January 18, 2026 – Wellington, FL – The United States Equestrian Team (USET) Foundation presented the 2026 Whitney Stone Cup to U.S. jumping athlete Lillie Keenan and recognized eventing athlete Cassie Sanger with the 2026 Lionel Guerrand-Hermès Trophy at its “Aachen” benefit on January 16, 2026, in Wellington, Florida.
Whitney Stone Cup
The Whitney Stone Cup, which is awarded annually, acknowledges Keenan as an active competitor whose consistent excellence in international competition and sportsmanlike conduct as an ambassador for the sport and for the USET Foundation exemplify the USET Foundation’s and US Equestrian’s (USEF’s) highest ideals and traditions.
“I didn’t think I’d even be in contention with the caliber of the previous recipients — I was in awe to win,” said the 29-year-old from New York, New York, who was also the recipient of the USET Foundation’s Lionel Guerrand-Hermès Trophy in 2015. “I hope I’m still quite early in my career with lots more to achieve for the U.S. team, so to already have recognition for my contribution is really surprising and motivating.”
Keenan made her senior Nations Cup debut in 2014 at just 17 years old and has since established herself as an invaluable senior member of the U.S. Jumping Team, earning consistent results.
In 2025, she competed at major shows around the globe, including the FEI Jumping World Cup™ Final in Basel, Switzerland. With Chansonette Farm LLC’s now 16-year-old gelding Argan De Beliard, she jumped a double clear to help the U.S. clinch gold in the prestigious Aachen CHIO Nations Cup in Germany alongside teammates Kent Farrington, McLain Ward, and Laura Kraut. Keenan was on the winning U.S. Jumping Team at the CSIO5* Rome in Italy, producing a double clear with Kick On, another Chansonette Farm-owned horse. Keenan was also on the U.S. Jumping Team that secured a historic win in the $770,000 Longines League of Nations™ Ocala CSIO5*-LLN at World Equestrian Center – Ocala in Florida.
“Winning the Whitney Stone Cup brought to mind that when I was a little girl, I watched the big grand prix classes on Saturday nights and wondered if I’d ever be able to jump that big,” said Keenan. “I didn’t have the innate self-confidence to jump at that level, but I knew my goal was to one day be someone that a trainer or a parent would tell their student or daughter they should watch.
“When I was young, there were so many people I’d run to the arena to watch — now I get to ride on teams with them. It hit me that I could now be one of those people who stand as an example, and that feels really special,” she continued. “It’s about more than just how you ride. It’s your values, it’s how you carry yourself, and it’s how you run your business — it’s everything.”
At the beginning of 2025, Keenan, who trains with three-time Whitney Stone Cup recipient McLain Ward, committed to prioritizing Nations Cup competitions in the lead-up to the 2026 World Championships in Aachen, Germany, and the home Games of the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.
“When I started with McLain seven years ago, he stressed that championship and team medals are the most important, and I’ve tried to follow in his footsteps, so that’s what we’ve focused on. It’s awesome that there’s recognition after a year like that. We see who wins all the big grand prix classes, which matters a lot, but without a team, you don’t get to go to championships.”
Photo by Mackenzie Clark Photography
The Whitney Stone Cup, which was presented to the Team by the Officers and Directors of the USET Foundation, is given in honor of the late Whitney Stone, who served as President and Chairman of the Board of USET, and who was instrumental in the creation of a civilian team when the Army retired from competitive horse sports after 1948. Keenan was quick to acknowledge Stone’s role in shaping modern horse sport.
“He was an exemplary individual and instrumental in making jumping into a team sport,” she said. “To look to the future and present your best self, you have to honor everything that came before. That includes your standard of turnout and how you conduct yourself. When you put on that red team coat, expectations are high because of what those before you achieved.”
Keenan, a Harvard graduate, came up through USEF High Performance programs, earning her stripes in equitation and hunters.
“I’m proud that I followed the traditional path as a junior,” she said. “It’s a great way to come up the ranks and get to the top level. I recently participated in the USEF Horsemastership Training Series, and it was a full-circle moment: the first time I did it I was 13, and this year I was a clinician. To be able to grow through the program like that is pretty awesome. I followed the system, and I like to think I proved its value. It shows that all the effort and donations to the USET Foundation make a difference, because the program works.
“I also want to acknowledge the team around me, including my parents, McLain, and my head groom, Cory Tual, as well as the team behind the scenes of USA Jumping, headed up by Robert Ridland and Lizzy Chesson. They are what really make it possible for us to do all this. Thanks to them, and all my horses too. They are all represented in this award.”
Lionel Guerrand-Hermès Trophy
The Lionel Guerrand-Hermès Trophy is presented annually to a junior or young rider in an Olympic discipline who exemplifies the U.S. Equestrian Team’s ideals of sportsmanship and horsemanship.
The 21-year-old Sanger’s award comes after a stellar year in 2025. She stepped up to the five-star level with her top horse, Redfield Fyre, contesting the CCI5*-L in Lexington, Kentucky, in April. The pair put a second CCI5*-L under their belts at Burghley Horse Trials in the United Kingdom in September — where she was the youngest rider in the field — finishing in the top 20 at both events. Sanger was also selected for the 2026 USEF Eventing Development Program with Redfield Fyre.
“I was really surprised when I found out I had won the Lionel Guerrand-Hermès Trophy,” said Sanger, who is from Wilmington, Delaware. “I know it’s such an honor to join the list of talented athletes who have received it before me. It feels really special to be thought of in this way, especially because this is not just an eventing award; it covers all the Olympic disciplines. It’s really special to be in there with all these other riders.”
