From Lebanon to Florida, rider Jad al-Dana leaps from one success to another

Damour, Lebanon, the year 2000. At the Meshref Country Club, five-year-old Jad al-Dana tries horseback riding for the first time, “to be like his big brothers,” says his father Mohammad, owner of the equestrian center. At that age, he was already riding five ponies a day. Full of energy and curiosity, he wasn’t asking “why,” but “how.” “How to become the best in the world,” Dana recalls.Too small to reach the sides of the horse, Dana used two long sticks, one in each hand, to guide his pony — “instead of his still-too-short legs,” his father remembers with a smile.Twenty-five years later, Dana is galloping up the international rankings. From 3,000th place in the International Equestrian Federation (FEI) standings at the start of his career, he now sits at 156th. His latest win: the Ocala CSI4* Grand Prix in Florida on June 30 — one of...