United States Eventing Association

Where are they now? The Holekamp/Turner Grant Recipients

The Holekamp/Turner Grant was founded in 2015 by Timothy and Cheryl Holekamp of New Spring Farm and Christine and T.J. Turner of Indian Creek Farm. This grant gives a USEA Young Event Horse (YEH) Championship competitor the opportunity to represent the United States at the FEI Eventing World Breeding Championships in the 7-year-old CCIYH3*-L Championship at Mondial du Lion in Le Lion d’Angers, France. The intention of the grant is to further develop an upward pathway for U.S. team horses in the sport of eventing. Grant recipients who are North American bred will be awarded the full cash grant of $17,500. If the winner is an imported horse, the horse will be awarded $8,000.

In addition, the title sponsor of the USEA YEH Championships, The Dutta Corporation, also generously provides one round trip flight to travel to France for the Mondial du Lion. The grant and prize recipient must be fully qualified to compete at Mondial du Lion.

Four horses have been named as the Holekamp/Turner Grant recipients and have gone overseas to compete at Le Lion. D.A. Duras was the first recipient in 2015, followed by Fleeceworks Royal in 2016, Quantum Leap in 2018, and most recently MBF Cooley Permission to Land in 2021. Learn where they are now and what they’ve accomplished below.

D.A. Duras (Numero Uno x Medoc) a 2008 Dutch Warmblood gelding, first owned by Debbie Adams, ridden by Kelly Prather, bred by H.H.J. Kessels/Baarlo LB, was the first-ever Holekamp/Turner grant recipient in 2015. D.A. Duras and Prather finished 9th in the 7-year-old Championship at Le Lion. Owner, Debbie Adams attended the Championships in 2015 and blogged about her experience for the USEA. Click here to read Adam’s experience.

After his impressive performance at Le Lion, Jacqueline Mars purchased D.A. Duras and Lauren Nicholson acquired the ride. D.A. Duras took his next trip overseas in 2017 where he and Nicholson competed at several events including Barbury Castle CC4*-S where they finished 15th and Hartpury Three-Day where they finished 10th out of 71 starters. D.A. Duras and Nicholson’s last event together was in 2019 at the Plantation Field International CCI3*-S where they finished 12th out of 75 starters. Now, D.A. Duras is a successful Grand Prix show jumper.

Fleeceworks Royal (Riverman x Marisol) the 2009 American bred Holsteiner mare (owned by Judith McSwain, ridden by Tamra Smith, bred by Charlotte Wrather, and was the 2016 Holekamp/Turner grant recipient. Smith and Fleeceworks Royal jumped double clear on cross-country and finished 24th in the 7-year-old Championships at Le Lion. Owner, Judith McSwain attended the Championships in 2016 and blogged about her experience for the USEA. Click here to read McSwain’s experience.

Since then, Fleeceworks Royal has collected top placings at every level and is currently competing at the Advanced/CCI4*-L level. In 2018, Fleeceworks Royal and Smith took another trip overseas to compete at Boekelo CCI4*-L where they finished 9th out of 77 starters. Fleeceworks Royal has finished in the top three an impressive 27 times with 15 wins.

In 2021, Smith and Fleeceworks Royal never finished outside of the top three, they finished second in the CCI4*-L at Galway Downs International and third in the CCI4*-S Twin Rivers International.

Quantum Leap (Quite Capitol x Report to Sloopy) a 10-year-old American bred Holsteiner gelding bred by Elizabeth Callahan and owned and ridden by Doug Payne was the 2018 Holekamp/Turner grant recipient. The pair jumped double clear on cross-country and finished 29th overall in the 7-year-old Championship at Le Lion. Breeder, Elizabeth Callahan attended the Championships in 2018 and blogged about her experience for the USEA. Click here to read Callahan’s experience.

