Dressage Athletes To Watch:
Laura Graves (Geneva, Fla.)
Previously a hairstylist, Graves quit her job to pursue a career in equestrian and has found great success. Graves and her mount Verdades, known as Diddy, have continued to electrify the U.S. dressage scene since their contribution to a team bronze medal in the Olympic Games Rio 2016. Following the Rio Games, Graves and Diddy continued to produce outstanding results, including top placings in the 2017, 2018, and 2019 FEI Dressage World Cup Final competitions, including defeating her rival, Germany’s Isabel Werth, in the FEI Grand Prix in the 2018 FEI Dressage World Cup Final. Their top performances earned them a spot on their second consecutive World Equestrian Games U.S. Dressage Team in 2018, where they contributed to the silver-medal finish and collected individual silver in the Grand Prix Special in 2018.
Adrienne Lyle (Wellington, Fla.)
2012 Olympian Adrienne Lyle has been a valuable member of the U.S. Dressage Team, competing on several Nations Cup teams in the last several years. In 2017, she and Salvino were named the USEF Grand Prix Dressage Reserve National Champions. In 2018, she was selected to her second World Equestrian Games team after competing on all three U.S. Dressage Nations Cup teams, where she helped the U.S. claim team silver while riding Salvino.
Kasey Perry-Glass (Wellington, Fla.)
Kasey-Perry Glass joined the ranks of international elite equestrian athletes in 2016 when she and Goerklintgaards Dublet made their Grand Prix debut on the international circuit. Their breakout second-place finishes at the 2016 Adequan® Global Dressage Festival would earn them the spotlight on the international circuit and a spot on the 2016 Olympic team. A valuable team member, Perry-Glass has competed on several FEI Dressage Nations Cup™ teams over the last several years. In 2017, she and Goerklintgaards Dublet were named the USEF Grand Prix Dressage National Champions. After taking a break from competition in the fall of 2017, Perry-Glass and Goerklintgaards Dublet made their first appearance of 2018 at the Global Dressage Festival, where they won the CDI3* Grand Prix and Grand Prix Freestyle to Music. In 2018, Perry-Glass was selected to her first WEG team, contributing to the U.S. Dressage Team’s silver-medal effort.
Jumping Athletes to Watch:
Laura Kraut (Royal Palm Beach, Fla.)
For almost three decades, Laura Kraut has represented the U.S. at Olympic Games, World Championships, and in numerous Nations Cup competitions. She made her Olympic Games debut at Sydney 2000 and earned her first team medal as part of the U.S. team at the 2006 FEI World Equestrian Games in Aachen, Germany. Kraut has been a member of numerous medal-winning FEI Jumping Nations Cup teams, including a member of the first all-women FEI Jumping Nations Cup CSIO5* Dublin gold-medal winning team and recipient of the Aga Khan Trophy in 2017. Later that year, she was a member of the U.S. jumping team for the FEI Jumping Nations Cup Final, where they earned the silver medal. Kraut was named to her third FEI World Equestrian Games in 2018, where she and Zeremonie helped the U.S. jumping team win gold and secure its qualification for Tokyo 2020.
Elizabeth “Beezie” Madden (Cazenovia, N.Y.)
Four-time Olympian and two-time Olympic team gold medalist, Elizabeth “Beezie” Madden has been a mainstay in U.S. jumping for nearly three decades. Following Rio 2016, she helped the U.S. jumping team earn the 2017 FEI Jumping Nations Cup Final silver medal aboard Darry Lou. She added her second FEI Jumping World Cup Final to her resume in with the help of Breitling LS. Madden has represented the U.S. in the world’s most prestigious competitions, becoming the first American to break into the top three in show jumping's world rankings. She was the first woman to pass the $1 million mark in earnings for jumping. Madden has won the USEF Equestrian of the Year title four times, including back-to-back honors in 2006 and 2007 – she was the first rider ever to do so – and then again earning back-to-back honors in 2013 and 2014.
McLain Ward (Brewster, N.Y.)
Ward has been a valuable member of the U.S. jumping team, competing in every major world championship from 2004 up to 2018. Following Rio 2016, at which he contributed to the team silver medal, Ward continued to accumulate impressive results. In 2017, he won his first FEI Jumping World Cup Final title in front of a home crowd with HH Azur. Their hot streak continued, helping the U.S. team earn the silver medal in the 2017 FEI Jumping Nations Cup Final. Ward and Clinta were part of the gold medal-winning team at the World Equestrian Games Tryon 2018. In 2019, he and HH Azur won the $500,000 Rolex Grand Prix CSI5* during the final week of the Winter Equestrian Festival. In May, Ward and HH Azur won the $250,000 Sapphire Grand Prix of Devon CSI4*, a feat Ward has accomplished 11 times in his career.
