What is the Pessoa/USEF Hunter Seat Medal?

The Pessoa/USEF Hunter Seat Medal is a prestigious equitation class series for junior riders that is sponsored by Pessoa and administered through the USEF, providing a qualifying pathway toward a national final that represents one of the most important junior equitation championships in the American hunter jumper world. The class series requires riders to qualify at recognized competitions during the competitive season by earning qualifying scores in Pessoa/USEF Medal classes at their regional shows before being eligible for the final. The class format tests classical hunt seat position and effectiveness over a hunter-type course, with the judging criteria emphasizing the same qualities that all hunter equitation evaluates — position correctness, effectiveness of aids, horsemanship, and the quality of the performance the rider produces from the horse. The national final, held annually at a major indoor show, brings together the most qualified junior equitation riders from across the country in a high-level competition that may include additional tests beyond the standard over-fences round — tests such as being asked to ride a specific portion of the course in a particular way, to demonstrate a specific movement, or to switch horses with another finalist and ride an unfamiliar horse. The horse-switching test, when included, is among the most revealing equitation tests because it removes the advantage of familiarity with a specific horse and tests the rider's ability to adapt quickly and effectively to an unfamiliar mount — a genuine test of horsemanship rather than the specific partnership of a practiced horse-and-rider combination. The Pessoa/USEF Medal Final is one of three or four major junior equitation championships — alongside the USEF Medal, the Maclay, and the Washington International Horse Show equitation final — that together define the pinnacle of American junior equitation competition.