The First American Woman at the Magnolia Cup: Meet Zoey Schorsch

This July, an American is making history at England’s most stylish charity horse race — and she’s riding in style.

On July 30, at the iconic Goodwood Racecourse in West Sussex, something historic will happen: an American woman will line up at the start of the Markel Magnolia Cup for the very first time.

Her name is Zoey Schorsch, and she is exactly the kind of person you’d expect to make history quietly and stylishly — then absolutely fly down the straight.

An executive at Audrain Group and creative director of ZDS Creative, Schorsch has spent her career at the intersection of horsepower and horse power. She built her professional world around motorsport before turning her eye — and her considerable competitive energy — toward thoroughbred racing. This July, she’ll compete aboard American Muscle, a horse whose name could not be more perfectly chosen. It’s an Audrain horse, a nod to the automotive heritage that has defined her career, and a thoroughly modern symbol of American strength arriving on British soil.

Now in its 15th year, the Markel Magnolia Cup is one of summer’s most anticipated sporting and social events, held during the Qatar Goodwood Festival on Ladies’ Day. Each year, a remarkable group of women — drawn from business, sport, media, fashion, and philanthropy — trains for months under professional jockeys before racing down one of England’s most legendary home straights. This year’s lineup alongside Zoey includes TV presenter and dressage rider Gemma Owen, Forbes 30 Under 30 honoree Jessica Chapplow, reconstructive microsurgeon Joanna Bovis, and an international roster of women from the UK, Australia, China, and the U.S.

The race supports the Education Above All Foundation, the global education nonprofit founded by Her Highness Sheikha Moza bint Nasser — making the Magnolia Cup not only a fashion and lifestyle moment but a genuine force for good.

As the first American woman in the field, and as an openly gay woman representing both motorsport and equestrian sport on an international stage, Schorsch carries more than just Audrain’s colors. She carries a story that spans sport, style, representation, and the particular kind of courage it takes to show up somewhere new and run like you belong there.

Which, of course, she does.

A documentary following Zoey’s journey to Goodwood is coming soon — watch the trailer here.