Classic Eventing Nation

In a thrilling about-face after the Friday lunch-break at MARS Badminton, seven horses and riders posted unprecedented sub-22 scores to push Ros Canter and Lordships Graffalo right out of – nah, don’t worry, we’re kidding, they’re still in the lead on this morning’s 23.7, to absolutely nobody’s surprise but everybody’s great admiration. (Everybody including Queen Camilla: when Ros joined us in the mixed zone earlier, we were warned to keep our questions quick, concise, and to the point, because she was just moments away from being whisked off to meet Her Majesty. No word back yet on whether she received any more 9s for her curtsey, but we’ll assume so.)

By the by, Queen Camilla wasn’t just here for the day to watch some great sport and meet our current sporting head of state – Her Majesty is Patron of the Ebony Horse Club, a Brixton-based initiative that provides access to horses to young people in south London who may not otherwise have the opportunity to learn to ride and care for them. It’s an incredible effort and has done extraordinary work to diversify riding and create a safe, welcoming environment for riders to flourish when they may not otherwise be able to get a foot in the door, and it was a delight to see some of the Club’s members mounted in the main arena to demonstrate the product of their hard work. You can find out more about Ebony, and support their work if you’re able, here.

So how’s that leaderboard looking? There’s Ros in top spot, of course, and then the US’s Tiana Coudray and Cancaras Girl, Thursday’s emotional leaders who put a 28.1 on the board yesterday afternoon  and have stayed firmly in the mix ever since.

And in third? A new addition this afternoon, a third flag at the business end of the leaderboard, and another woman who probably couldn’t really love her horse more if she tried.

Lara de Liedekerke-Meier. Photo by Sophie Robins/Girl in the Field.

Lara de Liedekerke-Meier and Hooney d’Arville have firmly catapulted themselves into ‘fan favourite’ territory since their victory at Luhmühlen CCI5* in 2024 – Belgium’s first-ever five-star win and the zenith of a storied partnership that began well before Hooney was a foal on the ground. Lara bred the mare, putting her youth championship – and senior World Championships — ride Nooney Blue to the Belgian showjumping stallion Vigo d’Arsouilles, but in a funny sort of way, the significance of Hooney’s parentage meant that Lara struggled under the weight of her own expectations, and it took plenty of time, patience, and the odd bit of turbulence en route to seal the deal as an established, consistently competitive partnership.

Now, though? They’re at the forefront not just of Belgian eventing, but of the broader global sport, too. Today, they hit another milestone, earning a five-star personal best of 28.6 to take overnight third place at the close of the dressage phase.

“If you’re going to do a PB, Badminton is the right place to do it,” laughs Lara. “She felt fantastic in there. She knows she’s in Badminton, and she has been quite a lot to handle when we arrived, but my groom did a fantastic job [keeping her on track] until now.”

Her groom, the FEI Groom of the Year Bettina Cardinael, has “let her graze for about four hours a day,” continues Lara, “to not let her think too much about it all.”

Lara de Liedekerke-Meier and Hooney d’Arville. Photo by Sophie Robins/Girl in the Field.

That, and keeping the work to a minimum – a tough ask for a rider who has one horse to focus on all week, when it’s all too tempting to keep oneself busy in the saddle.

“Obviously I want her to be on top form tomorrow, so it’s the challenge of trying to be the good athlete and the good rider, and also taking a lot of time out without the work,” she says. “She knows the work now; she’s thirteen years old and has nothing to learn, so it’s just about keeping her happy.”

“For me,” she continues, “we didn’t have the best preparation – we had a fall [at Kronenberg in March] and she ended up in the stable for ten days because we thought she might have a fracture, but it ended up not being anything, luckily. Then, I wasn’t sure I was going to come here; now, I’m here.”

It is, she acknowledges, “such an accomplishment to be here, and riding in that arena with nothing to lose. I think I’m finally enjoying my time at Badminton, and it not being so stressful. I enjoyed going in there; I felt she was great.”

They did, perhaps, have a slight moment of stress just before the start of their test: “[Ground Jury President] Kiki Klingspor rang the bell really early, so we had to do a bit of running into the arena, but maybe it allowed me to externalise my stress a bit!”

From then on out, it was smooth and sweet – and a rare moment in which Lara didn’t reach for immediate self-criticism.

“I think we made everyone proud – at least myself,” she grins.

Felix Vogg and Cartania. Photo by Sophie Robins/Girl in the Field.

It’s a real treat to see such an international top ten at the tail end of the first phase: the top seven after dressage all represent different nations. Fourth-placed among them at this early stage is Switzerland’s Felix Vogg and Cartania, the spicy mare with whom he won Maryland 5 Star last autumn.

