OCALA, Fla--The U.S. Jumping Team of Lillie Keenan of New York, N.Y., Laura Kraut of Royal Palm Beach, Fla., Aaron Vale of Williston, Fla., and McLain Ward of Brewster, N.Y., will compete at the League of Nations in Ocala at the World Equestrian Center from March 19-23.
The team will be led by Chef d’Equipe Robert Ridland and Team Leader Lizzy Chesson.
The competition will begin on Wednesday, March 19, and conclude on Saturday, March 23.
The $350,000 Grand Prix CSIO5* will take place on Thursday, March 20, at 7:30 p.m., while the highlight event, the League of Nations CSIO5* team competition, will take place on Saturday, March 22, with round one beginning at 4:30 p.m., and concluding with round two at 7:30 p.m.
The League of Nations competition brings together the top 10 teams from around the globe with teams of four riders, and the best three scores will count from the first round.
For the second round, the best eight teams return with three riders, selected by each team’s Chef d’Equipe, starting in reverse order of standing after the first round.
The final placings are determined by the combined penalties of each team’s three best rider's scores in the first round and all of the team’s three rider's scores in the second round.
The League of Nations will be live streamed on FEI.TV.
US Equestrian competing members, subscribers, and fans receive a 10% discount on a ClipMyHorse.TV Premium Subscription.
The chefs d’equipe of the other nine teams have also named their riders.
The competitors include nine of the top 20 athletes on the current World Rankings, among them Olympic, World and European Champions.
GERMANY was the first winner of the League of Nations Final last year, and three of the four riders from that team (also all members of the team in Ocala last year) are on this year's team in Ocala.
The German team includes Paris Olympic Champion Christian Kukuk, European Champion from Riesenbeck in 2021 Andre Thieme, Richard Vogel and Vogel’s partner Sophie Hinners.
Ireland, defending champions from Ocala won this year's first leg in Abu Dhabi, and, with Ireland's great depth of top riders, chef d'equipe Michael Blake has selected a completely different quartet from that Abu Dhabi team.
Members of last year's winning team in Ocala, Daniel Coyle, Darragh Kenny and Cian O’Connor, are joined by 2017 European Team gold medallist Bertram Allen.
France finished third in Abu Dhabi, and Olympic and European gold medalist Kevin Staut is the only member of that team who is on the Ocala team.
He is joined by Olivier Robert, Marc Dilasser and League of Nations debutante Nina Mallevaey.
Italy's team has three of their fifth placed team from Abu Dhabi, Piergiorgio Bucci, Giacomo Casadei and Giulia Martinengo Marquet, who are joined by Lorenzo de Luca.
Reigning Olympic Team Champions Great Britain's team includes triple Olympic gold medallst Ben Maher and former U25 World number one Harry Charles along with World Championship bronze medalist Joe Stockdale and Tim Gredley.
Switzerland has Janika Sprunger, Romain Duguet, Edouard Schmitz and Géraldine Straumann.
European and World champions Sweden's team includes three of the team members who won gold at the FEI Jumping European Championships in Milan in 2023; World Number One titleholder, World Champion and two-time World Cup Final winner Henrik von Eckermann, Wilma Hellström and Rolf-Göran Bengtsson are joined by Erika Lickhammer- van Helmond.
The Belgian team consists of Thibeau Spits, Niels Bruynseels, European Team Bronze medallst Nicola Philippaerts and Emilie Conter.
The Netherlands, second in last year's Final in Barcelona, has a team of Tani Joosten, Kevin Jochems, Sanne Thijssen and Mathijs van Asten.
Ireland go into the second leg at the top of the league standings with 100 points, followed by France on 90, Germany on 80, Italy on 70 while Great Britain round out the top five on 60 points, followed by Switzerland with 50 points and Belgium with 40 points..
