January 15, 2025 
Planning a top horse’s annual show schedule is no fly-by-night operation.
Riders and their teams invest hours making a plan, thoughtfully working backward from events where they hope their horses will peak. Along the way, they carefully build in time for things like vet work, conditioning, travel (and post-travel recovery), and time-off.
Thankfully, for the horses that took home multiple Grand Prix wins at 3*, 4*, and 5* shows world-wide this year, it’s clear those meticulous gambles paid off.
But what is the star system, and why does it matter?
After all, navigating the alphabet soup and star designations that accompany international equestrian competitions can feel overwhelming for the uninitiated (we see you hunter squad!). Thankfully, understanding the system is relatively easy, at least when it comes to show jumping.
The typical prefix ‘CSI’ (short for the French term Concours de Saut International) simply indicates that an event is international, under the governance of the FEI. Some common suffixes, meanwhile, might include an ‘O’—or ‘CSIO’—and indicates the show is an ‘Official Nations Cup’ competition. Show Jumping World Cup competitions, meanwhile, are labeled CSI-W.
Breaking the ‘stars’ down is even more simple. It goes like this: the higher the star, the higher the level of course difficulty and prize money offered.
“You know at a five-star that the grand prix will be a 1.60-meter [course]. And at a two-star, the maximum you will jump is a 1.45m,” Lizzy Chesson, USEF’s Managing Director of Jumping, told US Equestrian.
So which horses won the most, by the “stars,” in 2024? We’re breaking it all down for you.
3* Competition
Only 18 horses in the world managed to win two grands prix at the 1.50m-1.55m level in 2024—and their ranks are mixed. One includes Victor Bettendorf’s (LUX) former ride, the 9-year-old phenom Foxy De La Roque (more on her in a minute).
With an average horse age of 13, however, all signs indicate that the 3* list also includes many been-there-done-that mounts who are either stepping down the ranks, or gradually cresting the wave of a longstanding partnership with their riders.
Among this variety: Ireland’s Conor Swail and his then-17-year-old “horse of a lifetime” Count Me In, and Philipp Weishaupt (GER) and the 14-year-old Coby 8, both of whom have also campaigned successfully at the 5* level—including FEI World Cup wins (pictured)—pocketing more than €2 million a piece in career earnings.
In terms of prize money at the 3* level last year, the USA’s Molly Ashe Cawley tops the list with the 13-year-old Zangersheide mare, Berdien. The pair benefitted from an American winning streak last July, notching back-to-back 3*, 1.50m victories in Traverse City, Michigan. (For the full list of 3* leaders, download the Jumpr Stats app!)
4* Competition
More than 70 horses (among them Count Me In and Foxy De La Roque—again!) took home a single 4* victory in 2024. But only two horses in the world earned the distinction of winning more than one.
This first is the 11-year-old Selle Français stallion Enjoy De La Mure and 21-year-old FEI 2024 Rising Star Award-winner Omar, Abdul Aziz Al Marzooqi. The partnership from the United Arab Emirates (UAE)—who also made their Olympic debut in Paris this summer (pictured)—earned top, 1.55m 4* placings at the FEI Nations Cup in their home country at Sharjah in January, and in Montefalco, Italy in May. No question, this talented young team is one to watch.
But the top-performing duo at the 4* level in 2024 is the Netherlands’ Sanne Thijssen and her partner of nine years, the indomitable then-18-year-old (!) stallion, Con Quidam Rb. Having earned a total of 20 grands prix wins together and well over €1.2 million in career earnings, the pair added three, 4* victories at 1.55m-1.60m to their resume in 2024: Two in Spain at Vejer de La Frontera and Gijon, and one in Opglabbeek, Belgium.
5* Competition
If you’re a true fan of show jumping, it’s not hard to guess who the three, top-performing 5* mounts of 2024 might be. Here’s a hint: each of them are the only horses in the world to win three, 5*, 1.60m+ grands prix a piece last year.
Representing Switzerland, Martin Fuchs and Leone Jei continued their reign of excellence this year, sharing not only the 5* title for 1.60m+ grands prix wins but, according to Jumpr, also leading for prize money earned (more than €1.4 million), and for clear rounds at that height (a surreal 92%).
Not to be forgotten is the breakout wunderkind Foxy De La Roque, the only 9-year-old horse since at least 2015 to win multiple grands prix in a single year. With Luxembourg’s Victor Bettedorf in the irons, the pair were victorious in 5* classes in Rome, Italy; Lyon, France; and the LGCT Super Grand Prix in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. In terms of stats, that looks like an 83% clear and win rate in the first six 1.60+ rounds of the Selle Français mare’s career.
Last but certainly not least, United Touch S is a horse that’s been in the spotlight since livestreams worldwide first captured his otherworldly stride and scope in real-time. Under Richard Vogel (GER), the Westphalian stallion earned FEI World Cup wins in Lyon and Stuttgart, Germany and a 5*, Saturday Night Lights win in Wellington to kick off the 2024 season.
In three years together, the pair have pocketed more than €1.4 million in prize money, earning a total of five, 5* wins, and finishing in the top 10 in 38 rounds at 1.60m+ at a 71% clip.
Want to dig deeper on the stats? Jumpr App is available on iOS and Android.
