When Carol Lavell was inducted into the Roemer Foundation/USDF Hall of Fame in December 2024, The Dressage Foundation’s Board of Directors wished to recognize this special honor. As a result, they approved the awarding of an additional $25,000 Carol Lavell Dressage Prize in 2025.
The Dressage Foundation (TDF) is pleased to announce Laura DeCesari (AZ) as the recipient of this special $25,000 Carol Lavell Advanced Dressage Prize. The Advanced Dressage Prize provides financial assistance for coaching and training to talented, committed, horse and rider combinations with the ability and plans to reach international standards of high-performance dressage. Since 2009, the Carol Lavell Advanced Dressage Prize Fund has awarded 26 grants totaling $650,000 in support of U.S. high-performance teams.
Photo by Terri Miller
Laura, along with her own 13-year-old Swedish Warmblood, Rossi, will use the grant funding to train with David Wightman and to spend the 2026 winter season in Florida. The selection committee for the Prize felt Laura shows great talent as a rider and trainer, alongside a history of good horsemanship and sportsmanship. Laura is a USDF gold medalist with distinction and manages her own boutique training facility in Arizona.
Laura said, “I was incredibly moved when I received the email from The Dressage Foundation letting me know I had been awarded the $25,000 Carol Lavell Advanced Dressage Prize. The journey with Rossi has been especially meaningful; he’s a horse I started myself and now we’re competing together at the CDI Grand Prix level. Having the opportunity to continue my education at the highest level, with the financial support to make it possible, truly means the world to me. This grant brings me one step closer to my dream of one day representing the United States in international competition. Thank you to TDF for believing in me!”
Carol Lavell achieved excellence in all phases of dressage – as an Olympian, rider, competitor, trainer, teacher, and judge. She knew firsthand the work, sacrifice, and struggle necessary to make it to the top of the dressage world. Through the creation of the $25,000 Prize, she wanted to help other deserving riders who aspire to climb this high-performance mountain.
Information about The Dressage Foundation and the Carol Lavell Advanced Dressage Prize can be found at www.dressagefoundation.org. The Advanced Dressage Prize application deadline is August 31st of each year. For more information on applying, please contact TDF’s Director of Grants and Programs, Sara Weiss, at (402) 434-8585 or sara@dressagefoundation.org.
The Dressage Foundation
The Dressage Foundation is a 501(c)(3), non-profit, tax-exempt, donor-driven organization that is dedicated to educating, supporting, and advancing the sport of dressage. The organization solicits contributions, appropriately allocates the donations, and awards grants to dressage riders, judges, instructors, breeders, high performance teams, nonprofit equestrian organizations, and more. For more information, please call (402) 434-8585 or visit www.dressagefoundation.org.