The pair posted a 28.7 – just 0.4 higher than their first-phase score when winning Maryland, and their best Badminton score yet. Still, in her fourth visit here – she was eleventh in 2024 and fifteenth in 2023 – fifteen-year-old Cartania hasn’t quite learned to settle into the colossus of buzz that a Friday here conjures up.

“It was a  disaster the last few days, and still out there in the arena she got nervous – but somehow, we always get it done,” says Felix with a grin. “All the way up [from the stables], the atmosphere, the dogs barking, all this stuff – she’s not so used to it.”

Caroline Powell and Greenacres Special Cavalier. Photo by Sophie Robins/Girl in the Field.

2024 Badminton champions Caroline Powell and Greenacres Special Cavalier have gone to the mid-20s at this level when competing at Burghley last autumn, and so their very smart 29.8 today doesn’t threaten their personal best – but it’s more than good enough for overnight fifth place, and it eclipses, too, the 30 they put on the board en route to winning here two years ago.

“I’m very pleased,” says Caroline. “You know, it’s  tough out there to get a good mark, but she went out and put a game face on, and she, she was very good. I’m very happy.”

At thirteen, ‘Cavvy’ is just coming into her prime, despite already being a five-star winner and with four completions at the level under her belt (girth?) already. Today, it was clear to see how much she’s physically come on over the winter, with her big, athletic frame looking stronger and more engaged than ever before and giving us yet another reason to suspect that Team NZ might just come into their best form yet this summer.

Tim Price and Falco. Photo by Sophie Robins/Girl in the Field.

Speaking of team NZ, a little bit further down the top ten – past Brazil’s Marcio Carvalho Jorge and Royal Encounter in sixth (29.2), Great Britain’s Will Rawlin and Ballycoog Breaker Boy in seventh (29.3), Wills Oakden and Keep It Cooley in eighth (29.4), and Bubby Upton and Cola in ninth (29.8) is Tim Price and his 2022 World Championships double bronze medallist Falco, who round out our post-dressage top ten on a score of 29.9.

“A sub-30 is good, but I wanted a good, low, proper score in there. Sounds a little bit stupid, doesn’t it?” laughs Tim. “ But he is capable, and he can really put together a great test. It just takes a couple of mistakes, especially a little bit of tension, even though, overall, I think it’s quite relaxed and soft and a nice way of going. But as soon as there’s a little bit of tension, I think it just gets the judges a little bit.”

Tim, who had an operation on his collarbone just prior to Kentucky thanks to an ill-timed incident on an electric bike, still looked a touch tentative in his upper body in the ring today, but when pressed, grins and says, “the shoulders are all good – I’ve still got two of them.”

Two is all you need, we suppose.

Grace Taylor and Game Changer. Photo by Sophie Robins/Girl in the Field.

One more US representative took to the ring today: Grace Taylor and Game Changer take provisional equal 15^th place, level with Ireland’s Georgie Goss and Feloupe, after posting a 30.8 this afternoon. That’s a nearly five-mark improvement over the last two years’ Badminton tests.

“I’m really happy with him,” says Grace. “You always want more, but he went really well, and I’m really pleased. Like, it’s a fantastic atmosphere. We all work towards events like this our whole lives, and to go in there and have the crowd cheer you is always amazing.”

Tomorrow, she hopes, will propel them even closer to the top ten finish they’d love to secure at this level.

“This is our seventh five-star, and I think we have four clears from six so far – so I’ll take that average,” she smiles.

That’s a wrap on dressage here at MARS Badminton, but certainly not the end of the line from EN – we’ll be bringing you plenty more before the day’s end, so head on over to our Ultimate Guide to catch up on the coverage you may have missed and stay tuned for lots more to come. Until then: Go Eventing!

The top ten at the end of dressage at MARS Badminton.

MARS Badminton CCI5*: [Website] [Tickets] [Live Stream] [Entries] [Schedule] [Scoring] [CrossCountry App XC Maps] [EN’s Coverage]

Dressage leaders Ros Canter and Lordships Graffalo. Photo by Sophie Robins/Girl in the Field.

EN’s classic full report will be with you just as soon as our boots on the ground have wrangled all the action into a readable format, until then, here’s a rapid update of what went down in the dressage phase at MARS Badminton.

THE HIGHLIGHTS:

It’s a smorgasbord of 5* champions and nationalities at the top of the board after the first phase.

1️⃣ 🇬🇧 Leader in the clubhouse is reigning champion Ros Canter and Lordship’s Graffalo on a score of 23.7.

2️⃣ 🇺🇸 Dropping just one place after leading the first day is Tiana Coudray and Cancaras Girl on a score of 28.1.

3️⃣ 🇧🇪 Rounding out the rolling podium is Luhmühlen 2024 winners Lara de Liedekerke-Meier and Hooney d’Arville on a score of 28.6.

