals in 2003, 2005 and 2007, and was a steward at Olympic and World Equestrian Games selection trials. In 2004 she became a US citizen.

Ms Golding served on several US Equestrian Federation (USEF) and United States Hunter Jumper Association committees. In 2007 she was inducted into the USEF showjumping hall of fame. Alongside her duties, she also worked as an equine massage therapist.

A USEF spokesperson said Ms Golding had a “significant impact” on equestrian sport, and that her early interest in caring for horses became a “lifelong passion”.

“Her contributions positively affected equestrian sport and the lives of numerous horses,” he said.

“She will be missed by her friends and colleagues throughout the equestrian sport community.”

Horse & Hound magazine, out every Thursday, is packed with all the latest news and reports, as well as interviews, specials, nostalgia, vet and training advice. Find how you can enjoy the magazine delivered to your door every week, plus options to upgrade your subscription to access our online service that brings you breaking news and reports as well as other benefits.

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now