Maryland Win Makes Laine Ashker the US Open's First Dual-Discipline Winner
With her victory at the Maryland International CCI4*-S, Laine Ashker became the first athlete to win a US Equestrian Open qualifier in both eventing and dressage.
Ashker was already the first athlete to compete in the US Equestrian Open across both eventing and dressage. The Maryland International CCI4*-S has added another first. She is now the only athlete to have won a qualifier in both disciplines.
It took 16 horses and more than 100 FEI eventing starts to get here. Four of those horses made it to CCI5*. None of them won at the top level. Lovedance did it in his first season.
Cross country time was always going to separate the field at Maryland and as we expected, nobody made the time. Ema Klugman & Chiraz came closest, picking up 14.8 penalties to finish second. Lovedance added 19.2, but a 29.7 dressage score and a clear show jumping round were enough to hold off the chasers. It marks Ashker's third international eventing win, all of which have come with Lovedance.
Ashker is the only athlete to have competed in the US Equestrian Open across both eventing and dressage, a status she earned at Bouckaert in March.
On the dressage side, every international win of her career has come with Zeppelin, including a personal-best 73.015% Grand Prix Freestyle at the Mid-Atlantic Dressage Festival in May 2025 where they secured a US Equestrian Open qualifier win.
Her 12th place (66.260%) at the US Equestrian Open of Dressage CDI5* Final last November made her a 5* athlete in both dressage and eventing.
"Five years ago, I would have never dreamed it," she added. "If you'd asked seventeen-year-old me if I'd have horses doing this, I would have looked at you sideways."
Laine Ashker & Zeppelin at the US Equestrian Open Final of Dressage in November 2025.
Ashker has spoken before about how one discipline feeds the other. At Kentucky earlier this year, she pointed to the eventing dressage test itself and what it feels like compared to riding Zeppelin.
The bigger carryover, she said, is in the show jumping. "I've learned how to rate and balance the canter a lot better than I have in the past, from a dressage standpoint. I'm very grateful for the dressage work helping me with that."
The Maryland win has done something to Ashker's outlook. She is talking about five-star debuts and LA contention with a smile on her face now.
At ten years old, Lovedance, the US Equestrian Open Final of Eventing at Morven Park in October is a likely path to do their first 4*L and it seems that Ashker has big plans for the rest of the season. "I'm very humbled and very grateful," she said, "and looking forward to hopefully competing in both US Opens on both my horses."
Lovedance has eventing covered. Zeppelin keeps adding to his unbeaten run in dressage. The only discipline left is show jumping. Greya might want to keep an eye on the entry list.
