United States Eventing Association

Following the announcement of the application process opening for the USEA Emerging Athlete U21 Program (EA21), the United States Eventing Association (USEA) is excited to announce the dates for each of the five EA21 Regional Clinics that will be hosted this summer. The purpose of the USEA Emerging Athletes U21 program (EA21) is to identify and provide consistent quality instruction to the next generation of elite event riders. The aim is to create a pipeline for potential team riders by identifying and developing young talent, providing them with training and development.

The third annual USEA Emerging Athletes U21 program (EA21) National Camp concluded on Saturday after a week filled with education and enjoyment. Under the guidance of EA21 Director of Coaching, David O’Connor, 12 selected athletes participated in this year's camp, held at Sweet Dixie South in Reddick, Florida.

From the classroom lecture to the riding sessions, the focus on the final day brought those final finishing touches to bear on the athletes of the 2024-2025 Emerging Athletes Under 21 (EA21) National Camp held at Sweet Dixie South.

“There are 385 million people in the U.S., and only 3.8 million have horses,” David O’Connor said as he began the classroom session on day 4 of the Emerging Athletes Under 21 (EA21) National Camp. “Not all of them are into eventing.”

A change in the original schedule of the Emerging Athletes Under 21 (EA21) National Camp brought cross-country day forward to the third day instead of the original final day. Alongside his work with the U.S. Equestrian Federation and the FEI, EA21 Director of Coaching David O’Connor advises the Caisson Detachment of the 3rd United States Infantry Regiment on horsemanship and will be traveling to Arlington, Virginia, to attend the state funeral of former President Jimmy Carter. But no one was disappointed by the change.

Correct jumping positions, generating a quality canter and keeping it rhythmic, and practicing good habits consistently were the takeaways from the second day of the 2024 USEA Emerging Athlete U21 (EA21) West Coast II Regional Clinic on Wednesday.

Catching riding was the theme of the first day of action at the 2024 USEA Emerging Athlete U21 (EA21) West Coast II Regional Clinic on Tuesday at Aspen Farms, a 240-acre facility in Yelm, Washington, about 60 miles south of Seattle.

Held in Stable View's (Aiken, South Carolina) spacious covered arena from July 23-24, the USEA EA21 East Coast II Clinic was a huge success. Coach Emily Mastervich Beshear taught 12 hand-selected under-21 riders on the flat and over fences.

An ambitious start time of 6:30 a.m. for the final day of the USEA Emerging Athlete U21 (EA21) East Coast II Regional Clinic meant riders and horses could beat the southern heat. However, the early morning hour didn’t appear to phase any of the bright-eyed clinic participants or EA21 Coach Emily Mastervich Beshear.

"Pick your lane and stick with it; it's all building blocks in the training scale." This was coach Emily Mastervich Beshear's central message for each of the morning dressage sessions during day 1 of the USEA Emerging Athlete U21 (EA21) East Coast II Regional Clinic held at Stable View.