By Alice Collins for Wellington International
Wellington, Fla. – March 22, 2026—Following three months of intense, world-class competition at the 2026 Adequan® Global Dressage Festival (AGDF) in Wellington, FL, the curtain came down on the last day of international dressage on Sunday, March 22. This year, the one-of-a-kind dressage circuit boasted 426 FEI entries, with 20 different nations represented and nearly 2,000 national entries.
Brittany Fraser-Beaulieu & Medoc. Photo ©Centre Line Media
After five qualifiers throughout AGDF, nine horse-and-rider combinations lined out to contest the Buffalo Wild Wings Prix St. Georges Future Challenge Final on Sunday, with Canadian Olympian Brittany Fraser-Beaulieu taking the champion’s sash riding Jill Irving’s 9-year-old Medoc (Vivaldi x Sir Donnerall) on 68.588%.
Reserve champion went to Lars Peterson (USA), whose test on Helgstrand Dressage’s 8-year-old New Rock (Indian Rock x Jazz) earned 67.853%, with a high score of 70% from the judge at B, Monique Peutz-Vegter (NED). Hope Cooper (USA) completed the top three line-up, riding JKS Dressage Horses’ nine-year-old mare Madelivia (Ferdinand x Chippendale) to 67.353%, rounding out a trio of Dutch Warmbloods on the podium.
Lars Peterson & New Rock. Photo ©Centre Line Media
Hope Cooper & Madelivia. Photo ©Centre Line Media
The popular series is open to developing small tour horses aged 7 to 9. It is designed to offer horses with international quality the opportunity to perform a test under CDI conditions in the main ring but without some of the pressures of an international show. Riders can showcase their developing horses in the stadium for assessment by international judges.
Fraser-Beaulieu and Medoc qualified for the final during AGDF 5 with a score over 73%, though a few errors in the final pegged the score back—most notably when Medoc got his legs in a muddle in the change at the end of the final extended canter on the diagonal. The picture-perfect black gelding made up for it with exemplary trot work and a beautiful, consistent frame.
“We are so fortunate to have a class like this,” said Fraser-Beaulieu, who is the top-ranked Canadian rider at 19th in the world. “It’s amazing to get the young horses out in an environment like this with top judges. It gets them used to the show ring and the atmosphere. Jill purchased Medoc when he was 5, and he just grew. He’s a very big horse, so we took our time with him, but he’s pre-schooling all the grand prix work—it comes naturally for him.
“His piaffe/passage is phenomenal,” she continued. “So, he’ll probably be an even better grand prix horse, which is exciting. He has a lot of power; I just have to teach him how I can access it while he stays relaxed. But that takes time over the years to develop.”
Brittany Fraser-Beaulieu & Medoc are presented as winners of the Buffalo Wild Wings Prix St. Georges Future Challenge Final. Photo ©Centre Line Media
The Buffalo Wild Wings Prix St. Georges Future Challenge final likely heralds the end of Medoc’s small tour career as Fraser-Beaulieu plans to step him up to middle tour when she returns to Canada after the FEI World Cup™ Final in Texas, where she will ride her Nations Cup team horse, Jaccardo, another belonging to Irving.
“I want to do the Lövsta Future Challenge [for developing grand prix horses] next year here with Medoc—that’s my goal,” said the 37-year-old, who was the last rider down centerline before AGDF relocates to its brand new home, a purpose-built facility adjacent to the Winter Equestrian Festival (WEF) show jumping grounds.
“I didn’t realize that until after I was done, and then I thought ‘Oh my gosh, I’m not going to be riding here anymore,” said Fraser-Beaulieu. “I’ve been coming here for so many years, and I’m definitely going to miss it—there’s nothing like a Friday night riding under the lights here.
“I’m sure the new venue is going to be spectacular, but there are so many memories—I had a lot of firsts here,” she reminisced. “I qualified to go to World Cup Final in this ring. I had a lot of scores to go to Tokyo in this ring. And, I set the Canadian freestyle record here [79.33% achieved on All In at AGDF in 2021, which still stands].”
Immediately following the Future Challenge final, Fraser-Beaulieu was right back to producing talent for the future, leading her three-year-old daughter Chloé Beaulieu on Irving’s miniature named Ted in the Zen Elite Equestrian Leadline Class.
Zen Elite Equestrian Leadline to close out the 2026 Adequan® Global Dressage Festival (AGDF) season. Photo ©Centre Line Media
“Jill is such a wonderful owner and I’m so blessed to have her support me,” added Fraser-Beaulieu, whose husband stayed at home with their son while her parents and mother-in-law were on hand to help with her daughter. “It takes a village, that’s for sure. If I didn’t have a village, it would be impossible, especially with how many horses I’ve been riding and showing this season.”
Click here for full results from the Buffalo Wild Wings Prix St. Georges Future Challenge final.
Young Horse Finals
In the two La Donaira Lusitanos future challenge young horse finals, mares with Vivaldi blood came to the fore—a recurring pattern in the 2026 AGDF bloodlines. Australians dominated the five-year-old ranks, with Hope Beerling riding her own Dynamic Diva to the champion’s title. The Westphalian mare by Dynamic Dream out of a mare by the Vivaldi son Vitalis scored 77.4, including an eight for her canter. Alanna Richards piloted another mare into the reserve spot, riding Emmaline Count’s Oldenberg Chica AK, who is by the Vitalis son Valverde, to 70.8%. Jessica Kozel (USA) rode Cynthia Perretti’s Hanoverian gelding Tuscany (by Taurus out of a Thoroughbred dam) into third with 67.4%.
Hope Beerling & Dynamic Diva. Photo ©Centre Line Media
In the six-year-old final, Canada’s Julie Channell captured the blue ribbon on owner/breeder Laura Cacioppo’s Hanoverian mare Delikat EGF (Dark Pleasure x Totilas) with 69.6%. Rebecca Waite (USA) steered Holly Rutland’s Fox Creek’s Toadally Pony (Fox Creek’s Treasure x FS Daddy Cool) to the reserve champion’s sash with 67%.
Julie Channell & Delikat EGF. Photo ©Centre Line Media
The AGDF 11 Nations Cup contest wrapped up with the Diamante Farms CDIOU25 Grand Prix Freestyle, which was an all-American affair. It was very close between the gold and silver medals, and Alicia Berger won out with a personal best of 71.615% on her own and Marianne Berger’s 15-year-old Ampere x Stedinger Oldenburg gelding, Aqua Marin, solidifying a clean sweep of all three golds on offer in the U25 division. Allison Nemeth and Leviathan, her own Desperado x Apache 10-year-old KWPN gelding, picked up their second individual silver, with a strong 71.145% performance. Bronze went to Sophia Schults with 64.02% on her own 14-year-old PRE Conocido HGF (Cosaco XI x Idilio II).
Podium finishers in the Diamante Farms CDIOU25 Grand Prix Freestyle: Alicia Berger, Allison Nemeth and Sophia Schults. Photo©Centre Line Media
Sunday’s action marks the conclusion of international competition in the three-month 2026 AGDF season. Week 12 hosts a USEF rated national show. Next year’s 12-week circuit opens with a World Cup CDI in AGDF 1, Lloyd Landkamer Memorial week (January 13-17, 2027). The CDI5* is scheduled for AGDF 3 (January 27-31). Click here for the full 2027 dates. For more information, results, and to watch the live stream, visit www.wellingtoninternational.com.
