World Championship week is here and the US Equestrian Open has arrived on the biggest stage of the season.

Diarm is joined by EquiRatings analyst Ali Barrett to look at the US combinations taking on Aachen across dressage and eventing, with some familiar names from the Open right at the heart of the action.

They look at Ashley Holzer's chances against a seriously strong European dressage field before turning to the eventers, where Open leader Tammy Smith heads to Aachen with Lilette alongside Will Coleman and Diabolo, Boyd Martin and Cooley Nutcracker, Caroline Pamukcu and HSH Blake, and Phillip Dutton and Denim.

Can the US stay close enough after dressage to put themselves into the medal conversation on Saturday? Who could deliver the biggest individual result? And with Olympic qualification already secured for LA 2028, could that give this team the freedom to really go for it?

Plus, Diarm and Ali look back on a huge US win in the 100th Aga Khan at Dublin and what that result says about the strength and momentum building across the US programme.

Highlights • The US Equestrian Open leaders taking on Aachen • Ashley Holzer's World Championship chances • Tammy Smith and Lilette's route to a potential top five • Why Will Coleman and Diabolo could be serious medal contenders • The strength of the US eventing team • Caroline Pamukcu and HSH Blake as ones to watch • What Olympic qualification could mean for the US approach • Team USA's huge Aga Khan win in Dublin

The horses are on their way to Aachen, but for the riders, grooms and support teams, the hardest part might already be behind them.

Annie Bishop is joined by Max Corcoran to pull back the curtain on everything that happens before a championship begins. From the pressure of keeping a horse healthy after selection to packing trunks, flying horses across the Atlantic and solving problems before riders even know they exist, Max shares what life is really like behind the scenes of a championship campaign. They also discuss the unique community among grooms, the logistics of traveling internationally with horses, and why simply making it to the start of a championship is an achievement in itself. Highlights

• What the final weeks before a championship are really like
• Flying horses to Europe and the logistics behind the scenes
• Packing for Aachen: trunks, tack and travel essentials
• The role of a groom during championship week
• Why making the team is only the beginning
• Stories from Max's Olympic and World Championship experiences

Olivia Dutton started the final day in 12th. By the end of it, she was standing on the podium with an individual bronze medal.

With D on holiday, Annie is joined by Ali Barrett to round up the latest stories across the US Equestrian Open. They discuss the late change to the U.S. jumping team for Aachen, Dublin selections, and why the inaugural Under-25 World Championships are already proving to be such an important pathway for the sport. Ali was on the ground at Millstreet and shares what it was like watching the championship unfold.

Then Olivia joins Annie to relive an unforgettable week in Ireland. She reflects on the mistake at Tryon that nearly cost her selection, tackling one of the toughest cross-country tracks of the season, and the moment she realized her clear show jumping round had earned her an individual bronze medal. She also looks ahead to what's next for Julent and her exciting string of young horses.

Highlights

• Team changes ahead of Aachen
• Dublin Nations Cup selections
• Why the Under-25 World Championships matter
• Ali Barrett's view from Millstreet
• Olivia Dutton's rise from 26th to bronze
• The mistake that nearly cost Olivia selection
• What's next for Olivia and Julent

Guests

• Ali Barrett – EquiRatings AI & Sports Media Analyst
• Olivia Dutton – Individual bronze medallist at the inaugural FEI Under-25 Eventing World Championships

Laine Ashker is doing something no one else in the US Equestrian Open has done: competing in two disciplines at once.

Annie sits down with her on this episode of the US Equestrian Open Podcast to talk about the road to a first four-star win at Maryland with Lovedance, and a Grand Prix dressage career built on Zeppelin that's already taken her to the Open Final in Thermal.

Two horses, two sports, one rider trying to qualify for both finals in the same year. Laine talks through what changed after stepping back down a level with Lovedance, the affirmations practice that's turned her season around, and how eventing and dressage have quietly been making each other better all along.

Highlights

• Winning at Maryland with Lovedance
• Building Zeppelin's Grand Prix freestyle
• The affirmations that changed her season
• Riding two sports at the top level
• What dressage and eventing teach each other

Guests

• Laine Ashker – five-star eventer and Grand Prix dressage rider, the first athlete to compete in both disciplines of the US Equestrian Open

Four disciplines. Dozens of names. One long exhale as Aachen finally starts feeling real. Annie and D sit down with every world championship team announcement now in hand, and the dressage squad alone gives them plenty to chew on.

A fifty-year gap between the youngest and oldest riders on one team? That's not a typo, that's just where this sport is right now. Ashley Holzer's four-decade arc from Seoul to Aachen sits next to Christian Simonson's early-twenties breakout, and somehow it all has to gel into a team.

Then there's the strength-in-depth problem nobody but Germany gets to have: an Olympic champion sitting as second reserve. Annie and D can't decide whether to be impressed or worried for everyone else.