Sanger had a transformative year in 2025. As well as making her five-star debut, she also moved her entire string of horses to England to be based with Olympic gold medalist Ros Canter, while continuing to study journalism at the University of Richmond in Virginia, where she is a junior. Before that, she spent two years commuting weekly between college in Richmond and Florida, where her horses were based.
“I had a big season, moving across the world on my own in May,” said Sanger. “Being in the UK and studying remotely online meant I could pour all my time into riding and being with my horses. That benefitted me as a horse person and in terms of competition results.”
Not all of Sanger’s 2025 events went exactly to plan — such as when Redfield Fyre stood on a shoe before the show jumping phase at the FEI Eventing Nations Cup™ at Arville in Belgium — but she capitalized on the disappointment of not being able to complete the competition to learn important lessons and remain a valuable part of the team.
“I reminded myself of the bigger picture: to be there for my teammates and to put the horse first. When things don’t go right, that’s when true character comes to the fore. I love the team stuff, so I’ll continue to apply for those opportunities,” she said.
Sanger currently sits in 27th position on the FEI Eventing Young Riders World Rankings. As a young athlete aiming for the biggest world stages eventing has to offer, she appreciates the recognition the Lionel Guerrand-Hermès Trophy represents.
“It’s such a special way to be recognized for what we do every day — the little moments at home when people aren’t watching,” she said. “It’s only after putting that work in that the results can start to come.”
Photo by Shannon Brinkman Photography
This is not the first time Sanger has been recognized by the USET Foundation. In 2023, she was awarded the Karen E. Stives Endowment Fund Grant, which was provided in partnership with US Equestrian (USEF). It enabled Sanger to participate in the U.S. Eventing European Development Tour in the summer of that year with Fernhill Zoro.
“The USET Foundation has been a huge part of my recent success,” she continued. “My first trip overseas was funded by the Karen E. Stives Endowment Fund Grant, and that was huge for me. I was able to put it toward the experience of going abroad, and that lit a fire in me for what I want to do. It would not have been possible without the support. I am so grateful for the way they want to show up for riders and horses.”
In 2026, Sanger plans to apply again to the U.S. Eventing European Development Tour with Fernhill Zoro. Her England-based season plans include a Badminton Horse Trials debut for Redfield Fyre as well as the Young Horse Championships at Blenheim Palace International Horse Trials for her up-and-coming horses. She also hopes to contest the Under-25 Eventing World Championship, a new competition, taking place at Millstreet International Horse Trials in Ireland in July 2026.
“My biggest dream is to go to the Olympics,” she stated. “It’s something I’ve always thought about, and it’s a huge driving force for me. But just getting better and feeling fulfilled in the improvements my horses make is my main goal.”
Past Recipients of the Lionel Guerrand-Hermès Trophy
2025 – Kat Fuqua
2024 – Zayna Rizvi
2023 – Christian Simonson
2022 – Mimi Gochman
2021 – Hannah Irons
2020 – Brian Moggre
2019 – Daisy Farish
2018 – Jennifer Gates
2017 – Chloe Reid
2016 – Lucy Deslauriers
2015 – Lillie Keenan
2014 – Katie Dinan
2013 – Reed Kessler
2012 – Lucy Davis
2011 – Tiana Coudray
2010 – Jennifer Waxman
2009 – Laura Noyes
2008 – Hillary Dobbs
2007 – Carolyn Kelly
2006 – Katie Hamilton
2005 – Brianne Goutal
2004 – Kristin Schmolze
2003 – Will Faudree
2002 – Clark Montgomery
2001 – Marilyn Little
2000 – Elise Haas
1999 – Chad Geeter
1998 – Bruce Davidson Jr.
1997 – Alison Firestone
1996 – Jonathan Elliot
1995 – Megan Johnstone
1994 – Gabriella Salick
1993 – Mark Combs
1992 – Abigail Lufkin
1991 – McLain Ward
1990 – Kim Keenan
1989 – Molly Bliss
1988 – Christopher Kappler
1987 – Susanne Owen
1986 – Gregory A. Best
1985 – Holly Mitten
1984 – Jeffery Welles
1983 – Mark Leone
Past Recipients of the Whitney Stone Cup
2025 – Rebecca Hart
2024 – McLain Ward
2023 – Will Coleman
2022 – Laura Kraut
2021 – Roxanne Trunnell
2020 – Boyd Martin
2019 – Laura Graves
2018 – McLain Ward
2017 – Laura Graves
2016 – Phillip Dutton
2015 – Chester Weber
2014 – Elizabeth “Beezie” Madden
2012 – Christine McCrea
2011 – Tucker S. Johnson
2010 – McLain Ward
2009 – Steffen Peters
2008 – Miranda “Randy” Caldwell
2007 – Elizabeth “Beezie” Madden
2006 – Elizabeth “Beezie” Madden
2005 – Chris Kappler
2004 – Debbie McDonald
2003 – Peter Wylde
2002 – Guenter Seidel
2001 – Tucker Johnson
2000 – Karen O’Connor
1999 – Valerie Kanavy
1998 – David O’Connor
1997 – Leslie Burr Howard
1996 – Anne Kursinski
1995 – Robert Dover
1994 – J. Michael Plumb
1993 – Carol Lavell
1992 – Lana DuPont Wright
1991 – Hap Hansen
1990 – William Long
1989 – Gregory A. Best
1988 – Bruce O. Davidson
1987 – Katie Monahan Prudent
1986 – Conrad Homfeld
1985 – Joe Fargis
1984 – Carole Grant
1983 – Melanie Smith (Taylor)
1982 – Norman Dello Joio
1981 – James C. Wofford
1980 – Michael Matz