And unless you’re very lucky, it is almost impossible to reach the top of this sport without sacrifice. Grueling preparation, blood, sweat, tears, inevitable loss and unwavering perseverance are the name of the eventing game.

From redemption and lifelong dreams reimagined to young up-and-coming eventers packed with potential, every athlete has her own unique reason for seeking five-star status. We talked to the six first-time five-star riders at the 2025 Defender Kentucky Three-Day Event to learn about the special bonds they share with their equine athletes and their personal journeys in pursuing elite eventing status.

Arden Wildasin (USA)

• Age: 32
• Eventing partner: 18-year-old Irish Sport Horse gelding Sunday Times (“Mumbles”)
• Homebase: Aiken, South Carolina
• FEI Starts: 168
• FEI Wins: 5
• Fun fact: She never wears a watch on cross country and instead relies on feel to measure her time.

Even behind her sunglasses, Arden Wildasin was beaming after she and Sunday Times—her eventing partner of 10 years—completed their first CCI5*-L at this year’s Defender Kentucky Three-Day Event. When she discovered Mumbles through a sale in Ireland as an 8-year-old, Wildasin was impressed by his confident nature on cross country and took a chance on the gray gelding. Their partnership has been a decade in the making, but the now five-star eventer noted that growing together from the ground up allowed the pair to develop a solid and trusting foundation.

“It’s been a lifelong journey I’ve been working toward. I truly didn’t know if I was going to be a five-star rider or not. I knew we had a lot of homework to do together to prepare, but he is one unbelievable horse, especially at 18,” she said. “This weekend was such a win for us. We just kept checking all the boxes, so no matter what happened in the end, I felt like we accomplished an incredible goal. I’m so thankful for Mumbles. He will always be in my barn.”

Leading up to Kentucky, Wildasin was keenly focused on ramping up Mumbles’ fitness and over time his strength and endurance have improved for all three phases. “He’s kind of like my younger brother and definitely has his quirks,” she laughed. “And even though he’s gotten stronger, I still have to be very sensitive with him. I can’t micro-manage him, but I can’t just say, ‘Go at your free will.’ So, we’ve found a fine balance.”

Wildasin says dressage has always been the most challenging phase for the gelding, but the pair executed one of their best-ever tests at Kentucky this year, and even though they ran into a few mistakes and learning opportunities on cross country, she was thrilled that they completed Derek di Grazia’s tough five-star track. She also noted that Mumbles naturally has a more collected stride, which sometimes presents challenges in show jumping.

“With his tighter stride, he kind of pings around the arena instead of having that nice, more flowing 12-foot canter stride. So we felt a little out of control in the jumping, but it was a good learning experience because I have to get used to that longer length of stride for the bigger jumps,” she said. “But he just kept on jumping and was like, ‘Sure, Mom, I got this.’ So I told him to just keep on believing in himself, and I would follow his lead.”

Over the course of her long journey making it to the five-star level, Wildasin has learned to seek out every learning opportunity and to simply view mistakes as the stepping stones to success. And for fellow eventers who are striving to work their way up through the levels, she advises embracing your doubts and frustrations.

“Those moments actually allow you to grow. They sharpen your weaker areas—and you’d be surprised that those weaker areas can sometimes become your strengths,” she said. “And be vocal so everything’s not just bottled up in your head. There’s a real community out there available to help and bounce ideas off of. There’s not just one cookie cutter way of doing things for every horse. It takes a collective approach, and knowledge is the most unbelievable key you can have.”

Cassie Sanger (USA)

• Age: 20
• Eventing partner: 12-year-old Dutch Warmblood (KWPN) gelding Redfield Fyre (“Yogi”)
• Homebase: Ocala, Florida
• FEI Starts: 50
• FEI Wins: 3
• Fun fact: Sanger was the youngest competitor in this year’s Kentucky CCI5*-L and started her partnership with Yogi when she was only 15.

Young up-and-coming eventer Cassie Sanger, who remained calm and collected over the grueling event, at last emerged emotional after completing her first CCI5*-L with Redfield Fyre following show jumping at this year’s Defender Kentucky Three-Day Event.

“I feel like I’ve learned so much this week about myself, my horse and the sport in general. It takes so much to get here and is always such a work in progress, but to be here among the best riders in the world is just unbelievable,” she said. “I was watching Michael Jung schooling in the dressage warm-up and you can learn so much just from watching him and the other top riders. I tried to soak up all the experience I could.”

Sanger and Yogi have been partners for five years now, after she purchased the gelding from Caroline Pamukcu when she was only 15. The pair started their eventing career at the Novice level and worked their way up through the ranks. “We’ve really grown up together. He’s like a sibling to me and has been an incredible partner,” she said. “I always believed he could be my five-star horse. He’s been amazing since I’ve had him, and it’s been a wonderful journey together to get here. And it’s unbelievable to be here with a horse I know so well inside and out.”

Having the mental and emotional tenacity to produce a horse from the ground up at such a young age has undoubtedly proven the scope of Sanger’s talent and potential. After this first experience, she notes this is the way she wants to continue producing her future eventing horses. “I’ve loved getting to know Yogi through every single level and new experience,” she said. “I think that’s really key to building such a strong partnership.”

