The Washington International Horse Show (WIHS) hosts its 58th annual competition in Washington, D.C. coming up on October 25-30, 2016.
Thanks to its selection in 2015 to join the inaugural Longines FEI World CupTM Jumping North American League, WIHS competition features more prize money, and more FEI world ranking points, this year than ever before.
The Longines FEI World CupTM Jumping Washington CSI4*-W, presented by Events DC, will be the feature event of the week at WIHS on Saturday, October 29, offering increased prize money of $130,000. The grand prix also awards the show’s most prestigious prize, the President of the United States Perpetual Cup, a trophy given to the show in 1961 by First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy.
WIHS draws an impressive roster of international show jumping competitors each year, and this year will be no different, with Olympians and top grand prix show jumpers from around the world scheduled to compete.
Representing international show jumping in their nation’s capital, Beezie Madden, Kent Farrington and McLain Ward will all compete at this year’s WIHS. Three of the world’s best riders, they were a part of the U.S. Show Jumping Team that won the Olympic silver medal in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, this summer. Farrington also finished fifth overall individually. Other top show jumpers scheduled to compete include Olympian Harrie Smolders (NED) and young rising star Jos Verlooy (BEL).
While you may know the career highlights of these riders forwards and backwards, you may not know the fascinating details of their respective histories at WIHS. Here’s a little refresher history:
Beezie Madden:
PC: Shawn McMillen
Based in Cazenovia, N.Y., Beezie Madden has set the standard for show jumping in many ways. She was the first woman to pass the $1 million mark in earnings for show jumping. In 2004, she became the first woman and the first American rider to reach the top three on the Show Jumping world-ranking list. Madden is also the only four-time USEF Equestrian of the Year. In April of 2013, Madden won the FEI World Cup Finals in Gothenburg, Sweden.
Madden is an Individual Olympic Bronze Medalist and a member of the two gold medal U.S. teams from the 2004 and 2008 Olympic Games. She also was a part of the U.S silver medal team in Rio in 2016. Madden is a two-time winner of the WIHS President’s Cup Grand Prix, putting her name on the trophy for the first time in 1999 aboard her horse Innocence, and taking the title again in 2002 aboard Mr. & Mrs. Joseph Patton’s Conquest II.
McLain Ward:
PC: Shawn McMillen
McLain Ward hails from Brewster, N.Y., with a long and storied history at the Washington International Horse Show. Ward began showing at WIHS from a young age, winning the WIHS Equitation Finals in 1993 and going on to become a four-time winner of the prestigious WIHS President’s Cup Grand Prix. He first won in 2004 aboard Double H Farm’s Goldika 559, took the title two times aboard his own and Blue Chip Bloodstock’s superstar mare Sapphire in 2008 and 2010, and won again in 2014 with Double H Farm’s HH Carlos Z.
Ward is a two-time Olympic gold medalist, 2015 Pan American individual champion, and mostly recently helped the U.S. Show Jumping Team earn a silver medal in the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio. As of August 31, 2016, Ward is the number four-ranked rider in the world on the Longines FEI World Rankings.
Kent Farrington:
PC: Shawn McMillen
With his home base now in Wellington, Fla., Kent Farrington rose to fame as one of the top show jumpers in the world from his start in Chicago. Farrington first competed at WIHS in the Junior Jumpers and topped the WIHS Equitation Finals in 1999 before continuing on as a professional show jumper. Among his many accolades worldwide, Farrington has won the coveted WIHS President’s Cup Grand Prix two times, first in 2005 aboard Madison, owned by Alexa Weeks, and again in 2013 aboard Robin Parsky’s Blue Angel.
In 2016, Farrington represented the United States in his first Olympic Games and helped Team USA earn the silver medal in Rio de Janiero. He also finished fifth individually. Farrington is currently the number two-ranked rider in the world on the Longines FEI World Rankings (as of August 31, 2016).
Harrie Smolders:
PC: Shawn McMillen
In 2015, Harrie Smolders of The Netherlands was the winner of the Longines FEI World CupTM Jumping Washington CSI4*-W, presented by Events DC, aboard Axel Verlooy and Eurohorse Bvba’s Emerald. That was Smolders’ second trip to Washington and his second win of the President’s Cup Grand Prix. Smolders also put his name on the famous trophy in 2006 riding Exquis Oliver Q for Team Exquis and Axel Verlooy.
With his residence in Lage Mierde, Netherlands, Smolders rides out of Verlooy’s Eurohorse stable in Grobbendonk, Belgium. Smolders also represented The Netherlands with winning WIHS mount Emerald in this summer’s Olympic Games in Rio and was second in this year’s Longines FEI World Cup Jumping Final in Gothenburg.
Jos Verlooy:
PC: Shawn McMillen
In his first trip to WIHS in 2015, Jos Verlooy made his presence known, earning a host of awards at just 19 years of age. The rider had consistent results throughout the week’s international jumper classes, including a win in the $25,000 The Boeing Company Puissance, and a fourth place finish in the Longines FEI World CupTM Jumping Washington CSI4*-W, presented by Events DC.
Verlooy was presented with the Leading International Jumper Rider Award, the Leading Under 25 Rider Bonus, accepted the Leading Jumper Owner Award on behalf of his father, Axel Verlooy, and Eurohorse Bvba, and also earned the Leading Foreign Rider award. Verlooy won Belgian and European Junior Championships and was the youngest rider ever to be qualified for the World Cup Finals in 2015.
One of the most recognized equestrian events in the world, featuring great time-honored tradition and a unique metropolitan location, WIHS hosts 500 horses and riders from all over the globe each season. The 58th annual Washington International Horse Show runs October 25-30, 2016, at Verizon Center in downtown Washington, D.C. For more information, please visit www.wihs.org.
About the Washington International Horse Show
Established in 1958, the Washington International Horse Show is one of the most prestigious and entertaining equestrian events in North America. More than 26,000 spectators attend the six-day show, which includes Olympic-level competition along with community and charity events.
More than 500 top horses and riders come to D.C. from all over the globe to jump for more than a half a million dollars in prize money. Highlights include the $130,000 Longines FEI World Cup™ Jumping Washington, President’s Cup Grand Prix, presented by Events DC (Saturday night), the $25,000 Puissance high jump, presented by The Boeing Company on Military Night (Friday) and Kids’ Day (Saturday), a free, fun and educational community event.
The Washington International Horse Show Association, Ltd. is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit charitable organization headquartered in Washington, D.C. WIHS is an official USEF Heritage Competition and is currently ranked #7 in the Top 25 Horse Shows by the North American Riders Group. WIHS is rated CSI4*-W by the Fédération Equestre Internationale, the world governing body for horse sports.