Lexington, Kentucky – December 21, 2021 – US Equestrian is pleased to announce the 2021 Horse of the Year and Equestrian of the Year nominees. The International and National Equestrians of the Year will be announced at the 2021 Pegasus Awards Dinner Celebration on Thursday, January 13, and the International and National Horses of the Year will be announced at the 2021 SmartPak/USEF Horse of the Year Awards Dinner Celebration on Saturday, January 15, at the 2022 US Equestrian Annual Meeting in Naples, Fla.
Horses of Honor and Equestrians of Honor are nominated by their USEF affiliate organization or USEF breed or discipline committee and the finalists are selected by the Awards Committee. The final Horses of the Year and Equestrians of the Year are determined by member voting.
Voting is open now through 11:59 p.m. EST on Dec. 29. Click here to vote now. Please note that you must be logged in to your USEF account to vote. After submitting your selections, you will receive an email asking you to confirm your vote. You must confirm your ballot in order for your votes to count!
International Equestrians of Honor
Laura Kraut
Royal Palm Beach, Fla.
Jumping
The William C. Steinkraus Trophy is presented to an equestrian competing in the Olympic disciplines of dressage, eventing, or show jumping.
Laura Kraut’s 2021 season was highlighted by a team silver medal at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games aboard Baloutinue. Kraut took over the ride on Baloutinue in early 2021, and they captured their first win together in the $137,000 Bainbridge Companies Grand Prix CSI3*. The pair then helped the NetJets® U.S. Jumping Team take fifth place at the Nations Cup of Rome CSIO5*, followed by second place in the Rolex Grand Prix of Rome CSIO5*.
After her third Olympic team and second consecutive championship team selection in two years, Kraut became the oldest U.S. female athlete to win a medal since 1904 with the team silver medal. Kraut and Baloutinue then helped the U.S. team capture the win in the Mercedes-Benz Nations Cup CSIO5*, the first U.S. win since 2005, and finished fifth in the Rolex Grand Prix of Aachen.
International Horses of Honor
Balou du Reventon
Cornet Obolensky x Georgia, Continue
2006 Oldenburg stallion
Owner: Ann Thompson
Balou du Reventon had one of the most successful years of his in 2021, representing the U.S. in international competitions and being short listed for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games with Brian Moggre in the irons. The duo represented the NetJets® U.S. Jumping Team at the Wellington CSIO4*, where the team took their first win of the season. The pair then competed for the U.S. in FEI Jumping Nations Cup Poland CSIO5*, before winning the Longines 1.60m Grand Prix CSIO5*. The pair finished ninth in the Rolex 1.60m Grand Prix at the Royal Windsor CSI5* before being named as a Reserve to the Olympic Team. Moggre and Balou du Reventon went to CHIO Aachen, where they lifted the NetJets U.S. Jumping Team to their first gold-medal finish in the Mercedes Benz Aachen Nations Cup since 2005. The pair capped the weekend with a second-place finish in the Rolex Grand Prix of Aachen. In total, the pair were clear in five consecutive 5* Grand Prix classes in a row in 2021.
Source: Press Release by the US Equestrian Communications Department for USEF / US Equestrian – United States Equestrian Federation
Photos: © US Equestrian / Taylor Pence / Shannon Brinkman
Categories: Awards, English, Jumper News USA
