Horsemanship Education & Enhanced College Fair Added to the 2026 USEA Intercollegiate & IEL Championships Schedule
Members asked, and the teams at the USEA and Stable View answered! This year, the educational opportunities available at the USEA Intercollegiate & Interscholastic Eventing Championships at Stable View in Aiken, SC on May 15-17 have been enhanced to provide a well-rounded weekend of team competition and personal growth for program participants.
The 2026 event will mark an exciting transition for the Intercollegiate & IEL Championships, which is now in its third year as a combined event. With over 225 competitors at last year’s edition, the championships are now being hosted as a standalone event, like the AEC, which will only be open to Intercollegiate and IEL members and a select number of collegiate alumni teams. With the focus now fully centered on school-aged juniors, the USEA is thrilled to offer new and exciting educational programs for the students that attend.
During Friday evening’s Graze & Gaze reception, which follows the traditional Opening Ceremony and Parade of Teams, the USEA Grooms Committee will proudly present a Horsemanship Demonstration, led by committee member Christina Curiale. Curiale is the longtime head groom and barn manager for 5-star eventer, Will Faudree. She grew up in British Columbia, Canada, and moved to Southern Pines, North Carolina, in 2012 to take what was intended to be a one-year working student position.
With 14 years of professional grooming experience, Curiale has taken on the role of head groom and barn manager, overseeing the daily operations of the farm and traveling to competitions in the US and internationally. On Friday, May 15 at 6:30 p.m., Curiale will share her wisdom on the best care for competition horses in the cross-country field behind the Pavilion. Be sure to grab food and drink during the Graze & Gaze reception, then settle in on the patio to enjoy Curiale’s lecture.
In addition to Friday evening’s lecture, Curiale will be making rounds on Saturday, May 16 in the barns and the warm-up areas to answer any follow-up questions competitors may have from the lecture and lend a helping hand where needed. This is a great opportunity to pick a professional’s brain on topics that are important to you and your horse!
On Saturday, the second educational activity of the weekend will kick off. Introduced in 2025, the College Fair will make a return to this year’s championship in a new and improved location. This year, Stable View will dedicate a full temporary barn in the College Town and IEL stabling area for Intercollegiate teams to set up their team promotions. Each school will be allocated one (1) 12’ x 12’ stall that they should utilize to promote their program to the IEL competitors.
While teams are not expected to man these booths all three days of the championships, it is expected that promotional materials are always present, like flyers, promotional pamphlets, trifolds, slideshows, or videos, so the IEL competitors can learn about each team. On Saturday following the end of competition, schools will be expected to man their booths for at least one (1) hour to allow the IEL competitors to stop by and talk to current teammates
This is a great opportunity for college teams to recruit future members and for IEL competitors to start considering their plans for post-graduation. IEL competitors will receive bingo cards with each school’s mascot or logo on it when they pick up their rider packet at the show office. Each completed bingo card, which should include a stamp or signature from each school, will be entered to win a grand prize from Stable View. Bingo cards will be collected during Saturday evening’s Graze & Gaze party to determine the winner!
Entries & Rosters
The omnibus listing for the 2026 USEA Intercollegiate & Interscholastic Eventing Championships can be found here. Entries for the event opened Tuesday, March 31, and close today, Tuesday, April 28. This year’s event will be exclusively offered for current Intercollegiate Eventing Program affiliates and their members, IEL Clubs and their members, and Alumni of current or formerly affiliated schools.
Tentative team rosters for the Championships are due to the championship coordinators no later than the end of the day today, April 28, and definite team rosters must be provided by 12:00 p.m. ET on Monday, May 11. Teams may declare alternates with their tentative team rosters to serve as substitutes for any team riders in the event of a scratch or withdrawal prior to the naming of definite team rosters. Alternates will not be named to a scramble team until definite team rosters are declared. For more information, please review the Intercollegiate Eventing Handbook linked here or the IEL Guidelines linked here, which have been updated as of December 2025.
- Intercollegiate – Submit your team rosters to Leslie Threlkeld at [email protected].
- IEL – Submit your team rosters to Kate Boggan at [email protected].
- Stable View Alumni Cup – Submit your team rosters to Cyndy Olliff at [email protected]
Stay in the Know
If you haven’t already, please join the Stable View WhatsApp group for the Championships to stay in the know about the event in the lead up and on-site. Click here or scan the QR code to the right to join the group. The team at Stable View will post regular updates and share news related to the championships in this group chat, so members will be first to know about all the exciting updates as the event takes shape. The USEA and Stable View will also use this group to provide timely updates at the event.
Any questions regarding the Intercollegiate Eventing Program or Interscholastic Eventing League and the upcoming 2026 Championships can be directed to USEA Staff Liaison, Kaleigh Collett, at [email protected].
About the USEA Intercollegiate Eventing Program
The USEA Intercollegiate Eventing Program was established in 2014 to provide a framework within which eventing teams and individual competitors could flourish at universities and colleges across the country. Many events across the country offer Intercollegiate Team Challenges where collegiate eventers can compete individually or in teams with their fellow students. In Intercollegiate Team Challenges, each rider’s score is multiplied by a coefficient appropriate for their level to account for differences in level difficulty, and then the individual scores are added together to determine the team score. The USEA Intercollegiate Eventing Championship is a capstone event for the program, which is held annually in the spring. The 2026 USEA Intercollegiate & IEL Championships will be held at Stable View in Aiken, South Carolina, on May 15-17. Click here to learn more about the Intercollegiate Eventing Program.
The USEA would like to thank Aiken Saddlery, Bates Saddles, Gallagher’s Water, Horse & Country, Kerrits, Powell Asset Protection Agency, PulseVet, Sidelines, Schneiders Saddlery, U.S. Equestrian, Wendel Mobile Equine, WeRideTogether, World Equestrian Brands, Young Rider Magazine, and 100xEquine for sponsoring the USEA Intercollegiate Eventing Program.
About the USEA Interscholastic Eventing League (IEL)
In August 2020, the USEA Board of Governors approved the creation of the USEA Interscholastic Eventing League (IEL) as an official program of the USEA. The mission of IEL is to unite junior riders who are in the 5th—12th grade and provide a supportive community through which students can continue to pursue their riding interests. A group of junior members in the 5th—12th grade who share a common bond, such as the same barn, school, Pony Club, or other connection, can register with the USEA as an IEL Club. The 2026 USEA Intercollegiate & IEL Championships will be held at Stable View in Aiken, South Carolina, on May 15-17. Click here to learn more about the Interscholastic Eventing League.
The USEA would like to thank Aiken Saddlery, AllStar Tents & Events, Bates Saddles, Gallagher’s Water, Horse & Country, Kerrits, Powell Asset Protection Agency, PulseVet, Sidelines, Schneiders Saddlery, U.S. Equestrian, Wendel Mobile Equine, WeRideTogether, World Equestrian Brands, Young Rider Magazine, and 100xEquine for sponsoring the USEA Intercollegiate Eventing Program.
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