World No. 2 Kent Farrington and Greya brought the crowd to their feet during Rolex Finale Week at Wellington International with a Saturday Night Lights victory in the $1,000,000 Rolex US Equestrian Open Grand Prix, A Rolex Series Event, to conclude the 2026 Winter Equestrian Festival (WEF) season.
The Rolex Finale grand prix had not been won by a U.S. rider in seven years. Farrington—a U.S. Olympic team silver medalist—rewrote that history on Saturday night in front of a sold-out crowd of more than 10,000 fans. From a field of 40 qualified riders that included six of the world’s top 10-ranked athletes, five advanced to the tie-breaking jump-off over Olympic course designer Guilherme Jorge’s (BRA) track.
Riding Greya, his own 12-year-old Oldenburg mare (Colestus x Contender), Farrington stormed to a win in 42.99 seconds over Ben Maher (GBR) riding Enjeu de Grisien.
“You never know if it’s perfect until the class is over, but I thought I put in a very competitive round,” said Farrington of his first five-star win of the year with Greya. “It’s always great to win at home—Wellington has become an equestrian community. They get a great local crowd that comes out here and cheers for all of us, but particularly the American riders, so it’s exciting to win here at home.”
When asked about Greya’s winning ways, which include 10 five-star grand prix victories, Farrington said, “You have some good horses, maybe even some great horses, and then you have horses that are an outlier athlete, like I believe she is. She can do everything; she’s fast, she’s careful, she’s scopey, she’s rideable, she’s an incredible horse.”
Wellington International debuted as part of the Rolex Series in 2025, joining a list of the most renowned equestrian sport venues in the world, including Rome, Italy; La Baule, France; Falsterbo, Sweden; Dinard, France; Dublin, Ireland; and Brussels, Belgium.
“The best riders come out [for these events], so we always have the highest level of sport, great prize money, and the prestige of a Rolex event puts us on the map,” said Farrington, a Rolex Testimonee whose groom, Denise Moriarty, was awarded the Double H Farms Grooms Award for her care and preparation of Greya.
Leading the way in the opening round, Maher—British Olympic Champion—was the first to crack the code on Jorge’s course. Settling for second in a time of 43.72 seconds, his 12-year-old Selle Français gelding (Toulon x Andiamo) owned by Charlotte Rossetter & Pamela Wright, set a tough standard to beat.
“It’s always hard to go first when you have these guys after,” said the World No. 3. “Kent’s always there, and he’s always fast, but I’m proud of my horse. I’m happy and disappointed at the same time.
“There’s nothing he can’t do,” said Maher of Enjeu. “He was a little slow developing, but the older he gets, the better.”
Reigning European Champion Richard Vogel finished third riding Gangster Montdesir, a 10-year-old Selle Français stallion (Kannan x Cornet Obolensky). Stopping the clock in 42.87 seconds, the World No. 4 suffered a heartbreak rail at the final fence of the jump-off. (One of three Canadians in this event, Erynn Ballard had a quick four-fault round aboard Ilan Ferder’s De Flor 111 Z Santa Rosa to finish in 8th place. She was also named Leading Lady Rider at WEF for 2026.)
“That’s why our sport is so exciting—it’s only over when it’s over,” he said. “Unfortunately, there wasn’t great riding to the last fence—I should have done one less stride. Gangster was right there with me, and I’m super proud of how he performed and how he jumped.
“From the start, he answered all the questions,” continued Vogel. “Every show he went to, he delivered, and he always tried his best. We have very high hopes for him. He could not have done anything better today.”
Jorge has designed the finale grand prix at Wellington International for 12 consecutive years, saying, “I live in Wellington, so it’s obviously very important for me to have a show like this and to be able to be the course designer at home. I’ve been coming to Wellington since 1999, and year after year, the show is getting better, and we’re getting a higher level of competitors. I think this year is probably the highest level that I have had on the final. It’s very challenging, but it’s a great show and a great grand prix to build.”
Wellington International President Michael Stone concluded the evening by saying, “We’ve always strived to elevate the sport in the U.S., and to be able to have a competition tonight with the level of the riders that are here is mind-blowing. I’ve been in the sport almost all my life, and to be able to sit here with these guys, it’s special. It’s what we’ve been trying to achieve, and it drives us to achieve more.”
For complete results of the $1M Rolex US Equestrian Open Grand Prix, click HERE.
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