“Decades of hard work” paid off for Sharon White as she won the US Equestrian Eventing Open on Sunday, moving up from third after cross-country. Aboard Claus 63, she took the title in the $200,000 test with a clean show jumping round in the relentless rain.
“It means so much,” said Sharon, 51, for whom the victory at Morven Park was more important than just the $60,000 first prize.
“It’s a labor of love in this sport.”
She always had faith in her horse, explaining their connection with a smile.
“Claus is really glad I finally got out of his way,” she suggested.
“I have always believed in him. Mentally, he’s a little tough. Mentally, I’m a little tough. When I got better mentally, he got bette rmentally.r,” Sharon noted about the 14-year-old Holsteiner she owns.
For the second year, Will Coleman had to settle for second with Off the Record. As the overnight leader, he had only the narrowest of margins going into the final phase, with just 0.3 penalties difference between his score of 28.6 after cross-country and the 28.9 that belonged to Isabelle Bosley and Conner.
But Will didn’t really get breathing room when Isabelle had 12 jumping penalties and 1.6 time penalties. Her issues moved Sharon up to second on a mere 30.8 penalties.
As it had happened in 2025, show jumping was Will’s downfall. The victory was lost with a knockdown at 5B, the second element of the double combination. Four more penalties were added to his total with a dropped rail at the liverpool two obstacles later. He hung on for second with a total of 36.6.
Third went to Mia Farley on the top U.S.-bred horse in the competition, Invictus by Diorado. The 10-year-old is owned by eventing legend Karen O’Connor, the wife of Mia’s mentor, David O’Connor. Mia was double clear to move up from sixth to the third spot on the podium with 39.8 penalties.
The competition was doubly special to Sharon (known for her distinctive orange and white stable colors) because of its location at the Virginia venue.
“I grew up at Morven,” she explained.
“This place is so special to me.”
She noted it has “grounds that are meant for horses; the trees and the grass and the terrain is amazing. It’s old turf, it’s established. The horses love galloping across it. This is where you want to be. It’s a place that welcomes horses, and that’s what we all love.”
In Saturday’s cross-country test, the leader after dressage, Californian Tamie Smith on Danito, had a runout at the challengingly angled fourth element of fence 9, the leaf pit, and retired at fence 22 rather than taking four more fences to finish up on the Derek DiGrazia-designed course.
Sharon, second after dressage on Claus, collected 4.8 time penalties to sit third on a score of 30.8. Last year’s winner, Boyd Martin, who rode Miks Master C in 2025, stood nineteenth this time around with Luke 140 (71.1) after a runout at the same obstacle on the course as Tamie.
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