Kent Farrington and Greya Back in the Game at CSI5*-W Longines FEI Jumping World Cup™ Traverse City
World no. 10, Kent Farrington (USA) claimed the $340,000 CSI5*-W Longines FEI Jumping World Cup™ Traverse City on Sunday as the FEI North American League made its debut at Traverse City Horse Shows during the Tournament of Champions. As crowds gathered on the edge of the Turtle Creek Casino & Hotel International Ring, some of the top riders from North America and beyond converged at Flintfields Horse Park for a chance to earn vital qualifying points towards the 2025 FEI World Cup™ Finals in Basel, Switzerland.
A familiar face in the North American League, Alan Wade (IRL) built a course that suited the challenge for a 35-horse field. As the first to produce a fault-free effort in round one, Farrington set the pace over the tie-breaking jump-off. Six additional pairings from five different nations ultimately joined him in the return. Farrington and his own Greya, a 10-year-old Oldenburg mare (Colestus x Contender), cleared the final timers in 37.19 seconds, daring the remainder of the field to catch them.
“I went first, and I thought the class would be fast, but I didn’t think that it would be wild,” described Farrington. “I thought I had done a pretty aggressive round and that someone would have to try hard to catch it. It got a little closer [to the final fence] than I would have liked, but we had luck on our side today.”
For Farrington, having a class of this caliber at the start of the fall schedule in the United States is a step in the right direction for the sport in his home country.
“I think that this is great for American show jumping,” he stated. “You’re starting to see some new faces like Sam [Hutton] and Abdel [Saïd] and this whole team coming from Europe, and I think that says a lot about the venues and the prize money that we have. The support that we’re getting from the industry and sponsors is great for our sport and great for North America.”
Great Britain’s Samuel Hutton added some international flair to the podium as he raced to the runner-up position riding Melusina Bvl Z. Making their travel across the pond worth the time, Hutton gave it his best effort with AS Sport Horses’ 10-year-old Zangersheide mare (Mylord Carthago HN x Air Jordan Z). He finished less than two tenths behind Farrington, clocking in at 37.36 seconds.
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