United States Eventing Association

Myakka City, Fla.—Nov. 17—In an epic conclusion to the feature event, the B&D Builders CCI4*-L, 11 horses returned for the final phase on Sunday at The Event at TerraNova.

After a double-clear cross-country round on Saturday on a challenging course, Sydney Elliott and QC Diamantaire—known as “Q” at home—rose from second place to the top of the leaderboard. Elliott and Q delivered yet another standout performance, jumping clear and finishing just one second over the optimum time to secure the CCI4*-L victory.

“After cross-country yesterday, he felt incredible—so fresh, and even during the hold on the cross-country course, he wasn’t breathing hard," said Elliott. "That gave me a lot of confidence coming into today. He was very fresh this morning, which I was thankful for. He jumped well in the warm-up, and we kept things simple—I focused on not overthinking it. He knows his job and loves it, so I just let him enjoy himself out there—and here we are!”

Before heading into the final phase, Elliott walked the stadium course designed by Chris Barnard—one she described as fair, thoughtful, and true to his signature style.

“Chris’s courses are always so good,” Elliott says. “They ride exactly how they walk, as long as you keep a cool head. You have some leeway with the distances, which I appreciate. Even in the last line, I thought, ‘There might be a five stride here,’ but then I told myself not to get greedy and stick with the six. And honestly, it rode just the way it walked!”

With more than a decade of partnership in the show ring, Elliott and QC Diamantaire share a bond built on knowing each other inside and out.

“It’s been about 10 years—going into our 11th—and as my friend and groom likes to say, we’re basically identical characters,” Elliott says. “He’s a bit of a diva in the best way. He’s incredibly sweet and kind, but very particular about who’s around him, when he wants attention, and when he’d rather be left alone.”

Hayley Frielick and Sportsfield Lumiere also surged up the leaderboard, climbing from fifth to second after a standout cross-country round. They held their ranking, delivering an impressive double-clear in stadium jumping to secure second place against a highly competitive field.

The overnight third-placed pair, Ema Klugman and Bronte Beach Z, were unfortunately eliminated at the final horse inspection and were unable to compete in today's final phase.

The Estates at TerraNova & Laughlin Tanner Group CCI3*-L also wrapped up competition on Sunday with stadium jumping as its final phase—and a new pair rose to the top.

After dressage, Marley Stone Bourke and First Obama sat in 13th on a score of 32.2. Their double-clear cross-country round yesterday—with just 3.2 time faults—catapulted them into second place heading into the final phase.

Today, Bourke and First Obama delivered once more, jumping clear and adding only 1.6 time faults in the stadium phase. Their accurate performance sealed the victory, securing the CCI3*-L win at The Event at TerraNova.

But what makes their win especially impressive is how new their partnership is—and how quickly the pair has found their rhythm together.

“I’ve actually only had him for a couple of months,” Bourke said. “This is probably our fifth event together. I’d been looking for a horse for about two years and just hadn’t found one I really loved. Tim [Bourke] was in Ireland for a wedding and got a random Facebook message from Michael O’Toole about this horse he thought we might be interested in. Tim tried him, and I bought him—I didn’t even get to try him myself. So, shout-out to my husband, Tim, for finding me the perfect horse. I’ve just gotten along with him so well, and I’m still learning how he wants to be ridden. We’ve only done a few competitions at this level together—the three-star shorts at Tryon and Morven Park, and a couple of Intermediates—but he’s an incredible horse, and I’m fortunate to have him.”

After securing a strong position following cross-country, Marley admitted she tried to stay focused on the ride itself rather than the leaderboard pressure heading into the final phase.

“I tried not to think about it too much,” she said. “I know he’s a good jumper, and he’s really careful. If I’m honest, it wasn’t the best round of my life out there, but he’s such a good boy. For the future, it’s just about figuring him out a little more, so we’re not adding in quite so many strides. He wants to be careful, he wants to leave the rails up—what more can you ask for? And to be doing that after only a few months together really shows what a class horse he is. He’s just so genuine. He loves the job, he’s good in all three phases, and he’s like a little cat out on cross-country. He’s super careful and loves what he does, and it’s been amazing how quickly we’ve clicked—I feel really confident on him.”

She emphasized that today’s win was a true team effort and credited the people behind the scenes who helped make this moment possible.

“I just want to say a big thank-you to my team. I’m fortunate to have such amazing people around me,” she said. “My husband has put so much time and effort into helping me become the rider I want to be. And we have an incredible group of girls—Leah, my groom, takes impeccable care of him. I really try to surround myself with great people, and while the results don’t always show the work behind the scenes, today it’s special to have a result that reflects how wonderful my whole team is.”

Elliott and Greenhall Good Decision began the competition tied for seventh after dressage with a score of 29.9. Following cross-country, they climbed into fourth place. They ended their weekend in second place.

Although they finished well within the time, the pair picked up 11 penalties for activating the frangible pin at fence 6A. However, the fence 6 combination, part of the downhill-to-ditch combination, proved challenging for many in the division and contributed to multiple penalties, refusals, eliminations, and falls throughout the day.

Riley Zgrebnak (USA) and Cooley Criminal Mind, the overnight leaders after cross-country, incurred 12 unfortunate jumping faults in the stadium phase—though they added no time penalties—which dropped them to third in the final standings.

Full results