Riyadh, Saudi Arabia – Three U.S. Jumping athletes have secured top-12 placings in the standings following Round I of the FEI Jumping World Cup Final competition, setting up for an exciting Round II to get underway tomorrow. Kent Farrington, Skylar Wireman, and Jill Humphrey all finished without faults to hold prime positioning looking ahead to the remainder of the week. 

Aboard Toulayna, Farrington (Wellington, Fla.) made quick work of the 1.60m track designed by Frank Rothenberger (GER), pushing the clock to try to secure a finish near the top of the leaderboard. In the faults-converted format in Round I, the fastest individual time will move into Round II in the lead overall, with penalties assessed and converted for each of the following combinations based on the difference between the fastest time and their individual time. Any jumping faults are converted into three seconds each and added to a combination’s finishing time. Farrington and Toulayna, who are coming off a strong winter season, crossed the timers in 69.69 seconds and are currently tied in fourth with Frenchman Julien Epaillard and Dubai du Cedre. 

Skylar Wireman (Bonsall, Calif.), in her debut FEI Jumping World Cup Final appearance, went last in the class order, following reigning champions Henrick von Eckermann and King Edward into the arena. They didn’t let the pressure stop them from producing an excellent clear round and stopping the timers in 72.49 seconds. The pair will sit in 10th heading into tomorrow’s Round II. 

In another strong performance for the U.S., Jill Humphrey, and Chromatic BF, were strategic and fast in their trip, crossing through the timers in 73.79 seconds, for 12th-place overall. Humphrey is making her second FEI Jumping World Cup Final appearance, nearly 17 years after her debut in Las Vegas, Nev., in 2007, and will look to make a push for both results and experience with the U.S.-bred Chromatic BF. 

Devin Ryan (Long Meadow, N.J.) and his veteran mount, Eddie Blue, will look to move up in the placings in Round II, after the pair dropped three rails in today’s first class of the week, which added a converted nine faults to their time of 71.56. They finished with a final total of 80.56 seconds to sit in 25th place. 

With her own A-Girl, Sophia Siegel (Portola Valley, Calif.) made their first appearance together in a major individual final, with the duo adding 18 converted faults to their time of 82.40 for a final total score of 100.40. The pair finished in 32nd place after the first round. 

Round II competition will get underway tomorrow, April 18, at 6:50 p.m. GMT+3/11:50 a.m. ET. 

For the U.S. Dressage combinations, today’s first FEI Grand Prix at the FEI Dressage World Cup Finals finished with solid scores and valuable experience gained for all three championship debutants. Kevin Kohmann (Wellington, Fla.) and Duenensee led the contingent on the leaderboard, finishing in 10th-place overall and earning a 69.332 percent from the judging panel. The pair looked elegant and relaxed in their first test in Riyadh, with several test highlights coming in the canter tour, which was rhythmical and consistent. 

For Anna Marek (Dunnellon, Fla.) and Fayvel, the pair looked sharp in much of their test, with just a few minor mistakes keeping them from a higher score. The experience has been tremendous for the duo, who Marek has said had no real plan to even qualifying for the World Cup Final just six months ago and have been riding their success and growing partnership since their first CDI-W together. The pair finished in 13th overall with a 68.354 percent and will look to improve again with their freestyle to come on Friday. 

In another experience-building test, Ben Ebeling (Wellington, Fla.) and Indeed worked through some tension and pushed through the piaffe work to finish strong after overcoming some bobbles in their first appearance of the week. The pair earned a 65.140 percent, which will qualify them to move forward to the Freestyle on Friday, alongside the two other U.S. combinations. 

The FEI Dressage World Cup Final Freestyle will take place on Friday, April 19, at 5:15 p.m. GMT+3/10:15 a.m. ET to conclude dressage competition at the individual championship. 

Competition Information

The FEI Dressage World Cup Final will take place Wednesday, April 17, through Friday, April 19.

• Wednesday, April 17 – Grand Prix at 1:15 p.m. GMT+3/6:15 a.m. ET
• Friday, April 19 – Grand Prix Freestyle at 5:15 p.m. GMT+3/10:15 a.m. ET

The Longines FEI Jumping World Cup Final will take place Wednesday, April 17, through Saturday, April 20.

• Wednesday, April 17 – Final I at 7:00 p.m. GMT+3/12:00 p.m. ET
• Thursday, April 18 – Final II at 6:50 p.m. GMT+3/11:50 a.m. ET
• Saturday, April 20 – Final III at 3:45 p.m. GMT+3/8:45 a.m. ET

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