Going into Kentucky, Sanger decided to only do one prep run with Yogi because he’s naturally a cross-country machine and she laughs that he can be a tricky ride and is quite emotional. “You have to keep him happy. After advancing to the four-star level last year, I’ve focused on finding a training and fitness routine that works best for him,” Sanger, who works with notable eventing coach Leslie Law, noted. “I typically do shorter rides twice a day because he doesn’t have a lot of gas in the tank to drill the flatwork too much. So, I ask for about 15 minutes of his time, and we’re good on that.”

Sanger, who’s currently a full-time student studying journalism at the University of Richmond in Richmond, Virginia, is also a recent recipient of the Wilton Fair Fund grant and will be heading overseas to England where she’ll be based with top British eventer Rosalind “Ros” Canter. “There are a lot of moving parts right now,” she laughed. “I’m just trying to take it one step at a time.”

In offering advice to others looking to make their way up through the levels, Sanger noted the importance of having a solid support team and coaches that you trust. “You need people who are going to be there to pick you up when you’re down and who will support you through thick and thin,” she said. “It doesn’t matter if you have the best horse. We never thought Yogi would be here and he’s here now. Just never give up and never doubt.”

Mary Bess Davis (USA)

• Age: 46
• Eventing partner: 11-year-old AES gelding Imperio Magic (“McColl”)
• Homebase: Mansfield, Georgia
• FEI Starts: 39
• Fun facts: Davis started her equestrian career in vaulting competition and returned to the eventing Advanced level in 2022 after taking a 10-year hiatus from the sport.

Mary Bess Davis knew Imperio Magic had five-star potential when the gelding was only 7 with barely a year of competition experience under his belt after the pair won the 2021 Young Horse National Championship at the U.S. Equestrian Federation CCI3*-L Eventing National Championships at Fair Hill, Maryland.

“On that first track at Fair Hill, my plan was to pull up if he felt overwhelmed at any time because this was his start and it was a hard track,” Davis remembered. “But he went out there and tagged it. I knew he something really special when we finished that day. It was so hard, but he loved it and it seemed easy for him.”

During their four-star debut at Stable View in Aiken, South Carolina, in the fall of 2022, the pair finished in fourth and took second at their second four-star a month later at The Event at TerraNova in Myakka City, Florida. After their rapid-fire success, Davis began to realize her long-held dream of competing in the CCI5*-L at the Kentucky Three-Day Event just might come to fruition.

From the onset of his still young eventing career, Davis says McColl seemed to have a sixth sense for understanding the sport and despite how difficult it is to get a horse to this level, she’s grateful for the lessons he’s taught her and the broader education she’s gained along the way.

“I’ve always wanted to do five-star, but I’d been disappointed so many times before, I’d just never set my sights on it,” she said. “I didn’t even know if would be possible, but I wanted to try. And when I got McColl, I was just relaxed about it and thought what’s going to be will be. In hindsight, it’s incredible how things all fell into place.”

After falling off a young horse and breaking her back in 2008 followed by both her advanced horses suffering significant injuries, Davis took a 10-year break from the sport to start a family and noted how challenging her five-star journey has been. “You have to be so tough and resilient to get to this level,” she said. “And you simply have to embrace the journey, with all of its ups and downs.”

To keep McColl happy and his training routine well-rounded, his groom Courtney Lucas takes the gelding for a hack a couple times a week. Davis said dressage is definitely the more challenging phase for him, but after devoting many training hours to improving his flatwork, their dressage scores have steadily improved.

“For dressage, we really focus on relaxation and trying to get him stronger,” she said. “But most importantly, we try to just enjoy each other. He’s quite quirky, but he’s a huge pet, and we all adore him. And he really loves Courtney.”

After completing their first CCI5*-L track at Kentucky this year, Davis continues to be awed by McColl’s talent and future potential as a five-star powerhouse. “I was smiling the whole way around, because he was just so on top of it,” she said. “He was just radar-focused and was listening and trying so hard out there for me.”

Shannon Lilley (USA)

• Age: 46
• Eventing partner: 11-year-old Selle Français gelding Eindhoven Garette (“Garrett”)
• Homebase: West Chester, Pennsylvania
• FEI Starts: 76
• FEI Wins: 3
• Fun fact: Garrett is also known as “Gare Bear” around the barn due to his Care-Bear resemblance.

Shannon Lilley’s longtime goal of competing in the CCI5*-L at Kentucky has been in the making for more than a decade. And—at least for now—the fact that she and Eindhoven Garette completed this year’s five-star competition still seems surreal. “I can’t believe it’s not a dream anymore,” she said. “It’s even weird to say out loud.”

The upper-level eventer woke up one morning in February 2012—not long after she’d helped win a team gold at the 2011 Pan American Games—without any feeling from the waist down. Doctors at the hospital informed Lilley that the L5 disc in her lower back had ruptured crushing the nerves toward the base of her spinal column and emergency surgery was crucial. Since she was only 32 at the time, the surgeon opted to forgo fusing her vertebrae with hopes that scar tissue would stabilize her spine without sacrificing range of motion.

This major speed bump in her career created a lot of uncertainty for Lilley, and she admits that her Kentucky aspirations seemed all but hopeless at this life juncture. Her surgeon didn’t believe she would ride again—a thought Lilley couldn’t fully grasp at the time—so her immediate focus shifted toward quality of life and recovery.

