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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