May 29, 2026 
Watching Lillie Keenan and Kick On’s foot-perfect jump-off round on Saturday, May 23 in the Second Qualifier for the Rolex Grand Prix on Sunday at TSCHIO Aachen, commentator Charlotte Smet made an apt observation.
“It’s just a bit of poetry in motion. Lillie makes it all look so beautiful—it’s almost like a ballet,” Smet said. “It looks so nice, and so put together, but it’s also so fast—you almost didn’t notice how fast it was.”
Keenan was, indeed, fast, besting second-place finisher Abdel Saïd (BEL) and Bonne Amie’s time by more than a minute and a half to take the victory. And while the former winner of all “Big Four” U.S. equation titles was indeed a serious ballerina growing up—even dancing at the School of American Ballet in New York—Keenan’s almost supernatural polish aboard Kick On has been hard-earned, to say the least.
“I’ve had Kick On for about two years now, and the beginning of our relationship was a little rough. He had a habit of bolting, and I got a little help with that. [But initially] I was a little concerned when an older gentleman who had broken horses for decades told me that he wasn’t sure that we could fix it!” Keenan joked.
“I think ‘Ken’ was testing me, and because I never gave up on him, and I always believed, we got through some rough patches, and he’s really just grown into one of my top horses. [I’m] lucky to have him,” she said.
Lucky in more ways than one, given Ken’s apparent versatility in very disparate arenas at the top of the sport.
The 12-year-old British-bred stallion has been Keenan’s choice of partner for her last two FEI Jumping World Cup Finals appearances indoors, where the pair finished 11th and 10th in 2025 and 2026, respectively. They’ve also landed on the podium in 5* 1.60m Grands Prix in 2025 and 2024—the same year they also won their first 5* Grand Prix at MLSJ Toronto.
And now, in Ken’s first year competing in Aachen’s iconic and sprawling grass stadium, he’s logged another win in a qualifier. “I’m really proud of my horse, I think he jumped extremely well,” Keenan reflected after Round 1.
“I think in this arena, he’s actually grown: this was his first time in Aachen, and he seemed to jump it pretty easily.”
But if Ken’s early bolting habit was the partnership’s first hurdle, Keenan has also done the work when it comes to her own mental game.
The American rider has been forthcoming about the fact that she struggled with serious confidence issues before she began training with five-time Olympic medalist McLain Ward (USA) at the age of 22. After her victory on Saturday, Keenan once again credited her longtime coach with helping to bring her riding to the next level.
“McLain has been my mentor for maybe seven years now. He truly changed my life, because when I came to him, I was not very much believing in my ability to do this, and he’s changed so much for me, in the best way possible.
“I think he’s the best rider in the world, so to get advice from him is pretty cool,” Keenan continued.
“The biggest thing he told me before we went in [on Saturday]—the most crucial piece of advice—was that I ‘needed to ride like the best version of me,’ and he always says that’s better than everyone else.
“I don’t think [that version of me] is as good as him,” she added, smiling. “But today, it was true.”
