Nancy Jaffer
EQUESTRIAN SPORTS
NEWS AND FEATURES
FROM NEW JERSEY AND BEYOND
It’s three in a row for dressage queen Jane
Things were pretty quiet at the Adequan Global Dressage Festival on Thursday afternoon in Wellington, Fla. No one was in the stands, there were only a few people along the rail and the VIP area was peaceful. But the wind ruffled the canvas on the tents around the...
There’s a new spirit at Wellington International
As he drove his golf cart around the Wellington International showgrounds this week, Equestrian Sport Productions CEO Murray Kessler spotted a piece of rubbish in the stabling area. He stopped the cart, retrieved the stray plastic bottle and some crumpled pieces of...
A new generation of U.S. jumping riders will get a leg up from the USET Foundation
In order to ensure that U.S. show jumpers can clear financial barriers that would prevent them from representing their country in international competition, the U.S. Equestrian Team Foundation is launching the Performance Pathway Grant Program. The program is designed...
Overreaching changes to the federal Horse Protection Act put on hold
An arduous new requirement that managers of all equestrian competitions in the country would have to register with and report to the U.S. Department of Agriculture will not go into effect during 2025 show season. The requirement was part of a proposed amendment to the...
Vera Kessels has passed away
Vera Kessels, a much admired dressage trainer, rider and effective clinician, died March 22 of ovarian cancer. A native of the Netherlands with ties to the horse-dealing Hendrix family, she moved to the U.S. in 1995 with her Dutchbred horse, Dotato. They started...
The Olympic champ can’t be beaten in Ocala
Being the first to go in a nine-horse jump-off at a $350,000 grand prix is hardly an ideal starting position, but Christian Kukuk of Germany made it pay off Thursday night at the World Equestrian Center in Ocala, Fla. “It’s always quite difficult,” he reflected, but...
Longines show jumping headed for New Jersey
The high-profile Longines Global Champions Tour is coming to Liberty State Park in Jersey City, bringing top level show jumpers from around the world to a new venue for the series. They're calling the Sept. 19-21 competition the Longines Global Champions Tour &...
Endurance star Becky Hart is gone
Becky Hart, who was a great force in international endurance competition, died last month at the age of 71. After Pony Club and competing in horse shows, Becky graduated from the Potomac, Md., Horse Center’s horsemastership course in 1972. But where she hit her stride...
Another wrinkle in an Olympic positive doping test
Global Medics, whose product Relax Pro was given to an Olympic eventing horse at the Paris Games, contends in a public statement that the supplement was contaminated with Trazodone at the production level, Relax Pro was found to be responsible for a positive doping...
Remembering Rodney Jenkins
A celebration of Rodney Jenkins' life June 1 will offer a chance to reminisce about the Red Rider and meet with friends to recall what made him so special. The gathering will be held from 3-5 p.m. at the Upperville, Va., horse show grounds in the 1853 Club on the...
