USA’s Lillie Keenan saw off the challenge from two of Ireland’s leading riders to win the Longines FEI Jumping World Cup in Washington last Saturday night, recording the second World Cup win of her career and first with the 12-year-old stallion Kick On.

Keenan and the handsome bay, affectionately called ‘Ken’ in the stable, bested a furiously fast jump-off where 13 of the 22 athletes advanced to Colm Quinn’s (IRL) short course. The winning pair’s time was 36.69 seconds. Derry’s Daniel Coyle and Farrel finished second (37.13), followed by Cork’s Shane Sweetnam and Pia Maria H (38.09).

“Kick On is a one-in-a-lifetime horse,” Keenan said. “I am so grateful to be his partner, and he’s really been one to shine in these World Cup [events], so to start his season winning really serves him right.”

Keenan (30) has attended the Washington International Horse Show since she was eight years old, earning her first event titles on small ponies. At age 13, she became the youngest rider to win the WIHS Equitation Championship, and she began competing in the open jumper ranks around the time she got her driver’s license.

With 13 athletes in the jump-off, the lead changed hands frequently in the early going. McLain Ward (USA) set a strong early tone with a clear effort aboard Jordan Molga M, but Coyle broke things open when he and Farrel shaved nearly 1.5 seconds off that mark, utilising the 16-year-old gelding’s agile turning. Keenan upped the ante again, riding a similar track but relying upon Kick On’s air and ground speed to assume the top spot on the leaderboard.

With seven pairs still to jump, it was an anxious wait to the finish. Sweetnam came closest with Pia Maria H.

Six years later

For Coyle’s diminutive Farrel, it was his first World Cup podium since 2020, when he took a win in Ocala (USA) as a 10-year-old. Later that same year, the horse suffered what was thought to be a career-ending injury when a cyst was discovered on his stifle.

Farrel’s owner Ariel Grange opted for the gelding to have surgery with the goal being simply for him to live a comfortable life in retirement. But the petite bay had bigger aspirations, defying the odds and returning to the highest levels of the sport. Six years later, he’s as competitive as ever and jumped double clear in the Aga Khan Nations Cup at the Dublin Horse Show in August.

“He loves the sport more than people,” Coyle said.

“I thought if I could get him back to doing some speed classes, it would be a miracle, but to have him at the top of the sport is unbelievable. I’m really, really lucky to have him.”

Meanwhile, Pia Maria H impressed on the opposite side of the spectrum, shining brightly in the mare’s World Cup debut. The event marked the 11-year-old chesnut’s first-ever indoor show.

“I think we’re really making good steps for her and looking toward the future,” Sweetnam said. “She’s a real fighter. At times, she’s fighting against you, but in the ring, she’s definitely fighting for you… so we’re just trying to meet halfway and get some good results.”

Sweetnam assumed the lead in the North American League standings after three legs with 32 points. Beat Mändli (SUI) sits second with 25 points, followed by Ward (USA), who has 24 points.

Coyle win

The five-star jumper division kicked off at the 2026 Washington International Horse Show, presented by MARS Equestrian, in ideal fashion for Coyle on Thursday, as the Olympian guided Farrel to the top spot in the Welcome Stakes.

A total of 11 qualified for the tiebreaker after Colm Quinn’s initial test and Farrel’s low centre of gravity proved ideal in the tight and twisty turns on his first indoor outing in many years. His time of 35.23 was more than a second clear of Israel’s Mark Bluman, with Landon de Nyze. It was a 23rd FEI ranking win for Farrel.

“Farrel is so handy in these small arenas, and we haven’t done indoors in a few years like this at the top level, so it’s nice to kick it off with a win,” Coyle said. “He’s a real partner of mine, and we can go anywhere together.

“Most horses are a lot harder to turn, but with an old partner like this, he already knows if I lean one way, he’s away before me. What makes you fast, especially in a small indoor like this is turning back to the fences. And I think tonight, from the third to the fourth jump, that was a real spot where I earned a lot of time.”

Coyle partnered his Lothlorien patron’s very promising eight-year-old Nord Face to second place in the two-star Grand Prix also. There was no matching the 32.22 registered by JJ Torano (USA) with I Am Inge in the jump-off, but a fantastic double clear and a speed time of 33.37 was an impressive return.