For the first time ever, three U.S. athletes sit atop the Fédération Equestre Internationale world ranking list for their respective disciplines. Reaching the milestone is an achievement for any rider, with Boyd Martin, Kent Farrington and Fiona Howard each taking their own individual road to World No. 1.

We’ve compiled some statistics detailing the differences in these three riders’ paths to the top, with the help of EquiRatings. All statistics are based on results from May 1, 2024, to April 30, 2025.

For Martin, who has been a stalwart on the U.S. eventing team since 2010, making it to the top spot has been a lifelong pursuit. He competed in his first five-star event in Adelaide (Australia) in 2000, and he’s been polishing his skills for the past quarter-century since, which enabled him to finish three horses in the top 10 at this year’s Defender Kentucky CCI5*-L. It was his Kentucky placings that boosted him up the ranking list to unseat Great Britain’s Tom McEwen, who has held the top spot since last August. Martin is the first U.S. eventer to be ranked No. 1 since Kim Severson in 2004.

For Farrington, it was a return to a spot he first achieved in April 2017, when he took the crown from teammate McLain Ward. Farrington held the top spot for a full year, until an injury kept him out of the ring for two months and Dutch rider Harrie Smolders earned points to slot into the top spot. This year, Farrington steadily climbed the ranking list, winning major grand prix classes in Wellington, Florida; Ocala, Florida; Thermal, California; and Lexington, Kentucky, chipping away at Swede Henrik von Eckermann’s lead. With Farrington’s ascent, he ended von Eckermann’s historic 32-month reign.

Para-dressage rider Fiona Howard retained her World No. 1 ranking, which she first attained in March, taking over from teammate Roxanne Trunnell. Howard made a rapid ascent in the para-dressage world since competing in her first CPEDI in 2022. She made her first senior championship team at last year’s Paris Paralympics, where she set a record of 80.00% in the Grade II Para Grand Prix Test B.