The USEA Appreciation Awards were created as an opportunity for the eventing community to recognize and honor people who have served the sport tirelessly both in a non-riding capacity and riding capacity. While tabulating horse and rider awards is a simple matter of calculating points earned in a competition, it is a very different proposition when it comes to the non-rider awards; these awards require nominations from our members.
The Appreciation Awards Committee is currently accepting nominations for the awards listed below. If you know someone who is deserving of one of these awards, please submit your nominations for consideration to:
Cathy Forsberg, Chairman of the USEA Appreciation Awards Committee
c/o USEA Attn: Hannah Seagle
Email: [email protected]
Fax: (703) 779-0550.
Deadline for nominations: Friday, October 28, 2022
The Annual Awards Ceremony will be held during the USEA Annual Meeting and Convention. Further details regarding the awards reception will be announced in the near future.
APPRECIATION AWARDS CATEGORIES:
• Courtney C. Reeves Memorial Trophy: Awarded to the young individual who exemplifies sportsmanship, the spirit of the sport, and who gives back to the sport.
• Ironmaster Trophy: Awarded to the individual that exemplifies fortitude and courage. Open to anyone associated with the sport as a volunteer, spectator, official, trainer, competitor, groom, or groundskeeper.
• Vintage Cup: Awarded to members 60-years of age and over who are competing at any level in recognized USEA competitions and who show good sportsmanship.
• Sue Hershey Award: The Sue Hershey Award honors an ICP Certified Instructor, who exemplifies the values, commitment, and character of the ICP program and who has inspired students in the sport of eventing, with their instruction, encouragement and long-term dedication to teaching correct horsemanship and stable management skills.
NOMINATION FOR CONSIDERATION IS TO INCLUDE:
Name of award, name of nominee, address of nominee, USEA area, age (if applicable) and, reason for the nomination. The Reason for the nomination should include a concise, but detailed biography of your nominee, clearly describing the attributes that pay tribute to the criteria of the award up for consideration.
If your nominee is selected, a photo will also be required. To make this experience exciting for both the recipients and attendees of the Awards Reception, the names selected will be kept a secret until the award is presented. Although it may not be an easy task, we ask those making the nomination to ensure that the candidate is able to attend the Awards Reception.
With the Paris Olympics on the horizon this summer, riders from the top eventing nations are gunning for a coveted team spot, and British team selection is particularly tough due to a plethora of talent. Tom McEwen came to the Defender Kentucky Three-Day Event to prove he’s on form with James and Joe Lambert and Deirdre Johnston’s JL Dublin, and he’s out in front after two days of dressage.
Derek di Grazia’s name is legend at the Kentucky Horse Park as the designer of the Defender Kentucky Three-Day Event cross-country course for over a decade, in addition to countless other influential tracks around the world. Now with the inclusion of the Cosequin CCI4*-S division, which runs alongside the famed five-star, riders at both the four- and five-star levels get to experience one of the iconic di Grazia Kentucky tracks while competing in the bluegrass. The USEA caught up with riders of both levels to get their feedback on this year’s courses.
Two riders will share the top spot on the leaderboard in the Cosequin CCI4*-S at the Defender Kentucky Three-Day Event upon the conclusion of dressage on Friday. Early in the morning, Great Britain’s Lucienne Bellissimo found herself launching up the scoreboard after a beautiful test with Dyri earned them a score of 26.0. While no other pair could top their performance, one team did match it perfectly near the end of the day– Liz Halliday (USA) and her 2023 Pan American Games silver medal mount Miks Master C.
Who is ready for another day of dressage at the 2024 Defender Kentucky Three-Day Event (DK3DE)? Just like yesterday's schedule, we will first see the CCI4*-S field compete this morning starting at 8:00 a.m. EST, followed by the CCI5*-L field at 1:00 p.m. EST.