Since his trip to France in 2018, Payne and Quantum Leap have finished in the top five at an Advanced/CCI4* level event eight times. In 2019 they won the Advanced at Blue Ridge Mountain H.T., in 2020 they finished third at Stable View CCI4*-S, in 2021 they finished fifth at The Fork H.T. CCI4*-S, fifth at the Carolina International CCI4*-S, and third at Stable View CCI4*-S. Also, in 2021 Quantum Leap made his successful five-star debut at the Land Rover Kentucky Three-Day Event in April, he was the Reserve Champion in the $60,000 Adequan USEA Advanced Final at the AEC, and he finished ninth at the Maryland 5 Star in October.

MBF Cooley Permission To Land (Cobra x Deeply Dippy K) is a 7-year-old Irish Sport Horse gelding ridden and owned by Cole Horn, bred by Knightfield Stud, and were the 2021 recipients of the grant. They were also the first grant recipients to be awarded The Dutta Corp. prize. This pair is just coming back from France as they successfully competed in the 7-year-old Championship at Le Lion on October 21-24, 2021, and finished 31st in the 7-year-old Championship at Le Lion.

“It was an incredible experience getting to ride in that atmosphere and overall, this experience has shown me what the top level of the sport really is shaped up to,” said Horn after his show jumping round at Le Lion.

“I am absolutely honored to have been able to compete here,” said Horn. “I’m hoping for this to be the first of many more of these types of events and consider this a stepping stone towards my future.”

Who will earn the Holekamp/Turner Grant and The Dutta Corp. prize for 2022? The horse that has the highest score from the 2020 The Dutta Corp. USEA YEH 5-year-old Championships that is also qualified to compete in the 7-year-old Championship will receive the Holekamp/Turner Grant for 2022. If the highest-scoring YEH horse from the 2020 YEH Championships does not qualify or is unable to attend, the grant is then awarded to the next highest scorer who is qualified and able to go. So, the race to Le Lion continues!

About the Holekamp/Turner Grant

The Holekamp/Turner Grant was founded in 2015 by Timothy and Cheryl Holekamp of New Spring Farm and Christine and T.J. Turner of Indian Creek Farm. The grant awards the highest scorer of the USEA Young Event Horse 5-year-old Championships, both East and West Coast Championships combined, with a cash prize that enables them to travel to Mondial du Lion in Le Lion d’Angers, France to compete in the 2021 FEI Eventing World Breeding Championships for Young Horses in the 7-year-old CCIYH3*-L Championship. The eligibility of the grant remains with the horse, regardless of change of rider after the YEH 5-year-old Championships, but for the Holekamp/Turner Grant, only USEF-sponsored 7-year-old entries will qualify. Thus, only horses ridden by United States citizens will be eligible. Click here for more information about the grant.

About The Dutta Corp. Prize

As a title sponsor of the USEA YEH Championships, The Dutta Corporation will generously provide one round trip flight from the east coast of the United States to travel to Europe for the Mondial du Lion. This prize will be awarded to the Holekamp/Turner Grant recipient. The Dutta Corporation is an international and domestic horse shipping company founded by J. Tim Dutta. The leading company in horse transport has been rapidly expanding since its inception in 1988 and particularly so in the last twenty years. Click here for more information on The Dutta Corporation.

About the USEA Young Event Horse Program

The Young Event Horse (YEH) Program was first established in 2004 as an eventing talent search. Much like similar programs in Europe, the YEH program was designed to identify young horses aged four and five that possess the talent and disposition to, with proper training, excel at the uppermost levels of the sport. The ultimate goal of the program is to distinguish horses with the potential to compete at the four- and five-star levels, but many fine horses that excel at the lower levels are also showcased by the program.

The YEH program provides an opportunity for breeders and owners to exhibit the potential of their young horses while encouraging the breeding and development of top event horses for the future. The program rewards horses who are educated and prepared in a correct and progressive manner. At qualifying events, youngsters complete a dressage test and a jumping/galloping/general impression phase. At Championships, young horses are also evaluated on their conformation in addition to the dressage test and jumping/galloping/general impression phase. Click here to learn more about the Young Event Horse Program.

The USEA would like to thank Bates Saddles, SmartPak, Standlee Premium Western Forage, Parker Equine Insurance, and Saratoga Horseworks for sponsoring the Young Event Horse Program. Additionally, the USEA would like to thank The Dutta Corp., Title Sponsor of the Young Event Horse Championships.