Reed Kessler was honored with the Longines Rising Star Award at the FEI Award Gala 2013 in Montreux, Switzerland on Thursday. HRH Princess Haya thanked Reed and Charlotte Dujardin, who won the Reem Acra Best Athlete Award, "for sharing the grace, elegance and beauty of equestrian sport with a global audience." The years 2012 and 2013 will certainly remain engraved on Reed Kessler's memory. In her first year of eligibility in the senior Jumping ranks, she shared the 2012 USEF National Jumping title with the legendary Olympian Margie Engle. A few months later, shortly after her 18th birthday, Reed headed to London as the youngest equestrian athlete to compete at the Olympic Games. Early 2013 saw Reed achieve top results over twelve weeks of competition at the FTI Consulting Winter Equestrian Festival in Wellington, USA, where she rode a double clear on her Olympic mount Cylana at the Furusiyya FEI Nations Cup™ Jumping and contributed to Team USA's victory. She also competed at the FEI World Cup™ Jumping Final in Gothenburg, Sweden and finished in 10th position. At Spruce Meadows, Canada, she again represented the USA in the Furusiyya FEI Nations Cup™ Jumping then claimed her biggest victory to date in the ATCO Power Queen Elizabeth II Cup. © FEI