After months of physical therapy and working with a functional strength coach, she slowly regained more nerve function, which was key to helping her rebuild and retrain her muscles. “I do this sport because I love the horses so much,” Lilley said. “And I didn’t want my life without them, so I just kept on going.”

In true horsewoman fashion, Lilley was horseback again seven months after surgery, but continued to struggle with her balance and overwhelming nausea in the saddle. With time, however, she regained strength and mobility, and these issues resolved.

As she worked to rebuild her eventing career, she found the perfect confidence-boosting partner in Greenfort Carnival, who helped Lilley return to the Advanced level while they competed together from 2016 through 2020. “It took a long time, but he was horse who helped me prove to myself that I could do it again,” she said.

Lilley met her future five-star mount Eindhoven Garette in 2020 after relocating her business to the East Coast from California. With more consistent training and maturity, the gelding’s potential started to blossom and prior to Kentucky, the pair successfully completed two CCI4*-L events at Morven Park in Virginia and at Bromont in Quebec, Canada.

“He has so much heart. I’ve never had a horse who tries harder. He loves his work. And as long as I ask the right questions, he always answers,” she said. “And he’s such fantastic jumper and always knows where his feet are.”

Lilley also noted that it was additionally special to make her five-star debut at Kentucky. “Everyone dreams of riding at the Kentucky Horse Park as kids,” she laughed. “Kentucky is our home five-star, and it was incredible to be able to ride here.”

Brooke Burchianti (USA)

• Age: 26
• Eventing partner: 12-year-old KWPN gelding Cooley Space Grey (“Astro”)
• Homebase: Washington, Pennsylvania
• FEI Starts: 25
• Fun fact: Burchianti’s first eventing partner was a 28-year-old Welsh pony named Roxy, who helped the budding 8-year-old eventer navigate her first unrecognized starter event.

Even after Brooke Burchianti and Cooley Space Grey finished show jumping at Kentucky, she admitted that it hadn’t sunk in yet that she can now call herself a five-star rider. “It’s incredible. And I’m just so happy for Astro,” she said. “He’s such a special boy and deserves this just as much as I do for sure and probably more. I’m so proud of him.”

While you wouldn’t know it from her cool demeanor when she and Astro are tearing up the cross-country track, Burchianti suffers from crippling pre-competition nerves. And tackling her first five-star at the Kentucky Horse Park only amplified her normal anxiety. A few days before heading to Lexington, Burchianti wandered out to Astro’s pasture to clear her head and focus on the task at hand.

“I was looking up at the sky and thought I could just really use a sign that everything was going to be OK,” she remembered. “I looked down and this four-leaf clover was right in there in front of me.”

Like many eventers, Burchianti maintains her fair share of superstitions before any big competition. So she scooped up the lucky charm and kept it with her throughout the event, even displaying it on her medical arm band during cross country. “I know it’s silly and people think it doesn’t do anything,” she laughed. “But for me, it seems to help my mental stability and keep me focused.”

Burchianti—who grew up riding with her mom, three-star event rider Karen Burchianti—found Astro in Ireland as a 6-year-old and noted that he wasn’t the easiest horse to produce to the five-star level. In the beginning, he was spooky and an overall difficult ride, but there was something about him that told her to keep on going. The key to their partnership turned out to be developing trust over time. “You can’t convince or bully him into doing anything,” she said. “And once I earned his trust, I felt like things really began to click for us.”

She said Astro far exceeded her expectations over the grueling Kentucky cross-country five-star track. “Anywhere he needed to be clever, he was,” she said. “It was a long, hard course, but he tried so hard and gave it his all.”

To get Astro in peak physical condition going into Kentucky, Burchianti utilized the hills surrounding her homebase in western Pennsylvania. “We did a lot hill work including trot sets and gallops uphill. That really helped get him fit for this level of competition,” she said. “And I think it helped, especially on cross country. He was a little tired, but he still had plenty of gas in the tank.”

For show-jumping preparation, Burchianti incorporates work with placement poles before fences and practices going for longer distances to encourage Astro to keep his stride more open. “That really paid off in the jumping because he was so forward in covering the distances,” she said. “But he’s always been a very gifted jumper and is extremely careful.”

In offering advice to fellow eventers who suffer from pre-competition jitters, she suggests focusing on one thing at a time in that single moment, starting in the warm-up ring. “Even when I was insanely nervous getting ready in the tack room, I just took it one step at a time. I put on my vest. Then, I put on my helmet and kept telling myself I could do all these easy, little tasks,” Burchianti said. “Then, on cross country, I just focused on the first fence. Once we got that done, I was like, ‘OK, let’s keep on going from here and see what happens.’ If you look at it terms of just checking one little box at a time, it makes the big picture not so overwhelming.”

Lucienne Bellissimo (GBR)

• Age: 41
• Eventing partner: 12-year-old Holsteiner gelding Dyri
• Homebase: South Carolina and Florida
• FEI Starts: 170
• FEI Wins: 6
• Fun fact: Her Kentucky CCI5*-L debut has been 20 years in the making after two near career-ending injuries.

Lucienne Bellissimo admitted that she experienced an overwhelming moment when she and her team were packing up the trailer to head to Lexington just a few weeks ago. An avalanche of “what ifs” flooded her focus—from fears that she and Dyri might be off their game any given day of the grueling competition that spanned over four days to self-doubts and worrying that her gelding might cut himself in the trailer en route to their five-star debut. But her vast experience and the inevitable wisdom she’s gained over the past two decades she’s been working toward this goal prevailed.

