United States Eventing Association

Ayden Schain and Sarah Ross were two of the 19 young riders that participated in the first-ever USEA Emerging Athlete U21 (EA21) National Camp in Ocala, Florida, at the start of 2023. Ross came from the West, originally from Nevada and most recently training and competing in California. Schain came from the East, based out of Vermont. Both are now pursuing eventing full-time in Florida with Schain working for Leslie Law and Lesley Grant-Law and Ross with Zachary Brandt.

With much of the country still gearing up for the start of the 2023 eventing season, it is the perfect time to review what you will need to do to get qualified for the 2023 USEA American Eventing Championships (AEC), presented by Nutrena Feeds. You won’t want to miss this year’s AEC, which will take place from Aug. 29 through Sept. 3 at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, Kentucky!

The USEA is thrilled to announce that Erin Gilmore Photography will be the Official Photographer of the 2023 USEA American Eventing Championships, presented by Nutrena Feeds, at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, Kentucky, from Aug. 29 through Sept. 3.

The USEA Interscholastic Eventing League (IEL) was created in 2020 to provide a format for team competitions for 7^th through 12^th grade junior members of the USEA. The mission of the program is to foster team camaraderie, provide a supportive community through which students can continue to pursue their riding interests, and create a pathway to participation in the USEA Intercollegiate Eventing Program. Teams are made up of junior eventers that share common bonds, such as attending the same school, being a part of the same Pony Club. or riding with the same trainer. For Full Moon Farm’s IEL team, the members’ shared bond is a family-owned and operated farm and lesson program in Carroll County, Maryland, that is spearheaded by the Fulton family.

The United States Eventing Association (USEA) is excited to announce that the Intercollegiate Eventing Championship will be hosted at the Tryon International Equestrian Center (TIEC) in Mill Spring, North Carolina, on May 26–28, 2023. The organizers at TIEC look forward to welcoming the Intercollegiate Teams to their state-of-the-art venue this spring for a successful championship event.

The United States Eventing Association’s Area X of Arizona, Nevada, and New Mexico will kick off its 2023 calendar of USEA-recognized horse trials in March with the vision of growing the SAzEA Horse Trials and returning the Coconino Horse Trials to their profile as a destination event following the effects of COVID-19 and then wildfires in the area.

At the start of the new year, 19 young riders from all over the country embarked on a journey to Ocala, Florida, for the first-ever USEA Emerging Athlete U21 (EA21) National Camp led by EA21 Director of Coaching David O'Connor. These riders were hand-selected from the five EA21 Regional Clinics which took place in the summer of 2022 to have the opportunity to participate in a five-day, intensive training camp that addressed both mounted and unmounted lessons which would be critical to their development as young riders. Now that a month has passed by and each of the participating riders has had time to reflect on their experience earlier this year, the USEA is catching up with them as they look back on their week in Ocala learning from the best of the best. Hear from some of the EA21 National Camp participants and how the experience impacted their riding and their goals for the season and beyond below.

Start your young horse’s competition season off on the right foot by participating in the USEA Young Event Horse (YEH) program! The USEA established the YEH program in 2004 to identify young horses that possess the talent and disposition to, with proper training, excel at the uppermost levels of the sport. While the goal of the YEH program is to identify horses that will be successful at the four- and five-star levels, horses with the potential for lower-level success are also showcased by the program.

The USEA’s Emerging Athlete U21 Program (EA21) application process asks applicants to submit in writing a reflection on their past and current riding experiences. Applicants are being asked to develop a written history that provides the selectors with an opportunity to get to know each applicant from a personal perspective. Combined with submissions of videos and interviews that may be conducted with an applicant’s trainers and coaches, along with performance records, selectors will gain a more complete portrayal of the candidate’s horsemanship and riding skills.

The United States Eventing Association (USEA) and the Young Horse Show Series (YHS) are proud to announce their official collaboration in further supporting and promoting the development of young horse programs in the U.S. for sport horse breeders, owners, riders, and trainers. The YHS will now be taking ownership of the USEA Future Event Horse (FEH) program for the 2023 season. In turn, the USEA will be sponsoring their regional championships with FEH classes, and the existing YHS National Eventer Discipline Recognition Program.