Forte Takes WIHS Equitation Finals Aboard Canadian-bred

On Saturday, October 28, the WIHS Junior Equitation Finals took place at the Washington International Horse Show in in Upper Marlboro, MD. Following the two initial hunter and jumper phases, the top 10 highest-ranked riders returned in reverse order of rank on mounts that they swapped out for the final “work-off.” While the standings saw a shake-up, upcoming young rider Adriana Forte’s brilliant performances across the three phases held strong and secured her the winning title with Candescent, a nine-year old Canadian Oldenburg gelding bred and owned by Heather MacInnis of Burlington, Ontario.

Candescent, sired by Cabardino, is the only foal from MacInnis’ Grand Prix and Canadian Talent Squad-winning mare Shine of Light. Heather raised, trained and competed him as a jumper, taking him up to the 1.40m division. He campaigned with Sam Pegg in Florida from January through April of 2024.

“I’ve trained and ridden literally hundreds of horses during my career,” MacInnis stated. “But Candescent is the best I’ve ever had. His form is always perfect. He’s so brave and so steady. Nothing ever rattles him. In January at WEC in Ohio, Sam rode him in the 1.40m one day and I took him in his first hunter derby the next and he placed in both!”

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Regretfully, MacInnis knew ‘Carson’ needed a show home where his versatility and brilliance would really shine. He caught the attention of top US equitation trainer Andre Dignelli and Heather shipped him to Heritage Farm on trial in June, which resulted in a long-term lease. Candescent started his career transition to an equitation horse under the guidance of the farm’s team and immediately started placing in the top ribbons in USET, Dover, Maclay and WIHS divisions paired with talented young rider Adrianna Forte, 17, of Water Mill, NY.

In her first time competing at WIHS, Forte and Candescent dominated from the start, taking the early lead in the hunter phase on Friday with a score of 92 among the 40 entries. Another positive performance in Saturday’s opening jumper round earned the pair eighth place, but still maintaining the overall lead going into the final callback. For the final phase, only the top 10 were asked to return. Riders navigated the same jumper track, but were required to switch horses and were only allowed three minutes to familiarize themselves with their new mount in the warm-up. Mounted on Paige Walkenbach’s Let’s Go, Forte incurred an unfortunate rail but still managed to clinch her first WIHS Equitation Finals win.

“We believe this may be the first time a Canadian-bred horse has won the US Washington Equitation Final,” MacInnis added.

“I have never even done a ride-off on a different horse before today, so it was definitely a bit nerve-wracking,” admitted Forte. “I just knew that as long as I put in the best rounds that I could, hopefully it would be enough to put me in a good spot, and I’m very happy.” The pair’s next stop is the Maclay this weekend in Kentucky. (Update: Forte and Carson had the second-highest score in the first round, were leading after the flat phase and ultimately finished third overall after the second jumping round and ride-off out of 172 horses!)

Fifty of the country’s top junior equitation riders are already qualified for the 2025 World Equestrian Center (WEC) Premier Equitation Cup Championship, which will take place at WEC – Ocala on February 8. The three-phase championship features jumping and flat as well as a test phase, and boasts a new car as well as $100,000 in trainer awards. Forte is currently sitting at the top of the national standings after winning four qualifiers and placing in three others, and is excited to compete in her first-ever WEC Premier Cup.

“I like that there is both a flat and a second round so that you can show off multiple skills. Competing under the lights is a great experience. I am thrilled to be competing in this class, as it will be my first time in Ocala.”

~ with files from Jump Media and Heather MacInnis