Login
Jul 28, 2021
Eventing Kicks Off in Style at the Tokyo Trot Up
There were a few last-minute dramas at the first horse inspection for the Tokyo Olympics which took place in the main equestrian park at Baji Koen Equestrian Centre at 9:30 a.m. JST today.
While all three U.S. team members - Boyd Martin (Tsetersleg), Philip Dutton (Z) and Doug Payne (Vandiver) - and alternate rider Tamie Smith (Mai Baum) were accepted without hesitation, Polish team rider Pawel Spisak’s horse, Banderas, was not accepted and will therefore not take part in the competition.
Banderas, a 14-year-old gelding, failed the second horse inspection at the Rio Olympics in 2016 and did the same at the 2017 European Championships in Strzegom. However, he and his experienced rider, for whom this would have been a fourth Olympics, won twice at CCI4* level in 2019.
Puerto Rico’s individual contender Lauren Billys’s Castle Larchfield Purdy was sent to the holding box and asked to trot again, but passed on reinspection.
Jessica Phoenix withdrew 19-year-old Pavarotti, a veteran of the past two World Equestrian Games, meaning that Canada will be represented only by Colleen Loach and Qorry Blue D’Argouges in Tokyo.
The USA is drawn third of the 15 teams, one behind Great Britain. Thailand is the first team to go, while the Germans are second-last, with only Brazil behind them. The home nation, Japan, is sixth to go.
The full team draw is as follows:
- Thailand
- Great Britain
- USA
- Switzerland
- Japan
- Australia
- China
- Poland
- Sweden
- France
- Italy
- Ireland
- New Zealand
- Germany
- Brazil
The first session of dressage commences on Friday, July 30 – 8:30 a.m. JST (Thursday, July 29 – 7:30 p.m. ET), with a second session on Friday, July 30 – 5:30 p.m. JST (Friday, July 30 – 4:30 a.m. ET), and a third on Saturday, July 31 – 8:30 a.m JST (Friday, July 30 – 7:30 p.m. ET)The ground jury comprises president Nick Burton (GBR), Christina Klingspor (SWE) and Jane Hamlin (USA), and they will be judging the new, short Olympic test, specially written for this competition, which takes just 3minutes and 50 seconds to complete.
Click here to access our Tokyo Olympics Hub and stay up to date with all of the action!
Jan 28, 2025
Competitions
Hunter's Run Farm in Area VIII Fundraising for Addition of Modified Division
Hunter’s Run Farm in Metamora, Michigan, is thrilled to announce an exciting new addition to our cross-country course—a Modified Division aiming to debut at our USEA event on August 23-24, 2025!
Jan 28, 2025
Young Event Horse
International Success for Young Event Horse Graduates in 2024
The USEA Young Event Horse (YEH) Program was created with the mission of identifying young horses that possess the talent and disposition to excel in the uppermost levels of eventing. In 2024, YEH graduates participated in major events around the world, including the Paris Olympics, the FEI Eventing Nations Cups in Millstreet (Ireland) and Aachen (Germany), five-star events in the U.S. and England, and the FEI WBFSH Eventing World Championships (France).
Jan 27, 2025
Emerging Athletes U21
USEA Podcast #379: Celebrating the Success of the EA21 Program
Following the conclusion of the 2024 USEA Emerging Athletes U21 (EA21) program and with applications for the 2025 program opening soon, USEA Podcast host Nicole Brown chats with EA21 Regional Coach Rebecca Brown about the growth of the program over the past three years and the many successes that arose from the 2024-2025 EA21 National Camp. Plus, Brown also breaks down how to incorporate some of the iconic EA21 exercises into your own training at home!
Jan 26, 2025
Education
Convenience is Key: How Digital Tools are Expanding Access to Eventing
Somehow we are a quarter of the way through the 21st century. Finally, more and more eventing organizers and professionals are embracing digital tools to improve efficiency while increasing access to the sport. Equestrian sports have historically relied heavily on paper forms and manual payment methods for entries.
