Press release from The Show Jumping Hall of Fame

Lee McKeever and Albany, Leslie Burr Howard’s 1984 Olympic mount, have been elected to the Show Jumping Hall of Fame. They will be formally inducted during the Hall of Fame’s Induction Gala on Sunday evening, March 1, at the Wellington National Golf Club in Wellington, Florida. Additionally, the Hall of Fame will present its annual International Award to Irish Olympic veteran Kevin Babington.

Induction into the Show Jumping Hall of Fame is an honor bestowed annually upon select individuals whose accomplishments and contributions to the sport have set them apart and whose influence has had a significant impact on the sport of show jumping and the equestrian community. It is because of their talents, efforts, accomplishments, and what they have brought to the sport, that the Election Committee, comprising some of the nation’s top riders, trainers and officials, elected McKeever and Albany as the class of 2025.

For the last 38 years, Lee McKeever has been the sport horse manager and closest advisor to six-time Olympian McLain Ward. McKeever has been an indispensable member of Ward’s team and has played a key role in Ward’s competing in 20 World Cup Finals and 14 major championships, bringing home 13 medals.

Originally from Dublin, Ireland, McKeever started his love affair with horses when he was 12 years old. While still a boy, McKeever left school and found a job as a groom. Shortly thereafter, someone told him that a friend, Jimmy Doyle, could get him a job in America. McKeever came to the U.S. in 1988 and took a job working for Barney Ward at Castle Hill Farm in Brewster, New York.

McKeever oversees every aspect of caring for more than 30 horses at a time and has played a key role in the success of such superstars as Sapphire, Rothchild, Antares F, HH Azur, Contagious, HH Carlos Z, Clinta, High Star Hero, First Lady, and many more. With McKeever at his side, Ward has won 13 medals at the Olympics, Pan American Games and World Equestrian Games, the FEI World Cup Finals in 2017, and many major Grand Prix in the U.S. and around the world.

McKeever is an invaluable source of knowledge not only for Ward and the Castle Hill team, but also for other grooms and horsemen with whom he is more than happy to share his knowledge and expertise. McKeever’s success and importance in the industry is recognized around the world and was formally acknowledged in 2018 when he was honored by the FEI with its Best Groom award.

Ward has undying respect and praise for his longtime partner. “He knows the horses better than anybody,” Ward said. “He knows just how to have their conditioning and their health, and how to prevent and deal with injuries. There’s never been a moment when I doubted that my horses were in anything but the best of care and that they had the best preparation to be ready to compete.” 

“This has never been a job for me,” McKeever says. “It’s a way of life.” It was at Castle Hill that McKeever met his wife, Erica, who began working there about the same time he did and who continues to work with him managing all that goes on at Castle Hill. They have two children, a son, Bradlee, and a daughter, Baylee, who has risen through the ranks to compete at the Five Star level while still a Young Rider.

Fine-boned and light on his feet, Albanywas an amazing horse, both for his performance in the ring and his beautiful personality outside the ring. He was a classic-type Thoroughbred who began his career on the racetrack. The sensitive horse, foaled in 1975, proved more talented over fences than he was on the track, and he became a true star in the show jumping ring. After starting his career with Joanne Kovacs and Jimmy Kohn, Albany was purchased for the 1983 season by Debbie Dolan (Sweeney). He was originally shown on the Grand Prix level by her trainer, Leslie Burr (Howard), while the 19-year-old Dolan was still showing in the amateur-owner division. 

Following a highly successful career with Burr in the saddle, Albany had continued success both nationally and internationally once Dolan moved up to Grand Prix competition. With Burr in the saddle, Albany was named the American Grandprix Association (AGA) Horse of the Year in both 1983 and 1984, and he carried Burr to the AGA Rider of the Year title in 1983. 

In 1984, the pair won the $100,000 American Invitational in Tampa Stadium, and they topped the U.S. Olympic Trials to secure a spot on the Olympic team alongside Joe Fargis and Touch of Class, Conrad Homfeld and Abdullah, and Melanie Smith (Taylor) and Calypso. At the 1984 Games in Los Angeles, Albany teamed with the others to make history as the first U.S. team ever to win the Olympic show jumping team Gold Medal. 

