Christina Morin-Graham was the very first Championship class rider of the entire 2025 US Dressage Finals as the pathfinder in the Intermediate II Adult Amateur Championship on Thursday morning. Her 66.961% performance on her own 15-year-old Oldenburg mare Mondlicht was more than enough to keep her atop the leaderboard throughout to deliver her first Finals win, with the reserve champion finishing almost five percentage points adrift.

Photo – Adult Amateur Christina Morin-Graham rode her own Mondlicht to the Intermediate II title with 66.961% to capture the very first 2025 winner’s sash. (SusanJStickle.com)

Morin-Graham — who has eight championship class rides this year — bought Mondlicht five years ago from Germany and was advised that she would not make a grand prix horse.

“They said she was too hot for the one-tempis and wouldn’t be able to do the piaffe/passage,” explained Morin-Graham, who topped the same class at the Region 8 Championships on the Sarkozy x Ravallo mare. “I was happy to have her as a small tour horse, but over the years we’ve done a lot of growing together, and here we are doing big tour.”

Golden Decision

A week before leaving on the nine-hour journey to WEC – Wilmington from her home base in Malvern, PA, Mondlicht pulled a shoe off in the field and had a slightly swollen leg. Morin-Graham, who works full-time as a partner in a private equity firm, decided to give her a full week off, only schooling her the day before the championship test. That careful management paid off.

“I got on yesterday, and she felt super,” added Morin-Graham, who trains with Mason. “She loves getting ridden; she loves work. I adore her, though she’s definitely an alpha mare and very opinionated. You have to get her on your side and then she really gives you her best.”

Check out the latest coverage of the 2025 Finals, including behind-the-scenes photos and daily releases here. Live results and start times can be found here.

Competition resumes on Friday, October 31, with nine championship titles up for grabs from Training Level to Grand Prix during the day and the evening gala. The full digital show program is available here. Follow the action via the USDF Facebook page, USDF Instagram page, and the US Dressage Finals website, plus live online streaming from the Sanctuary Arena on USEF Network with expert commentary from Kathy Connelly.