“It’s really emotional because it’s taken me 20 years to get here,” she said. “You have to be happy and grateful every time you get to an event, but coming to the Kentucky five-star and being here with these top riders who have so much combined experience and the amazing atmosphere and overflowing positive energy—you never know when you might get a second chance at that.”

Bellissimo and Dyri, who was imported from Germany as an 8-year-old, partnered after Germany’s Dirk Schrade brought the gelding up through the two-star level. She says he’s incredibly athletic but can also be spooky and mentally fragile and would sometimes just shut down on cross country.

“It’s taken time, but he’s such a nice horse to work with. He has really natural elastic paces and just a beautiful way of going about him,” she noted.  “And he’s just gotten better and better in all the phases. It’s on me to keep producing him well. And it has to be about patience with him. I try to be very aware of that. He’s the kind of horse you cannot rush.”

Like so many riders who make it the five-star level, Bellissimo has endured her own laundry list of hardships and setbacks. She was wheelchair-bound for year after sustaining a riding accident in 2013 that shattered her foot and ankle and forced her to sell a number of horses. In 2018, a car accident in England left her with 28 broken bones and punctures in both lungs. While the recovery was long and brutal, Bellissimo wasn’t accustomed to taking the easy road. She’s learned how to withstand the ups and downs by focusing on how much joy horses and the sport bring her.

Especially in the sport of eventing, injuries tend to be a matter of when not if, but Bellissimo advises her fellow eventers to trust in their steadfast dreams in times of doubt. “Set your heart on your goals and be ambitious about it every day. Continue looking at your personal roadmap—not anyone else’s—and never let doctors, trainers or anyone else say you can’t get there in sport, business or life in general,” she said. “If you want it bad enough, you’ll find a way to get there.”

Bellissimo, who unfortunately retired on cross country after several refusals, noted that this year’s run at Kentucky wasn’t about chasing the win. It was about making it a positive and educational experience for both she and Dyri. “Getting to a five star was everything I’ve wanted in this sport,” she said. “So this weekend wasn’t about putting on the pressure. I see this as just the beginning hopefully, and I’m happy that Dyri is fit and confident and happy.”

For more of our coverage on this year’s Defender Kentucky Three-Day Event, click here.

Thanks to Kent Nutrition Group and Blue Seal for our coverage of the 2025 Defender Kentucky Three-Day Event. It includes lead-up events, rider interviews, competition reports, horse spotlights, photos, videos and more.

This year’s three-day event that spanned over five days starting with the CCI5*-L first horse inspection also saw U.S.-favorite Boyd Martin deliver a near flawless dressage test in the pouring rain aboard Commando 3 and complete the CCI5*-L with three horses in the top 10. Martin’s performances at Kentucky this year also launched him to the number-one spot in the FEI Eventing World Rankings.

Of additional note, six horse-and-rider combinations competed in their first five-star at Kentucky this year, with five pairs completing.

We hope you enjoy this last glance at the 2025 KY3DE!

For more of our coverage on this year’s Defender Kentucky Three-Day Event, click here.

Thanks to Kent Nutrition Group and Blue Seal for our coverage of the 2025 Defender Kentucky Three-Day Event. It includes lead-up events, rider interviews, competition reports, horse spotlights, photos, videos and more.

Kuhn talks about the special partnership she and Little Hail have developed and the unlikely story of how the two sky-rocketed to four-star status.

The Start of a Special Partnership

Wisconsin-native Kuhn aspired to compete at the upper levels of eventing, but she endured hardships on her way there. “I had a bunch of unfortunate horse deaths in my life—freak accidents—and it kind of got to the point where you’re just about done and ready to hang it up.”

While Kuhn was thinking that it might be time to give up on her dreams, eventing husband-and-wife team John and Dorothy Crowell contacted Kuhn with a horse for her to ride: Little Hail. John had competed with gelding up to the Intermediate level but wanted to take a step back from competing, and Little Hail had been spending time in the pasture at their farm in Florida. Kuhn had previously groomed for the couple, so they were well aware of her skill and drive.

Kuhn was also familiar with Little Hail from her time as a groom and knew from the beginning that she had her work cut out for her. “I knew he was a tough ride, and he’s opinionated and he’s small,” Kuhn noted. “He’s better than you, so I knew what I was taking on.”

Despite Little Hail’s quirky nature, the partnership turned out to be a successful match. The pair began at the Beginner Novice level in 2021 and gradually worked their way up to the CCI3*-S level in 2024, earning respectable results as they developed into a team. What started as an unexpected offer to ride Little Hail made dreams come true for Kuhn. “I’ll never find another one like him; he’s my horse of a lifetime,” she said. “And my crew is made up of the best people. My sister’s grooming for me, and she used to be a four-star eventer. And my mom and John and Dorothy and Cathy Jones-Forsberg and the sea of pink out there.” 

Aiming for Kentucky

Once Kuhn and Little Hail reached the Advanced and CCI3* level, she and her team started eyeing the CCI4* level and potentially competing at Kentucky. The state holds special meaning for the dark bay gelding. He is a Kentucky-bred Thoroughbred who was foaled at a farm near the Kentucky Horse Park and owned by Patrice Wolfson, the late owner and breeder of Triple Crown winner Affirmed along with her husband Louis Wolfson.

