USPC Festival Returns This July, Offering Unmatched Equestrian Education For All and USPC Championships Across Eight Disciplines

April 30, 2026 (Lexington, KY) — The United States Pony Clubs, Inc. (USPC or Pony Club) is pleased to be hosting the 2026 USPC Festival this summer, to be held July 13–19, at the iconic Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, Ky. Sponsorships are available to support the event, along with program advertising. Trade Fair booth space is also available.

The USPC Festival will feature Championships competition, plus mounted clinics, and educational workshops. Pony Club will welcome over 3,000 members, their families, friends, volunteers, spectators, and Pony Club leadership from across the country to Kentucky to enjoy competition, learning, and fun activities.

“The USPC Festival brings Pony Club’s mission to life, combining top-level competition with exceptional educational opportunities in horsemanship,” said USPC Executive Director Teresa Woods. “It’s a one-of-a-kind event where members come together to learn, grow, and celebrate horsemanship.”

Festival Education

The educational phase of Festival will kick off the event this year. Festival Education offers a hands-on learning experience with clinics, demonstrations, and workshops covering all aspects of riding and horse care. Both mounted and unmounted clinics in various disciplines are taught by equine experts, including judges, trainers, coaches, veterinarians, and professional riders, as well as Olympians, of which many are Pony Club instructors and alumni. Mounted clinics include the disciplines of Dressage, Eventing cross-country, Foxhunting, Hunter Seat Equitation, Mounted Games, Polocrosse, Show Jumping, Trail, and Western Dressage, in addition to ground training and horsemanship,

“Come join us for Festival Education and be inspired,” said USPC Instruction Services Director Connie Jehlik. “In 2026, we’re especially excited to feature clinics with Olympians Lendon Gray and Doug Payne, who are presenting special Master Class sessions offering members a unique opportunity to learn from the very best. Along with a diverse range of mounted clinics and hands-on educational workshops, Festival provides an unforgettable learning experience for every level.”

Anyone can sign up for Festival Education to experience the best in equestrian education—and membership in USPC is not required.

Championships Competition at Festival

USPC Festival Championships take place during the second half of Festival week. Held every other year during Festival, USPC’s national championships are offered in eight disciplines: Dressage, Eventing, Mounted Games, Polocrosse, Quiz, Show Jumping, Tetrathlon, and Western Dressage.

“Festival Championships reflects the dedication and effort members have put in all year through rallies and competitions,” said Gillian Stover, USPC Activities and Events Director. “Bringing that achievement to Festival—where competition and education come together—makes it an especially meaningful milestone.”

Pony Club competitions are held in a team format, with teams of five including a Stable Manager. Horses, ponies, and mounts of all sizes are part of Pony Club competition and activities. Competitors are judged not only on their performance in the saddle, but also are scored on Horse Management—how well they care for their horses and ponies during the competition. Members also work as a team in Quiz, a popular Pony Club discipline featuring a knowledge-based question-and-answer competition.

In addition to Championships, the 2026 USPC Festival will offer Open competitions in Pony Club’s two newest disciplines of Gymkhana and Trail, where non-members are invited to register and compete. USPC will also be hosting a Pony Club International Alliance (PCIA) Mounted Games Exchange during Festival, culminating in the fun and fast-paced Frances E. Pitts International Mounted Games Exchange competition on July 18, featuring Pony Club members from Australia, Canada, New Zealand, United Kingdom, and the United States.

Special Events at Festival

Must-see Master Clinics are a highlight of 2026 USPC Festival Education, providing evening activities in the Alltech Arena, including Dressage with Lendon Gray and Show Jumping with Doug Payne. Both of these Olympic riders are also A-level Pony Club alumni.

On the last day of Festival Education, participants have the opportunity to join a local Kentucky hunt club in an early morning mock foxhunt over the terrain of the Kentucky Horse Park. This favorite Festival experience offers the thrill of riding to hounds while also honoring USPC’s founding roots and early ties with the sport of Foxhunting.

A parade of USPC regions on Thursday, July 16, will mark the transition from Festival Education to the start of Festival Championships, as participants march into the Alltech Arena for opening ceremonies, followed by a competitor party with food and festivities.

Support for USPC Festival

The USPC Festival is made possible thanks to support of many generous sponsors, and there is still time to get involved. Join these sponsors in supporting the 2026 USPC Festival: Absorbine, Arabian Horse Youth Association, Gift Horse Baskets; Iroquois Hunt, Kentucky Equine Research; Kentucky Performance Products; Kerrits, the official apparel sponsor of USPC; LeMieux, sponsor of the USPC Member Achievement Program; Middle Tennessee Pony Club, Park Equine Hospital; Platinum Performance; Riding Warehouse; Shapley’s Superior Equine Grooming Products, the official grooming product sponsor of USPC; The Horse, Your Guide to Equine Health Care, provider of Pony Club IQ; Triple Crown Nutrition, the official feed sponsor of USPC; Western & English Sales Association; Wintec, the official saddle sponsor of USPC; and Zoetis, the official equine health and wellness partner of USPC.

Add Your Name to the List: Sponsor opportunities are still available, with a recommended deadline of May 15 to maximize your exposure. Click here to learn more or contact development@ponyclub.org for assistance.

To learn more about the 2026 USPC Festival, visit the official event website at www.ponyclub.org/events/festival.

About The United States Pony Clubs, Inc. — The United States Pony Clubs, Inc. (USPC or Pony Club) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit educational organization that builds the foundation of teamwork and sportsmanship through riding, mounted sports, and care of horses and ponies, while developing and enhancing leadership, confidence, responsibility, and a sense of community in its youth and adult members. USPC is proud to offer instruction and competitive opportunities in 11 competitive disciplines through hundreds of clubs and centers across the United States. USPC’s educational standards continue to be instrumental in curriculum development for schools, universities, equestrian professionals, and organizations across the United States. Many of the nation’s top equestrians, including Olympic team members, as well as successful business professionals and leaders in a variety of fields, have roots in Pony Club. In addition, USPC proudly offers Allpony.com, an online platform dedicated to providing engaging and educational resources for young learners and horse enthusiasts and equestrians of all ages. The platform offers a variety of games, quizzes, and learning modules that will teach users all about horses. For more information, please visit www.ponyclub.org.