Over the years, the Old Salem Farm Spring Horse Shows have offered a full schedule of world-class competition for many of the nation’s best horses and riders, and this year is no exception. Learn more about some of the familiar faces competing in the Old Salem Farm International Arena!
Local hero McLain Ward returns to Old Salem Farm as the defending champion in the Shows’ culminating event, the Empire State Grand Prix presented by Old Salem Farm. He is a highly accomplished rider on the international stage, having competed in six Olympic Games (with two Gold and three Silver medals!), four FEI World Equestrian Games (with Gold, Silver and Bronze medals), three Pan American Games (with Gold, Silver and Bronze medals) and 25 of the 29 FEI World Cup Finals since 1995. He was the 2017 FEI World Cup champion and ranks consistently among the Top 10 riders on the Longines FEI World Rankings.
One of the most accomplished riders in show jumping history, Brazil’s Rodrigo Pessoa is another familiar face at the Old Salem Farm Spring Horse Shows as both a competitor and a sponsor. Pessoa has competed in eight Olympic Games and six FEI World Equestrian Games, securing several podium finishes including Individual Gold medals at the 2004 Olympics and 1998 World Equestrian Games. He has also brought home medals from each of the four Pan American Games he’s attended, and he’s competed in 13 FEI World Cup Finals, claiming three consecutive wins from 1998-2000. He is the only rider in history to win the World Cup championship three consecutive years.
Daniel Bluman first competed on the world stage under the Colombian flag, representing his home country for 12 years through two Olympic Games, two FEI World Equestrian Games and three Pan American Games. In 2017, he chose to represent Israel and has since added the 2018 World Equestrian Games, 2022 FEI Jumping World Championship, 2023 FEI World Cup Final and 2024 Olympic Games to his record. Among his grand prix wins are major events including the Rolex Grand Prix of Rome, the Hampton Classic Grand Prix (three times), and the FTI Wellington Finale. Outside the show ring, he and his wife Ariel dedicate their time to their “Ride the Future” program, helping to support riders who otherwise may not have the means to pursue a career in the sport.
Since winning his first FEI Grand Prix in 2011, Nayel Nassar has represented Egypt in three FEI World Cup Finals, the 2014 FEI World Equestrian Games, the 2021 Tokyo Olympic Games and the 2022 FEI Jumping World Championship with several big grand prix victories along the way. He is a three-time winner of the HITS $1 million Grand Prix and is the only rider ever to win the Speed Challenge and 5* Grand Prix at the same Longines Masters event. He currently rides as part of the team at Evergate Stables, competing with several horses out of their California and Florida bases, and is a member of the Paris Panthers on the prestigious Global Champions League circuit.
As a young rider, Georgina Bloomberg earned four medals in her three appearances at the North American Young Riders’ Championships, and she has continued to be a major player for Team USA in the years since. She made her Nations Cup debut in 2005 in France, where she was a member of the all-female winning team; she made her first of two World Cup Final appearances that same year in Las Vegas, NV. She helped to clinch the win at the 2014 Furusiyya Nations Cup in Spain and later claimed the Team Bronze medal in her major games debut at the 2015 Pan American Games. A dedicated philanthropist and advocate for animal rescue, she shares her North Salem farm with her horses, dogs, goats, rabbits, mules and the endearing pig, Wilbur.
Lillie Keenan has been a competitive rider from a young age, making headlines early in her career for her successes in many events such as the 2007 USEF Pony Hunter National Championship, 2011 USHJA International Hunter Derby Finals, 2012 North American Junior Equitation Championship, 2013 USEF Hunter Seat Medal Finals and ASPCA Maclay Finals, and North American Junior and Young Riders Championships where she won individual and team Gold medals in 2013 after winning team Gold in 2012. Since then, she has represented the U.S. in international competition on several Nations Cup teams, including at the 2017 Dublin Horse Show where an all-female team claimed the prestigious Aga Khan Trophy for the first time. She has ridden on the U.S. team in the FEI Nations Cup Final in 2016 and 2021 and in the FEI Jumping World Championship in 2022. Most recently, she finished in tenth place at the Longines FEI World Cup Jumping Final 2026 in Fort Worth, Texas.
Other familiar faces include two-time Olympian Ashlee Bond of Israel; three-time Olympic veteran Beat Mandli of Switzerland; and top American Grand Prix riders Heather Caristo-Williams, Katie Dinan, Mimi Gochman, Brianne Goutal-Marteau and Alex Matz.
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