Little Hail earned his name because he resembled Hail to Reason, a notable Thoroughbred racing sire. He only had four starts as a racehorse before switching careers to become an eventer with John and Dorothy. Before moving to Florida a few years ago, the Crowells were based in Kentucky, so Little Hail often competed at the Kentucky Horse Park. It seemed fitting that he and Kuhn would take on their first four-star in Kentucky.

Kuhn and Little Hail started the Cosequin® Lexington CCI4*-S with a workmanlike dressage test in the impressive Rolex Stadium to earn a score of 35.9. Then, they shifted their focus to the cross-country phase.

Insights from a Past Kentucky Competitor

Having someone in your corner who has Kentucky Three-Day Event experience is beneficial to any first-timer, especially for the cross-country phase. Kuhn has been fortunate to gain insights from Dorothy, who competed at Kentucky numerous times throughout her competitive career and is also an FEI World Equestrian Games individual silver medalist. Arguably Dorothy’s most notable Kentucky appearance was being the top American at the 1998 edition of the event—the first time the event was a CCI**** (comparably to today’s CCI5*-L) with her off-the-track Thoroughbred gelding Molokai.

Dorothy walked the cross-country course once herself before walking the course with Kuhn. “We discussed all the options,” she said. “And we talked about what would probably work best for ‘Hail’ and Ali at this point in their career doing their first four-star.”

In Dorothy’s estimation, some of the fences on the four-star track seemed like four-and-a-half-star questions, so she suggested Kuhn take some of the long routes for Little Hail, such as at the downhill approach to the two brush corners. “Although I really feel he would have done it, it wasn’t fair to ask him at this point,” Dorothy said of his debut at the level.

With the cross-country plan in place, it was time for Kuhn to execute after some final advice from Dorothy on riding the diminutive but talented Little Hail. “I told Ali to remember that she’s on a pony-horse. He’s only 15.1, but he has the step of a full-sized horse so he can do it,” she said. “So get your line, get your canter, stay supportive and let him add or leave out. Don’t be committed to a stride. Have a plan but let him be the athlete he is.”

Three, Two, One…Go!

Kuhn said she felt like she let her guard down on cross country at her last Advanced event, so she was ready to focus this time out of the start box with Little Hail. “This time I came out and I was like, ‘I’m here every step. I’m here every step of the way,’ and he ate it up,” she said.

They tackled the challenging cross-country track with ease, jumping cleanly and adding 22.4 time penalties where no combinations made the optimum time. Spectators cheered on the brightly clad duo as they galloped around the course, which Kuhn said Little Hail seemed to relish in. “Every time he heard the crowd roar, he was like ‘They’re here for me?’ and I was like, ‘Yep, they are. They’re absolutely here for you,’” she lauged. “And honestly, he’s such a star and he’s such an athlete and he knows his job. That’s honestly my job to just point and shoot and stay the heck out of his way. Today I did that, and I’m so proud of me for staying out of his way. And he’s just an incredible animal. I am so blessed to ride this 15 hands of fury in bright pink.” 

Kuhn could be heard talking to Little Hail and singing to herself around course. “Any time I felt like I couldn’t breathe, I sang,” she said. “When people heard it, I thought it was more in my head than it was out loud. And then I realized I was actually singing, but it worked. Then I start breathing again.”

The singing helped Kuhn handle her nerves and stay focused in the thrilling atmosphere of the cross-country day at Kentucky as a first-timer. She admitted it was tempting to look at the crowd and take it all in, but her friend and fellow eventer Meaghan Marinovich Burdick advised against it and encouraged her to stay entirely present during her ride. “I’m so glad she told me that because I had tunnel-vision the whole time,” Kuhn said. “And it paid off today.”

Dorothy had high praise for Kuhn after her cross-country round with Little Hail, despite the nerve-wracking wait for them to come through the finish flags. “It was probably the most stressful thing I’ve ever been through. It’s a lot easier when you’re riding because you’re in control. It’s like being the passenger in a car. But I trusted the driver 100%,” she said. “I knew that Ali was going to do her absolute best to take care of the horse, and the proof is in the pudding. She rode to plan, she didn’t let any of the outside stuff happening change her plan and I am very proud of her. She’s an amazing rider.”

Completing Their First Four-Star Event

Kuhn and Little Hail showcased their bright pink colors yet again for Sunday’s horse inspection ahead of the show jumping phase. So why the bright pink? Dorothy explained that the pink is a nod to the Little Hail’s racing silks—pink, black and white—for the Wolfsons’ Harbor View Farm.

Kuhn donned a pink stock tie as she and Little Hail headed into the Rolex Stadium for the final phase of the competition. She said they were both a bit impressed by the electric atmosphere upon entering the arena, resulting in rails at fence one and the triple combination at fence five. But the pair got back on track for the remainder of their round to finish on a high note. “It’s always interesting when you hear the crowd go, ‘Aw!’ And be bummed for you, but you can’t get sucked into that and you have to stay on your path and keep riding well,” Kuhn said. “I actually think I rode better after that because I was like, ‘Oh shoot! We are at four rails. I better sit up.’”

