Thermal, Calif. – After a thrilling third round and final ride off, Nicole McMillion secured the champion title at the 2025 Platinum Performance/USEF Show Jumping Talent Search Finals – West.
McMillion (Huntington Beach, Calif.), who trains with Jim Hagman, partnered with Change Up PS, a 2016 Oldenburg stallion owned by Summerhouse Farm, LLC, for the finals. With this win, Change Up PS, known as “Timmy” in the barn, adds a second Talent Search title to his resume—he was ridden by last year’s West Coast champion, Avery Glynn.
“I told Jim this summer that I’d really like to do the finals this year,” said McMillion. “We kind of put our feelers out throughout the year, and maybe three weeks ago, Abby Steller, the horse’s owner, called me and said, ‘I heard you’re looking for a horse. Do you want to use Timmy?’ And it was instant—you can’t say no to that! She’s so generous. She said, ‘I just want to be able to watch him, and I’ve watched you grow up.’ So out of the kindness of her heart, she let me ride her horse, and he is incredible.”
Because she’s currently a student at Texas A&M, where she is a member of the NCEA Equestrian Team, McMillion didn’t have a chance to practice riding Timmy before the week of the finals. Her experience as a varsity equestrian was an asset, not just for catch riding Timmy, but also for competing in the unique format of Talent Search Finals.
“The flat phase was a new format for this year,” she said. “Going into it, I tried to keep a level head. I’m on a team at college and we compete in a very similar format, so I had that background and tried to use that to my advantage.”
With a few small bobbles in the flat phase and a solid gymnastic phase on day one, McMillion stood in seventh place heading into the final phase.
“I knew that today is weighted the heaviest, and I thought that this was probably the phase that Timmy shines in,” she said. “I went into it thinking, ‘It’s anyone’s game. I just need to move up to the top four, and it’s a clean slate from there.’”
After completing the Phase III course with a score that was good enough to move into the top four, the final test was the ride-off, in which the final four athletes complete a shorter jumping course on all four of the top horses. McMillion’s catch-riding skills served her well as she earned the top score on three of the four horses, securing the win.
McMillion said that she loved getting to ride the other horses, who she described as “a great group of horses.” But she saved the most praise for Timmy.
“He is incredible. I rode him for the first time on Tuesday and walked out of the ring and said, ‘That was so much fun!’” she said. “I haven’t had that much fun in a long time. He’s truly an incredible animal. He’s so scopey; he could jump the moon if you ask. He does all the things. He gives you the best feeling in the air. He’s easy to prep. I can’t say enough about him.”
Reserve champion honors went to Shiloh Roseboom (Brentwood, Tenn.), who partnered with Zazou, a 2016 Warmblood gelding owned by Ingenium Farm. The pair stood in second position after Friday’s flat and gymnastic phases and went on to win the top score in Phase III. Roseboom had four strong rides in the ride-off to finish in second place overall.
Completing the top four were Sophia Blake (Santa Barbara, Calif.) with E-Up, a 2012 Oldenburg gelding owned by Carson Cunnings, and Katalina Raiszadeh (Rancho Santa Fe, Calif.) with Cetello, a 2007 Holsteiner gelding owned by Zadie Stack in fourth.
Judges Lillie Keenan and Jimmy Torano explained that the overarching goal of the Talent Search program is to recognize young athletes who have the horsemanship skills necessary for the top levels of the sport.
“We really emphasized that this final is meant to be toward team riding, and from our first meeting, we made it clear that when you make a mistake, you need to stay on course and not give up,” said Keenan. “I think the four we ended up with, they all stayed strong. I think they all improved over the rounds. For me, what stood out about Nicole was riding all four horses. She continued to ride seamlessly, but adjusted her ride for the horse, and that’s really what the test is about.”
“Ideally, we hope that these four athletes are looking forward to the future and hopefully riding on a team,” said Torano. “We keep emphasizing not giving up when you make a mistake. When you ride on a team, if you have an early rail, you’ve got to fight. You’ve got to hopefully bring that around and stay on that four-fault round. So this final is looking for the future, and hopefully these athletes have their eyes set on the future and representing the U.S.”
Prizes for the finals are generously provided by event sponsors. The top four each received a jump pad and grooming tote with brushes from LeMieux, a YETI Rancho Everyday Carry Backpack, and a gift card from Ariat redeemable for a show coat, a pair of breeches, or a pair of tall boots. Additionally, the champion received a set of Pro-Ice Freeze Boots and a Merino+ ProSorb hunter pad from LeMieux and a YETI Roadie 32 Cooler.
Hollow Brook Wealth Management Sportsmanship Award
The Hollow Brook Wealth Management Sportsmanship Award was given to Valentina Lehner (Aptos Hills, Calif.) This award recognizes a junior rider who best personifies the highest standards of integrity, sportsmanship, honor, kindness, and generosity during the 2025 Platinum Performance/USEF Show Jumping Talent Search Finals – West. Athletes are nominated by their peers, and the final recipient is selected from those finalists by the show stewards.
Best Horse Award
Each year, the judges select one horse to receive recognition as the best horse at the finals. This year’s recipient of the Gulliver Trophy was Photoshop, a 2013 Warmblood gelding ridden by Emma Whidden and owned by Donald Stewart.
2025 Platinum Performance/USEF Show Jumping Talent Search Finals – West Live Stream
US Equestrian subscribers and members can watch Talent Search Finals – West replay on-demand on USEF Network. Not a member? Join today!
Stay Connected
See all Talent Search Finals coverage on US Equestrian’s event page, and stay up to date on U.S. Jumping programs by following USA Jumping on Facebook and Instagram and US Equestrian on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok. Use #USAJumping.
The USEF International High Performance Programs and the USEF High Performance Pathway Programs are generously supported by the USET Foundation, the philanthropic partner to USEF. High Performance Program support is also provided by the USOPC and USEF sponsors and members.