When Burr handed over the reins to Dolan, Albany continued his successful career. Over the next few years, the new combination won the Cleveland Grand Prix in 1986 and the Winter Equestrian Festival Challenge Series in 1988. They also had top-five Grand Prix finishes at the National Horse Show and Valley Forge in 1986; at Old Salem, Cleveland and the American Invitational in 1988; and at Palm Beach and Baltimore in 1989. Internationally, the pair rode on winning Nations Cup teams at the Royal Winter Fair in Toronto in 1987 and at Guadalajara, Mexico, in 1988 and won the Ladies Show Jumping Championship at Windsor, England, in 1989. 

When Albany’s Grand Prix career came to a close at the end of the decade, his earnings ranked third in AGA history.

Riding for Ireland, Kevin Babington has achieved incredible success on the U.S. circuit and internationally. He was part of Ireland’s Gold Medal team at the 2001 European Championships, placed eighth individually in the World Championships at the 2002 World Equestrian Games and fourth individually in the 2004 Olympic Games.

He has ridden to victory in many of this country’s most significant Grand Prix including the Hampton Classic, Sapphire Grand Prix at Devon, and Grand Prix de Penn National at Harrisburg. He is the only rider to win the Silver Oak Grand Prix three times, and he was Grand Prix champion at Lake Placid four times, including 2019 when he finished first, second and third!

The Show Jumping Hall of Fame was organized to promote the sport of show jumping and to immortalize the legends of the men, women and horses who have made great contributions to the sport. The Show Jumping Hall of Fame is located at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, Kentucky. Plaques honoring those who have been inducted into the Hall of Fame can be seen at the Horse Park’s Rolex Stadium. Mementos and artifacts from the sport’s history are on display as part of the Show Jumping Hall of Fame collection at the United States Hunter Jumper Association (USHJA) Wheeler Museum at the Horse Park.

Show Jumping Hall of Fame Inductees

Since 1987, the Show Jumping Hall of Fame has inducted William C. Steinkraus, Bertalan de Némethy, Idle Dice (1987); Patrick Butler, August A. Busch, Jr. (1988); David Kelley, Ben O’Meara, Frances Rowe (1989); Arthur McCashin, Kathy Kusner, Brigadier General Harry D. Chamberlin, San Lucas(1990); Adolph Mogavero, Whitney Stone, Morton "Cappy" Smith, Pat Dixon (1991); Eleonora "Eleo" Sears, Mary Mairs Chapot, Barbara Worth Oakford, Snowman (1992); Dr. Robert C. Rost, Joe Green (1993); Frank Chapot, Gordon Wright (1994); Mickey Walsh, Trail Guide (1995); Pamela Carruthers, Jet Run, Richard "Dick" Donnelly and Heatherbloom (1996); Edward "Ned" King, Bobby Egan and Sun Beau (1997); Fred "Freddy" Wettach, Jr., Melanie Smith Taylor, Johnny Bell (1998); Rodney Jenkins, Sinjon, Franklin F. "Fuddy" Wing, Jr. and Democrat (1999); George Morris, Carol Durand, Touch of Class (2000); Eugene R. Mische, Lt. Colonel John W. Russell, Bobby Burke, Untouchable (2001); Harry R. Gill, Clarence L. "Honey" Craven, Calypso, Gem Twist (2002); J. Russell Stewart, Sr., Main Spring (2003); Snowbound(2004); Michael Matz, For The Moment (2005); Conrad Homfeld (2006); Joe Fargis, Karen Golding, Marcia "Mousie" Williams (2007); Dr. John Steele, Abdullah, Miss Budweiser, Riviera Wonder (2008); Neal Shapiro, Balbuco(2009); John D. Ammerman, Leonard A. King, Jr., Good Twist (2010); Jane Forbes Clark, Gabor Nicholas Foltenyi, Hap Hansen, Larry Langer (2011); Starman, Nautical, D. Gerald Baker, Charles “Sonny” Brooks (2012); Daniel Marks, VMD, Seamus Brady, Steve Stephens (2013); F. Eugene Fitz Dixon, Jr., Major General Guy Henry, I Love You (2014); Elizabeth Busch Burke, Katie Monahan Prudent, Susan Hutchison (2015); Anne Kursinski, Fran Steinwedell, Walter Devereux, The Natural (2016); Norman Dello Joio, Hunter Harrison, Authentic, Sympatico (2017); Peter Doubleday, Robert Ridland, Colonel John W. “Gyp” Wofford, Bold Minstrel (2018); Leslie Burr Howard, David Distler (2019), Margie Engle, Sapphire (2020); Beezie Madden, Mason Phelps, Jr. (2021); Anthony D’Ambrosio, Linda Allen (2022); Francisco “Pancho” Lopez, Cedric (2023); and Laura Kraut, Sandsablaze (2024).