Kuhn and Little Hail finished in 29^th place of 53 starters in only their third Advanced level competition together. This was a notable achievement for their first CCI4*-S event and first time at the Kentucky Horse Park’s premier event. “It was an incredible experience. I’m official a four-star rider. I can get my fourth star now,” Kuhn said of a cluster of star tattoos on her right wrist. “I’m thrilled. [Little Hail] is awesome. I can’t wait until the next one!”

For more of our coverage on this year’s Defender Kentucky Three-Day Event, click here.

Thanks to Kent Nutrition Group and Blue Seal for our coverage of the 2025 Defender Kentucky Three-Day Event. It includes lead-up events, rider interviews, competition reports, horse spotlights, photos, videos and more.

Check our photo gallery of this year’s Kentucky CCI5*-L and CCI4*-S cross-country riders and their fearless mounts!

For more of our coverage on this year’s Defender Kentucky Three-Day Event, click here.

Thanks to Kent Nutrition Group and Blue Seal for our coverage of the 2025 Defender Kentucky Three-Day Event. It includes lead-up events, rider interviews, competition reports, horse spotlights, photos, videos and more.

Which Dog Is the Cutest at the 2025 Defender Kentucky Three-Day Event? Poll

Vote on your pick for the cutest dog at the Defender Kentucky Three-Day Event! While we couldn’t capture photos of all the adorable pups, check out a selection of dogs below and scroll to the bottom to cast your vote and we’ll report back on the results.

For more on our coverage of the 2025 Defender Kentucky Three-Day Event, click here.

Thanks to Kent Nutrition Group and Blue Seal for our coverage of the 2025 Defender Kentucky Three-Day Event. It includes lead-up events, rider interviews, competition reports, horse spotlights, photos, videos and more.

Here’s a glimpse of the best fashions from the 2025 Defender Kentucky Three-Day Event. (You never know … we might have caught your Kentucky style on camera this year!)

For more of our coverage on the 2025 Defender Kentucky Three-Day Event, click here.

Thanks to Kent Nutrition Group and Blue Seal for our coverage of the 2025 Defender Kentucky Three-Day Event. It includes lead-up events, rider interviews, competition reports, horse spotlights, photos, videos and more.

It was a roller coaster of a five-day weekend at the 2025 Defender Kentucky Three-Day Event, starting with the CCI5*-L Jog last Wednesday and culminating with Sunday’s nail-biting show-jumping competition, which saw Will Coleman (USA) claim the CCI4*-S victory aboard Off The Record and Germany’s Michael Jung clinch his fifth Kentucky CCI5*-L win and his second with fischerChipmunk FRH.

From riders preparing for the first horse inspection, scenes from the Mixed Zone (where the media interviews competitors following their rides) and the sea of pink that flooded the cross-country finish when Ali Kuhn (USA) and off-the-track Thoroughbred Little Hail completed their first CCI4*-S to shots from the cross-country vet box, surprise guests and Boyd Martin (USA) and Commando 3 powering through a downpour to finish their CCI5*-L dressage test, this year’s competition did not disappoint.

Above all, it’s always an honor and a privilege to share the Kentucky experience with the incredible human and equine athletes the event always draws. Replete with laughter, tears, unbelievable determination and always a fervent love and devotion to the horse, here’s a behind-the-scenes glimpse of moments you might have missed while the action was going on at this year’s Kentucky Three-Day Event.

Moments From the 2025 KY3DE

For more on our coverage of the 2025 Defender Kentucky Three-Day Event, click here.

Thanks to Kent Nutrition Group and Blue Seal for our coverage of the 2025 Defender Kentucky Three-Day Event. It includes lead-up events, rider interviews, competition reports, horse spotlights, photos, videos and more.

“I think you’d be lying if it didn’t make you think a little bit more about your time allowed or obviously you don’t want to have another rail,” Coleman said of having a rail. “It was towards the end of the course and we just kind of stick to our plan. Thankfully ‘Timmy’ left the last three up, so that was bit of good luck.”

Only nine-tenths of a point behind the winners were Phillip Dutton (USA) and Possante. They were one second over the time allowed to add four-tenths of a point to their score to finish on a score of 33.9 in second place. Jessica Phoenix (CAN) and Freedom GS had one of six double-clear rounds to finish in third place on a score of 38.0.

Coleman and Off The Record Claim Top Honors

The partnership between Coleman and Off The Record took time to develop when it first began several years ago. Coleman said it had “humble beginnings” with the 2009 Irish Sporthorse gelding having a headstrong nature. Though Coleman said that toughness is also one of the horse’s strengths. “He was a pretty hearty young horse but always displayed a real knack for the cross country,” said Coleman. “As our relationship improved and we started to find little more harmony in how we were communicating, we started to really blossom. He’s really been a joy to have.”

Despite there being a limited margin of error in the final phase and the big atmosphere of the final day, Coleman said he felt quite relaxed. He even took a nap by the warm-up before it was time for him to get on. “It was a great crowd, and I really wanted to try to enjoy the whole weekend and have fun,” he said.

Another enjoyable aspect of the final day for Coleman was Steve Stevens’s show jumping course. “It’s important that every day matters at a three-day event, and the show jumping designer has a lot to do with finishing up on a good note. I thought he set a really great test for the four-star class,” said Coleman. “I thought it was an exciting day, and I just enjoyed every minute of it.”

