The struggling Mars Maryland 5 Star at Fair Hill appears to have lost key members of its leadership team.

Over the summer, former Maryland 5 Star competition director Joanie Morris took a job as chief operating officer of the Aiken Horse Park Foundation, an appointment that was announced in early November.

Then, on Sunday, The Equiery reported the competition’s two other key executives from the nonprofit Sport and Entertainment Corporation of Maryland, which operates the event, have also left their posts. Terry Hasseltine, who has been president of SECMD since 2019, is no longer listed on the organization’s website or as a state employee, while Maryland 5 Star at Fair Hill President and CEO Jeff Newman is no longer on the competition’s website and his automated email reply says he is no longer with SECMD either.

Additionally, Maryland 5 Star Event Director Marissa Melzer, who dealt with operations, tickets and sponsorships and was also employed through SECMD, has been removed from the event website.

On SECMD’s own website, the entire “team member” page was blank as of Monday morning. The Maryland 5 Star at Fair Hill is responsible for just the October competition, while a separate organization, Fair Hill International, runs the series of national and international horse trials that run on the same property at other times of year.

“The employment status of these individuals is a personnel matter,” Michael Frenz, executive director of the Maryland Stadium Authority, wrote in response to questions about the employee departures. “As to the Maryland 5 Star, all involved are committed to maintaining the tradition and legacy of this important event.”

Event employees were taken by surprise with news of the departures, which they said they learned of on Sunday.

In October, when the five-star began with just 22 entries, the smallest field in its relatively short existence, Newman acknowledged the country’s second five-star faces an uncertain future, although it is unclear at this point whether the event’s financial picture has anything to do with the departures.

“If growth, from an entry standpoint, does continue to decline, it’s going to be difficult to sustain it; there’s no question about it,” he said at the time, noting the long-term success of the event is dependent on ticket sales. “Our role is simply to produce the best event, to generate the most interest, to grow the sport. But others, including the governing bodies [such as the U.S. Equestrian Association, U.S. Eventing Association and the Fédération Equestre Internationale], need to do an equal amount of that … to create interest to participate in five-stars.”

The competition’s website lists Oct. 15-18 as the 2026 dates for the Maryland CCI5*.

This story will be updated with more information as it becomes available.