Perseverance was the key at the Talent Search

The U.S. Equestrian Federation’s Show Jumping Talent Search Finals has a purpose.

The class, sponsored by Platinum Performance, was conceived to scout young riders with the potential to ride on U.S. teams. Previous winners include McLain Ward, Richard Spooner and Brianne Goutal, riders of whom you may have heard.

The Talent Search runs on both the East and West coasts. The East edition, which drew 37 starters, concluded Sunday at an appropriate venue, the historic stables of the U.S. Equestrian Team Foundation in Gladstone, N.J.

The last phase of the class is known as the “Final Four,” a format that formerly was used in the world show jumping championships, where each contender rides the other three competitors’ horses over the same course.

Three of the top four finishers had to battle adversity to some extent. The winner, Eleanor Rudnicki, a professional from Texas, discovered when she arrived that the warm-up hadn’t gone well with the horse she brought..

But Ken and Emily Smith, who had worked with Eleanor when she was a junior and who trained another rider in the class, Lily Epstein, stepped up and offered Eleanor Qwantreau, an extra horse they brought with them. That meant there was an initial challenge for Eleanor, riding a former show jumper she didn’t know at all. Even so, she led through every phase to take the title.

Olympic medalist Chris Kappler, who judged the class over two days with Caitlin Venezia White, said he appreciated collaboration among trainers, like that shown by Ken and Emily.

“It’s just fun to see people trying to help riders and the next generation. You see that a lot in Europe and I think that’s starting to happen more and more in America.”

Chris told the victor: “Eleanor, you never gave up. Even on the last horse, when you could have been conservative, you just went in and solidified that round. We fought over whether you’d get 100,” he said, smiling at his judging partner.

Caitlin added, “She personified what this class means.”

Baylee Rowan’s turn on Favorit Julius, who was Emily Jurnovoy’s ride, ran into trouble at the second fence in her second round, where he crashed through it. Undeterred, she turned around, took him back over the obstacle and continued her trip without incident. But that mishap would put the 2024 and 2025 Region I Maclay winner from Rhode Island in third place.

Lily, meanwhile, fell off at the middle element of the triple combination after Watermelon, the mount being shown by Baylee, stopped there. But Lily, a Floridian who also trains with Ali Sweetnam, returned aboard other horses in the next two rounds to finish the class, winding up fourth.

Emily, the only rider who faced no extra challenge in her performance, was the reserve champion. The Connecticut resident  who won the Maclay at Devon attends Auburn University and trains with Linda Langmeier.

 

Chris, who designed the courses, was impressed by the Final Four riders.

“From the moment they walked into the ring,  there was a certain amount of presence. I felt like they were riding leg to hand on the flat. You just saw the horses march into the ring, you saw a connection from the hind leg into the horse’s mouth. They all demonstrated showmanship, connection to the horse.

“What I loved most is the two who had trouble, they got back on, they worked their way through it, they gutted it out and actually finished well on the different horses. I thought that displayed some incredible horsemanship.”

As Caitlin noted, “The two young ladies that had issues came back and showed what they’re capable of. Tremendous props to both of you for coming back on strange horses after having things not go the way you planned. We were very impressed with the way you walked in and still rode forward on new horses, acting like that had never happened.”

For Eleanor, the victory was a milestone.

“This feels pretty huge. It feels like I’ve been kind of working at this class for several years and never quite succeeded.

“So I’m really glad it went well…and I’m looking forward to the opportunity it brings me in the future in the jumper ring.”

Eleanor, 18, has been trained since she was 12 by Berry Porter, who worked at the Talent Search with Missy Clark of North Run, while Linda Langmeier (whose daughter McKayla won in the East finals in 2017) offered moral support.

“I admire everything she does every day,” Berry said of his protege.

“Her work ethic is unbelievable.”

Berry added, “I think that this moment is not just about what this class means, but it’s about how everybody can come together and create top professionals. When it comes back around to it, it just comes down to horsemanship and digging in and getting it done. All the girls were incredible.

“I think that everything was built and designed with so much horsemanship and thought that it made a really fun class.”

The judges, he pointed out “made it really clear they weren’t harping on little mistakes. They really wanted to see a rider who could shine through and continue on and pick up from that mistake and balance their animal and make the course work out. I thought the whole weekend was very much an educational moment for everybody.”

The new format had the flat phase lead into the gymnastics, which previously were separate competitions. Having the class on two days instead of three overall also was easier on the horses.

“With the new format, a lot of thought was put in about the welfare of the horse. That is a major concern of all of ours. It was important to reduce it by one day,” said DiAnn Langer, the USEF’s youth chef d’equipe and youth technical advisor.

“We will continue to take a look at it, keep refining it until we get it just where it needs to be.”

Anne Kursinski, USEF development coach, noted several of the Talent Search competitors had been on teams that she coached.

“That’s what it’s all about, following the pathway and connecting the dots,” she said.

John Brennan, Missy Clark’s husband, told me he felt the flat exercises were on the mark; just what a rider would use to warm up before a jumper class, and the gymnastics made sense, rather than being gimmicky and confusing to the horses, as they sometimes had been in the past.

David Distler, manager of the Talent Search, noted the class will continue to evolve. Questions have been raised about the Final Four, which the FEI discontinued after 2018 for its world championships.

He noted that four extra rounds after the flat segment, gymnastics and Sunday morning jumping phase can be tiring, particularly for older horses.

“It’s a special event, and you want to keep it special,” said David, who thinks it’s important to continue taking a close look at the entirety of the class.

“Is the Final Four necessary? Can we do something else? Keep it special, but don’t do that,” David wondered.

It will take some thought, he pointed out, because, “You don’t want to turn it into all the other finals. You’ve got to do something to make it stand out.”