Dutton and Possante Secure a Second-Place Finish

Dutton was pleased with his finish with Possante as well as his fourth-place finish with Denim. He credits his jumping success to his trainer, U.S. show jumper Lauren Hough. “You don’t always just have a great improvement. You have some ups and downs, and she’s been incredible,” Dutton said of Hough. “She gave me a good program to work on with these horses. It showed today, and let’s hope it keeps going.” 

While Dutton was already aiming for the Cosequin® Lexington CCI4*-S with his horses, it was an added bonus that the event serves as a qualifier for the new US Equestrian Open of Eventing. The final will take place at the Morven Park International & Fall Horse Trials in Leesburg, Virginia, Oct. 9-12, 2025. “It has certainly affected where I go and what I do,” said Dutton. “I think it is an excellent thing for the sport to bring in more money for owners and riders and more spectators. I couldn’t be more pleased with it and hope everybody really endorses it and gets involved in it.”

Phoenix and Freedom GS Climb the Leaderboard to a Third-Place Finish

Phoenix went to the Paris 2024 Olympic Games with Freedom GS, and they have had a strong spring season with a win at TerraNova. Since the Olympics, Phoenix has been focusing on improving the 2013 Trakehner mare’s dressage with the help of U.S. dressage rider Ashley Holzer. “That has just been a real game changer for me,” said Phoenix. “She just really understands how to teach me and how to explain exactly where I need to be to help my horses the most.”

The dressage homework seemed to set Phoenix and Freedom GS up for success for the weekend. The pair was 14^th after the dressage phase then fourth after cross country before ultimately finishing in third place.

In addition to riding in the CCI4*-S and CCI5*-L divisions, Phoenix rode in the 1.45-meter classes of the concurrent Kentucky International CSI5* with another horse, Virginia GS. “What an incredible opportunity to be able to do both classes of five-star eventing and show jumping,” said Phoenix.

For full results from the Cosequin® Lexington CCI4*-S, click here.

Read more about the CCI4*-S here:

Dressage Day 1 Report

Dressage Day 2 Report

Cross-Country Report

Read more about the CCI5*-L here:

First Horse Inspection

Dressage Day 1 Report

Dressage Day 2 Report

Sneak Peek: CCI5*-L Cross-Country Course

Cross-Country Report

Thanks to Kent Nutrition Group and Blue Seal for our coverage of the 2025 Defender Kentucky Three-Day Event. It includes lead-up events, rider interviews, competition reports, horse spotlights, photos, videos and more.

“So many things can go wrong. It’s happened to me a few times, but I really believe in my horse and in this place,” Jung said. “I always had a lot of luck here, and I’m very thankful for my supporters, my owners, my family and all the people that work in the background. I sit here and enjoy everything, but this is really a big win for everybody on my team, for all the other horses I can ride and train with and everyone who helped me get here.”

Jung and his team haven’t made any decisions on when it might be time for the 17-year-old Hanoverian gelding to step down from competing at the top levels, but for now it looks like “Chippy” is still loving his job. “He keeps looking super strong and as he’s gotten older, he’s more experienced. Hopefully, he stays like this and has fun and his ears are in front when he starts the cross country,” Jung said. “He’s getting so well balanced and feels really motivated. So, hopefully a few more years.”

Following today’s show jumping, Boyd Martin (USA) and Commando 3 held on to their steady second slot, and Harry Meade (GBR) and Et Hop Du Matz took third.

Boyd Martin and Commando 3 Seal Second

Even though Jung came in with a huge cushion after jumping clear during Saturday’s cross country with 2.4 time penalties on a score of 21.0, Boyd Martin fans were still biting their nails as they rooted on the top-performing American rider and his 2024 Paris Olympics reserve mount, 12-year-old Holsteiner gelding Commando 3. Although he and “Conner” went clear, on a final score of 32.0, they weren’t able to surpass Jung.

While Martin—the ever-consummate competitor—would have preferred the first-place slot, he achieved massive success this weekend with three horses finishing in the top seven of the CCI5*-L leaderboard.

“I’m very, very blessed at the moment to have just a group of incredible horses,” Martin said. “I’ve ridden a lot of horses around this competition, and it’s just a pleasure to ride freakishly talented animals and I’m very pleased with all three of them.”

The Making of a Great

The humble Jung was undoubtedly an inspiration to his fellow eventers. Martin noted that Jung is an inspiration to his own riding.

“Going into today, I figured I had two chances of winning. Maybe Michael drank too much bourbon last night or maybe he goes off course,” Martin kidded. “In all seriousness, though, I think he’ll be remembered as one of the greatest eventers in his lifetime. I often watch videos of him and try and copy him. I’ve never seen a rider so strong in all three phases.”

Meade agreed that Jung will be remembered as one of the eventing greats. “I’ve followed the sport from the 50s, 60s, 70s—before I was even born, and I think Michi is hands down, without a doubt, the greatest event rider there’s ever been,” Meade said. “And I don’t think there will ever be anyone better, and I think we are living in a moment with an extraordinary thing. I think often when it’s happening at the time, people don’t appreciate it, but I think he will be remembered in 50 years’ time as the best there ever was.”

