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USA gold medal jumping team at Pan American Games. Photo by ©Ken Braddick/dressage-news.com.By Kenneth J. Braddick, Guadalajara, Mexico, Oct. 27.

The United States won team gold, Brazil silver and Mexico bronze at the Pan American Games Thursday, with the USA, Mexico and Chile gaining tickets for next year’s Olympics. The Pan Ams were the last chance for the U.S., winner of team gold at the last two Olympics in Athens in 2004 and Beijing in 2008, to send a team to London. But they did it with a dominating performance with all four riders going clear over the final two rounds at these championships that, like the Olympics, are held once every four years. Brazil and Canada were already qualified.

Beezie Madden and Coral Reef Via Volo taking the lead in the first round of jumping at the Pan American Games. Photo by ©Ken Braddick/dressage-news.com.By Kenneth J. Braddick. Guadalajara, Mexico, Oct. 26.

Beezie Madden on Coral Reef Via Volo and Christine McCrea on Romantovich Take One filled the top two individual places after the first round of jumping at the Pan American Games Wednesday to lead the United States to the top of the team ranking with Mexico in second place and Brazil third. Mexico, before a jubilant home crowd at the Guadalajara Country Club, filled the 3rd through 5th places while Brazil was in third place lined up in 8th, 9th, and 10th places in the opening speed class.

Rodrigo Pessoa & HH Ashley during the training session. Photo by © Ken Braddick/dressage-news.com.By Kenneth J. Braddick. Guadalajara, Mexico, Oct. 25.

Pan American Games jumping starts Wednesday with horses and riders from 17 nations including 12 teams seeking to qualify for the Olympic Games in London next year.

Hunter's Scendix won the Sires of the World competition this weekend. Photo by paardenfotograaf.be (copyright). Click here for all the results from Lanaken, Belgium.

The FEI Zangersheide Sires of the World and the FEI World Breeding Jumping Championships for Young Horses have been on this weekend in Lanaken, Belgium. The Sires of the World competition was won by the eight year old Hannoveraner stallion Hunter’s Scendix (Stakkato x Dinar) with the Belgian rider Brecht Bille in the saddle.

Hunter’s Scendix stands at stud at Hunters’ Studfarm in Belgium, and is approved by several studbooks. The black stallion was also very successful at Zangersheide as a five year old when he won the bronze medal in the World Breeding Championship.

It all depended on the last fence: Gerco Schröder sees his medal chances disapearing after having one too much down. All photos by Jenny Abrahamsson.

Simply the best! All photos by Jenny Abrahamsson.

Rolf is the new European Champion! All photos by Jenny Abrahamsson.Click here for full results.

Rolf-Göran Bengtsson and Ninja La Silla are the new European Champions! After two brilliant rounds in the final today, Rolf could climb to the top of the podium to receive the gold medal! After round one Gerco Schröder was in the lead with Carsten-Otto Nagel right behind him, but when the latter had one fence down in the second round and Gerco took two with him Rolf could celebrate his first gold medal ever.

Nick Skelton; "I have too many bronze medals!" Photo by Jenny Abrahamsson. Rolf-Göran Bengtsson on how the week has been and being fifth before the final; “I have to thank my horse. He is in his life’s form now and jumped really nice the entire week. I also have to thank my sponsors Alfonso Romo for the opportunity to keep such a horse. I was of course disappointed after the class on Friday where I had one down. Today I focused on staying cool, do my best and make the poles stay up. I also have to thank the other riders like Carsten-Otto and Nick that I’m here today.”

Dietmar thinks the first round in the individual final was fair. Photo by Jenny Abrahamsson.On the course in the first round: After the two Nations Cup rounds, I don’t think it was too big. It was technical but fair! Faults came everywhere, but especially on fence five and twelve b. But no horse was struggling out there, and it’s fair not to put Europe’s best horses in trouble. We will have an honorable champion here in Madrid.