The U.S. can claim the top riders on both the FEI show jumping and eventing ranking lists.
Kent Farrington just took the first place ranking on the Longines show jumping roster, succeeding Sweden’s Henrik von Eckermann, who held the spot for a record number of months, since August 2022. It is Kent’s second time as number one; he also was in that position in 2017.
Henrik is now third, behind Great Britain’s 2021 Olympic individual gold medalist, Ben Maher. McLain Ward is the second-highest ranking American, in eighth place.
Kent Farrington on Greya. (Photo © 2025 by Nancy Jaffer)
A few days ago, Boyd Martin was named number one for eventing. While he is the most visible U.S. eventer with a huge social media presence, Boyd Martin was only number two on the FEI world ranking list. That is, until Thursday. With the new month, he becomes the first American to make the top spot on that roster since Kim Severson did it 21 years ago.
Boyd, with three horses in the top 10 of last weekend’s 5-star Defender Kentucky event, called his elevation, “a huge honor and privilege to be named the number one rider in the world in eventing. It’s a goal I’ve been chasing for decades now. Many of my idols, who are champions in the sport and riders I’ve always tried to emulate, have accomplished this honor at some point in their careers.”
You can’t miss the trademark look of determination on the face of Boyd Martin aboard Commando 3. (Photo © by Nancy Jaffer)
Boyd added, “It’s really a humbling moment, and even though it’s my name on the list, I would not have been able to do it without the incredible horses and owners, as well as my dedicated team working day in and out in the stable. Lastly, to share this with my wife and kids, who have been with me on this journey every single day from the very beginning, is really special.”
While Boyd’s promotion is good news for U.S. eventing, the bad news is that you have to go down to number 30 to find the next-highest ranked U.S. rider, Jennie Branningan. Since one person does not make a team, U.S. eventers have some hard work ahead of them. But now they have some inspiration.
The Para Dressage ranks also include a number one standing for the U.S., in Fiona Howard and Kate Shoemaker is number four as the country continues to excel and show the world how it’s done in that discipline.
In Grand Prix dressage, however, the U.S. wasn’t even in the top 10. The country had only one rider in the top 20, Adrienne Lyle, who is nineteenth. Next-highest is Anna Marek, twenty-seventh. Denmark’s Cathrine Laudrup-Dufour continues to lead the standings, with World Cup champ Lottie Fry of Great Britain moving up to second, passing Germany’s Isabell Werth.