While Jung says he loves competing at Kentucky and the other big events, it all comes down to the horses. “Even without these events, I just really love to ride the horses. When I was young, directly from the beginning, I loved to ride and train horses,” Jung said. “I really love the animals and I’m really happy with what I’m doing every day.”

For More:

• Like many of the KY3DE riders, who have morning travel plans, our editors have to hit the road early tomorrow morning to head to their homebases. But we gleaned so many valuable insights and training advice from top eventers from around the globe this past week, and we can’t wait to share it all with you. Plus, we’ll be having our new annual “Cutest K3DE Pup” contest and the best fashions of this year’s event.
• For more on our live coverage of the 2025 Defender Kentucky Three-Day Event, click here.

Thanks to Kent Nutrition Group and Blue Seal for our coverage of the 2025 Defender Kentucky Three-Day Event. It includes lead-up events, rider interviews, competition reports, horse spotlights, photos, videos and more.

After delivering a personal-best dressage score of 21.8 yesterday, Will Coleman (USA) and 16-year-old Irish Sport Horse gelding Off the Record held onto their overnight lead after making the fastest time over Derek di Grazia’s challenging four-star track on a final score of 29 and adding only 7.2 time penalties to their dressage score.

“When I walked the course, I wasn’t sure anybody was going to be able to get the time,” Coleman said. “It was a fantastic track and extremely challenging, but the way the questions were sort of strung together made it difficult to get the necessary average speed for the time allowed. In a way, this actually kept the competition a little more intense because you never knew how everyone was going to line up when the rides went well.”

Seven-time Olympian Phillip Dutton (USA) and 12-year-old KWPN Possante had a commanding ride today to retain their second-place spot on 33.5. “He worries about things a bit, so it’s not a case of being too firm with him,” Dutton said about his fairly new ride Possante. “You’ve got to sort of let him understand it and learn that way rather than forcing him to do it. But he’s really coming into becoming a top horse.”

Dutton and 10-year-old Holsteiner gelding Denim, who held the overnight lead during the first day of dressage competition on a score of 25.6, also had a solid run today on 37.2 that landed them in third going into show jumping tomorrow. After running two horses over di Grazia’s four-star track today, Dutton admitted he was relieved when it was over.

“It was a lot of hard work. We certainly knew it was a strong track going in and then it being a bit soggy after the rain yesterday, but I was really happy with both horses,” he said. “You just try to block out all the distractions and make sure that when you get on your horse you’re thinking about everything you need to do to get the job done and what your horse likes and dislikes and what he’s good at and not so good at.”

The Mental Toughness Game

Tackling three disciplines in three days in a highly unpredictable sport—where the horse’s health and well-being are top priority and Murphy’s Law is inevitably more applicable—requires a high degree of mental toughness. And every eventing athlete develops this capacity through their own process over time.

With decades of experience under his belt, Dutton has honed his ability to conjure the right mindset when he leaves the start box to focus on his horse’s needs.

“Obviously coming to an event like this with more distractions, it’s not quite as easy to do that. But as riders and horsemen, you have to get used to understanding what’s best for your horse,” he said. “I think everybody’s got a different way of doing it. And I think that’s a good thing. But it’s certainly something that you’ve always got to be working on and making sure you’re at your best.”

Coleman agrees that learning to focus on your horse’s needs is key in the sport. “I focus on what that particular horse needs from me and our communication and just try to stay in the moment as much as I can while negotiating a dressage test or jump course,” he said. “That way you can compartmentalize all the other distractions that try to grab your attention. It’s definitely easier to do as you get more experience.”

Underdog Story: 15 Hands of Hot-Pink Fury

After Ali Kuhn and the small but mighty 16-year-old off-the-track Thoroughbred Little Hail sailed through the Lucky Horseshoe—the final obstacle on di Grazia’s 22-fence CCI4*-S cross-country course this year—a sea of pink ran out to greet and congratulate the pair for completing their first Kentucky four star.

Little Hail, who’s owned by Dorothy and John Crowell, was born about five minutes down the road from the Kentucky Horse Park, and during his limited days as a racehorse, pink, black and white were his and his jockey’s signature colors.

“Every time he heard the crowd roar today, he was convinced they were all here for him. But he’s such a star and athlete and knows his job,” Kuhn said. “My job is honestly to just point him toward the chute and stay the heck out of his way. I’m just so blessed to ride this 15 hands of fury in bright pink and can’t wait for tomorrow.”

Heading into Kentucky, one of Kuhn’s good friends advised her to do her best to avoid looking around because it can be easy to get distracted in the electric atmosphere. “It’s really easy here to get too much in your head when you think about the fact that you’re at Kentucky,” she said. “So I just tried to stay focused and in the moment and had tunnel vision the whole time and it really paid off today.”

Before partnering with Hail, Kuhn had gone through a rough patch in her eventing career after several tragic and unexpected horse losses due to freak accidents. “I was at that point where I was just about done and ready to hang it up,” Kuhn admitted said. “So, it been an emotional weekend because I never thought as a girl from Wisconsin you don’t often get to play and here. And here we are doing it.”

For more of our coverage of the 2025 Defender Kentucky Three-Day Event, click here.

Thanks to Kent Nutrition Group and Blue Seal for our coverage of the 2025 Defender Kentucky Three-Day Event. It includes lead-up events, rider interviews, competition reports, horse spotlights, photos, videos and more.