In 2013, Abigail Wexner's Simon and his rider,
Beezie Madden, scored top finishes for the United States, both stateside and abroad, and secured their place in the history books with an epic win on the world's largest stage.
They began the year at the FTI Consulting
Winter Equestrian Festival (WEF), where on Week Five they earned a top placing in the Adequan Grand Prix. Three weeks later during the CSIO week, Simon and Madden were members of the winning U.S. effort in the Furusiyya
FEI Nations Cup Competition presented by G&C Farm. They would close out the month of April by traveling to Gothenburg for the Rolex/FEI
World Cup Finals.
They began the week in Gothenburg with a win in the first round Speed Leg, from there on Simon continued to jump in his trademark careful and consistent manner and by the end of the week, Simon and Madden had bested the Olympic champions, Steve Guerdat and Nino des Buissonnets, by producing a clear round in the final jump-off to win the Rolex FEI World Cup Finals, the only FEI Championship awarded annually.
Simon continued his streak of strong performances with top placings in
Spruce Meadows, including collecting third place honors in both the PwC Cup and the ATCO Power Queen Elizabeth II Cup. Madden and Simon finished out the year anchoring the U.S. team at the Furusiyya FEI Nations Cup Final in Barcelona, where they once again proved successful in the jump-off to help in the winning American effort in the Consolation Round.
From the very first time that Beezie Madden sat on Simon, back in 2011, she knew that they would be accomplishing great things together. With Abigail Wexner’s unwavering support, Simon made this a reality for Madden claiming her first Rolex/FEI World Cup Finals title, earning Simon the title International Horse of the Year by the
United States Equestrian Federation and Madden Equestrian of the Year.