Kent Farrington (USA) is the one to catch after jumping to the top of the first round of the Longines FEI Jumping World Cup™ Final Thursday afternoon at Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, Texas (USA).

Photo – The FEI World Cup™ Finals Fort Worth 2026 Fort Worth, TX, USA Kent Farrington (USA) and Toulayna, during Longines FEI Jumping World Cup™ – First Final Competition of the The FEI World Cup™ Finals Fort Worth 2026 North American League Fort Worth Texas USA ©FEI/Shannon Brinkman

The current World No. 2 executed a near-flawless round with Toulayna as the pair navigated Anderson Lima’s (MEX) 1.60m track with speed and precision. Their winning time in the faults-converted speed competition was 62.03 seconds. Daniel Deusser (GER) finished second with Otello de Guldenboom in 62.21 seconds, followed by three-time Champion Steve Guerdat and Albfuehren’s Iashin Sitte (62.49s).

All three riders brought the same strategy to the competition—be competitive enough to be in contention later in the week. For Farrington, that plan culminated with a narrow 0.18-second advantage.

“[Toulayna] is naturally fast, [so] I was trying not to beat myself and put in a solid round,” he said. “I’m happy to win, of course—I’m thrilled with that—but it wasn’t necessarily my plan to try to have the fastest time. I just did what I thought could be a competitive round without taking all the risk, and thankfully that was enough to win today.”

American Pride

The United States brought more athletes than any other nation to these home championships, and their riders delivered, with the U.S. flag appearing next to four of the top six finishers. Lillie Keenan (USA) sits just outside the top three after posting the fastest round of the day with Kick On; she put herself in a strong position despite dropping a rail jumping into the double of verticals.

Jacob Pope (USA) made quite the impression in his World Cup Finals debut, slotting into the top five with Highway FBH, while Aaron Vale (USA) finished sixth with Carissimo 25, despite being the first rider through the gates in the 35-strong field. Katie Dinan (USA) also produced a clear effort with Out of the Blue SCF, with whom she finished eighth overall at last year’s Finals in Basel (SUI).

But no one could catch Farrington, and the lead changed hands just twice throughout the entirety of the competition. Rails fell throughout the course—though none more than the narrow upright at the final obstacle, which repeatedly brought heartbreak to otherwise positive rounds.

“I don’t think there’s—in a course like that—one place where you win or lose the class,” Farrington said. “I don’t think there’s even half-a-second between first and third. For me, that’s just a flip of a coin of who wins that.”

Tactical Speed

For Toulayna, the Finals are over. The 12-year-old mare, who also jumped at the 2024 Finals in Riyadh (KSA), was brought specifically to jump the first round. Another accomplished mare, Greya will take over throughout the remainder of the competition.

“Greya is an incredible horse, but it would be very difficult [for her] to go in on the first day in a small ring, after I’ve been jumping all winter in large, outdoor areas and be able to go fast enough to be in contention,” Farrington explained. “So, I think I would have had to go in with a less aggressive plan . In order to have a chance in this Final, you have to be somewhere near the front at the beginning.”

Acutely aware of the footspeed Farrington’s horse possessed, Deusser relied on his partner’s stride to put him in good position.

“For me, it was important to have a smooth round [and] try to leave a few strides out here and there,” he explained. “A top five to eight finish was the goal today, and at the end I have to say I’m delighted with my second place. My horse gave me a good feeling. It’s important to ride clear from now, on, so we still have two days to go.”

Record in Sight

Guerdat (SUI) has won these Finals on three previous occasions—2015, 2016, and 2019—and a fourth title is now within reach. Should he achieve the feat with the 12-year-old Albfuehren’s Iashin Sitte, Guerdat would make history as the first athlete to achieve the feat. He thinks “Iashin” is deserving of that pressure—particularly after earning World Cup victories on the Western European League at both Helsinki (FIN) and Leipzig (GER) early in 2026.

“I think Iashin is a very underrated horse, but he obviously has big shoes to fill, because I’ve been really lucky throughout my whole career to have amazing horses,” said Guerdat, who missed significant time in 2025 following two back procedures. “I haven’t been jumping much because of my health, but [Iashin] has been there the whole time, and I’m happy to be able to bring him a little more of the spotlight, especially on a stage like a World Cup Final. I’m confident that he’s going to keep fighting for me.”

The Longines FEI Jumping World Cup™ Final continues Friday, 10 April at Dickies Arena, with the second round—a jump-off competition—set to begin at 7pm CST. A new champion will be crowned following two final rounds of jumping on Sunday, 12 April 2026.

“There’s still a lot of things to do, a lot of fences to jump,” Guerdat expressed. “There are two very strong guys in front of me, but also a lot of strong [riders] just behind [us]…We’re going to have a clearer picture tomorrow night of how it looks for Sunday.”

To access flash quotes from the Mixed Zone, click here. This link is updated during each competition.

FULL RESULTS

STANDINGS