And with Rebecca Farm kicking off, the languishing in-between period officially ends this weekend.

Highlights

• Dutta Corp. US Dressage Team breakdown
• Fifty years, four riders, one team
• Germany's ridiculous reserve list
• Eventing, jumping, para, driving and vaulting round-up
• Mill Street Under 25s preview
• Rebecca Farm predictions kick off

The US eventing team for Aachen is out, and on this episode of the US Equestrian Open Podcast, Annie Bishop and Diarmuid Byrne break down every name on the list.

Cooley Nutcracker steps in where Commando 3 was expected, and the panel digs into why that shift might matter more than it first appears. Diabolo gets the underrated tag he's been quietly earning for two years, and Phillip Dutton's case for experience over exposure gets its own hearing.

Then there's Lillet 3, the ten-year-old some fans already had down as a lock, and the gap between her ceiling and her floor. Annie and D close it out by weighing Great Britain, Germany and the US against each other heading into the championship, medal chances and all.

Highlights

• The US Aachen team, name by name
• Cooley Nutcracker in, Commando 3 out
• The case for an underrated Diabolo
• Phillip Dutton's experience argument
• Lillet 3's high ceiling, low floor
• Early medal chances across nations

Christmas comes early as the first Aachen team is announced. Annie and Diarm react to the US jumping squad, discuss the biggest selection talking points, and look at what it means as World Championship teams begin to take shape. They also review the latest eventing action from Maryland, where Laine Ashker secured her first four-star victory, and discuss what the results could mean ahead of US team selection.

Then Annie catches up with dressage rider Claire Darnell, currently third on the US Equestrian Open leaderboard. Claire reflects on the unexpected season she and Harold have enjoyed, why she nearly stepped away from the horse at the start of the year, the story behind her Hunger Games freestyle, and why an 80s soundtrack is next on the playlist.

Highlights

• The US jumping team for Aachen is announced
• Maryland Horse Trials review and what it means for US eventing selection
• Claire Darnell on Harold, her breakout season and nearly taking a different path
• The story behind her Hunger Games freestyle and why it's changing this summer
• What makes a great freestyle, developing horses from young stock and life in Wellington

Guest

• Claire Darnell - US Grand Prix dressage rider based in Wellington, Florida, currently third on the US Equestrian Open leaderboard with Harold

This week on the US Equestrian Open Podcast, Annie and Diarm look ahead to Maryland Horse Trials and what's at stake in the latest eventing qualifier as the leaderboard battle continues.

There's also discussion around Rotterdam and another major statement from Marilyn Little and La Contessa as selection conversations continue.

Plus, Annie catches up with Stephanie Goodman after becoming the first combination to win on their four-star Open debut at Aspen Farms. Stephanie reflects on building her program in Idaho, the horse that brought her back to the sport and why Elwenda keeps proving her wrong.

Highlights: • Maryland Horse Trials preview • Open leaderboard implications • Rotterdam and jumping selection discussion • Stephanie Goodman on her Aspen Farms win • Elwenda's journey to four-star success

A record-breaking weekend at Aspen, Aachen conversations getting louder and a reminder of why freestyle remains one of the sport's biggest stages.

This week Annie and Diarm look back on Aspen Farms, where Stephanie Goodman and Elwenda DP made history by becoming the first combination to win on their four-star debut at the Open. There's discussion around what made the result so special, why Aspen continues to deliver moments people remember and how the series picture is starting to take shape.

Then attention turns to jumping, with Nations Cup season heating up and the pressure building as Aachen selection edges closer.

Plus, Annie sits down with current US Equestrian Open Dressage leaderboard leader Ashley Holzer for a conversation on partnership, building trust with Flo, the story behind her Neil Diamond freestyle and why she believes freestyle is one of the sport's most powerful ways to connect with fans.

Highlights • Aspen's record-breaking four-star debut winner • What the result means for the Open standings • Aachen selection conversations begin • Nations Cup storylines to watch • Ashley Holzer on Flo and partnership • The story behind her Neil Diamond freestyle • Why freestyle matters

This week, Annie returns from Bromont with reflections from one of North America's most iconic venues and why places like Bromont continue to play such an important role in producing the next generation of championship and five-star horses.

There's discussion around standout performances across the weekend, exciting young horses coming through the levels, and what makes venues with terrain, history and progression opportunities so valuable to the future of the sport.

Plus, attention turns west to Aspen Farms and another important qualifier weekend, with leaderboard movement, rising combinations and valuable points on the line as the season continues to take shape.

Highlights

• Looking back on a special weekend at Bromont
• Why venues like Bromont and Morven remain so important
• Exciting young horses and combinations to watch
• The role of pathway programmes in developing future stars
• Aspen Farms preview and key combinations
• Leaderboard implications and qualification picture
• One eye already turning towards championships and the final