The Open Champion becomes the World Cup Champion
Greya & Kent continue in their flow state this weekend, adding another major title to their CV to add to their Open title from Wellington. The first US World Cup champion since Beezie Madden in Paris in 2018.
For those following closely, Fort Worth felt like a continuation rather than a surprise: the newly crowned US Equestrian Open Champion added the missing trophy to an already heavyweight CV.
Fresh from their statement win at the Open in Wellington, Kent Farrington & Greya carried that same assured rhythm into the Longines FEI Jumping World Cup Final, sharing the workload with Toulayna through the early stages before closing out Sunday’s double round to deliver another emotional night on home soil. The stage is now set for a summer adventure in Europe and she will almost certainly start as favorite to win the World Championships at Aachen.
The pre-competition favourite and the missing title
For more than a decade, Kent Farrington has sat in the top tier of global show jumping. He has had spells in the world number one spot, major wins from Spruce Meadows to Geneva but the World Cup Final remained stubbornly absent from his record. He started as the favorite to win but actually getting it done (which needed a perfect final round) is a different story.
Thursday: Toulayna on top & leader trend maintains
The opening leg in Fort Worth was a speed class under Table C. Aaron Vale & Carissimo 25 set an early pace. Farrington came in 15th to go, took the lead and never lost it. Toulayna played her part in the win when you see the trends. It has proved almost impossible to overturn a day 1 World Cup Final leader. Germany’s Daniel Deusser & Otello de Guldenboom were second and multi-time World Cup champion Steve Guerdat with Albfuehren’s Iashin Sitte sat third.
By the numbers – after Day 1
- 1st: Farrington leads the standings after Thursday’s speed.
- 40%: statisical chance of converting that lead into the title.
- 7: Number of previous World Cup champions who all led from Day 1.
- 0.19s: Margin back to Daniel Deusser in second, with Steve Guerdat within half a second.
Friday: Greya gives him a cushion
Toulayna stepped out and Greya stepped in. The format switched to a standard round. The first round whittled the field down to seven for the jump‑off, among them Eiken Sato, Kevin Staut and an in‑form Guerdat.
Going in last in the jump‑off, Farrington knew exactly what was required. Sato & Chadellano JRA had set 34.90 seconds; Staut & Visconti du Telman posted 35.79. Greya’s record in top level jump-offs and ability to convert is one of the best in the sport with perhaps only Richard Vogel and United Touch or Gangstar Mondesir who can challenge them. Greya left a stride out down the final line, and slid under Sato’s time to stop the clock in 34.36 seconds, securing Farrington a second win in as many days.
“I think I came with a faster horse today, which makes it easier,” he admitted with a grin. “I’ve been really thinking about Sunday and wanted to measure her efforts and measure her speed to put myself in the best position possible.”
The numbers told the story of that positioning. With the Friday victory, Farrington remained on a zero score overall, while Guerdat moved to four penalties and Staut to six, giving the American a full rail in hand heading into Sunday’s decisive rounds. The win chance moved to 66%. 
Sunday: riding with a rail in hand
On Sunday, there was an air of anticipation in Fort Worth and around the jumping world. Kent, despite the huge win chance, was shadowed by Steve Guerdat, a rider who has built his own legend on the World Cup Final stage. Behind them, Kevin Staut and Katie Dinan sat poised to capitalize on any crack in the leader’s armour, while only the top 30 combinations from the earlier days returned to jump two final tracks.
The format was straightforward: two rounds, cumulative faults deciding the title. Greya had a rail in the first round. If he felt the pressure of expectation, it did not appear in his language.
“I’m just in the present, riding the course with my horse,” he said of his approach to the final day.
When Greya cleared the final oxer in the last round, Dickies Arena responded with the full force of a home crowd that had just seen one of its own produce a full‑length performance rather than a late‑night twist. It felt just like Wellington had a couple of weeks before for the Open final.
Rails for Steve Guerdat meant Katie Dinan climbed onto the overall podium with Out of the Blue SCF, giving the United States two of the top three places on the final podium.
For US Jumping, the image of Farrington lifting the World Cup trophy in Texas, with Dinan on the podium feeds directly into the wider narrative of resurgence on the championship stage. With McLain to return, with Karl Cook and Lillie Keenan waiting in the wings, with Laura Kraut having the superstar Bisquetta, it is going to be an exciting summer. Stay tuned to the open channels to follow it all.
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The Mission of the Open
The US Equestrian Open was born from a strategic Board of Directors decision in 2023 to build a permanent legacy for US Equestrian sport. Its mission is to grow and foster a deeper connection to equestrianism by delivering a premier, unified championship series in the Olympic disciplines. With top-level competition, storytelling, and a dynamic, entertaining experience, the vision is to transform disparate events into a cohesive, narrative-driven season. The series is anchored by core values which include fan-first accessibility, competitive integrity, storytelling, and a dynamic entertaining experience onsite .
The US Equestrian Open spans the three Olympic disciplines—Jumping, Eventing, and Dressage—with USEF contributing $200,000 in prize money to each final to ensure high-stakes competitive integrity. The Jumping Final took place at Wellington International from March 24–29, 2026. Next stop will be the Eventing Final at Morven Park from October 8–11, 2026. The season concludes with the Dressage Final at the Desert International Horse Park from November 11–15, 2026. You can follow along with the qualifiers, the unfolding stories and sport updates at www.