4️⃣ 🇨🇭 Just 0.1 off the podium placings as we head into tomorrow’s cross country is Maryland 2025 winners Felix Vogg and Cartania on a score of 28.7.

5️⃣ 🇳🇿 And within striking distance is 2024 Badminton winners Caroline Powell and Greenacres Special Cavalier on a score of 28.9.

You’ll find the full scoreboard right here.

THE UNDERDOGS:

🔼 It’s no secret that Jesse Campbell and Cooley Lafitte had a dressage disaster at Badminton last year (check out Jesse’s YouTube channel for a debrief of that test), so Jesse was very pleased with his score of 38 this time around.

⏩ A sub-30 score despite a mistake isn’t a bad showing at all, with Wills Oakden and Keep It Cooley putting down a PB of 29.4 in spite of a misunderstanding in the trot work dropping their scores right down after they’d been trending in the lead (at that point in proceedings). This horse is amongst the fastest in the field for cross country and is one to watch, both at Badminton this year and in the future.

‼️ Rookie horses exceeding expectations (based on EquiRatings stats) include:

• Tom Jackson’s United 36 who landed on his 6RA of 32.2 (we would usually expect the score to creep up with a step up in level).
• Michael Owen’s Monbeg Darwin who shaved almost two marks off his 6RA to sit on 34.3.
• Marcio Carvalho Jorge’s Royal Encounter who rose to the occasion with the Queen watching on and went sub-30 with a score of 29.2.

THE CROSS COUNTRY MACHINES:

❗ Gemma Stevens was disappointed with her test with Chilli Knight, saying herself that she went off in a sulk afterwards. There were some uncharacteristic errors, including a whoopsie in the medium canter that landed them 4s across the board. They’re off the pace on a score of 34 but were clear inside the time on cross country day last year, so expect a leaderboard climb tomorrow.

0️⃣ Another rider who didn’t have the round he wanted in the dressage phase was Harry Meade with his third ride Cavalier Crystal. The mare scored 33.8 last year and 30.5 at Burghley, but it was 34.6 today. She finished on her dressage score twelve months ago, however, ending up in 3rd place, so it’s all to play for tomorrow for this pair.

🔺 Alex Bragg and Quindiva are proven climbers, improving their 48th place after dressage in 2024 to make it onto the podium at the end of the event. They start out this year on a score of 39 in 49th place.

⚡ Max Warburton’s Deerpairc Revelry tends to be workmanlike on the flat, correct and consistent but not so flashy for the big scores. They sit in a big bunch of scores around the 30-31 mark on 31.8 but are expected to set themselves apart tomorrow with a super speedy cross country round.

🪜 Eventing surely isn’t a dressage competition and other combinations we can expect to be in the ascendency on cross country day include:

• Tom Bird and Cowling Hot Gossip (45.1).
• Holly Richardson and Ballyneety Silver Service (41.2).
• Arne Bergendahl and Luthien NRW (38.8).
• Cassie Sanger and Redfield Fyre (37.5).
• Cosby Green and Jos Ufo de Quidam (34.9).

THE STATS:

Sub-30 is the benchmark for real success in the dressage phase and 10 combinations cracked that barrier at Badminton this year.

The judging has generally been received as a little harsh, but consistently so across the field. It was particularly noticeable in the case of Ros Canter and Lordship’s Graffalo perhaps, despite scoring two 9s for their halt at C (from the judges at H and B) and another one for the second flying change (from the judge at B), there was the feeling that perhaps there was room for a bit more generosity overall, with an argument for some of the 7s to come in at 7.5 and the 7.5s to push to 8s, maybe. Nevertheless, they went into the lead with a superb score of 23.7.

Scores for individual movements came in across the board, with 0.5 the lowest to 9 at the top end. The judges tended to use the range of scores available to them – where a movement dropped marks, they were straight back to rewarding when things in the ring improved.

There were (satisfyingly) nine 9s handed out in total, primarily for the halts.

🇺🇸 American girls Tiana Coudray and Cancaras Girl held the overnight lead on Thursday after an elegant performance secured them a PB of 28.1. They scored the only 9 of the first day (from the judge at H) for their final flying change.

Alongside Ros and Tiana, the other combinations with 9s in their scores include:

• Emily King and Valmy Biats – from the C judge for their entry, halt and salute.
• Nadja Minder and Toblerone – from the H judge for their entry, halt and salute, and from both the C and B judges for their final halt, impressively from the head on and side on view.
• Lara de Liedekerke-Meier and Hooney d’Arville – from the H judge for their final halt.
• Caroline Powell and Greenacres Special Cavalier – from the B judge for their second flying change.

➖ Four combinations picked up deductions to their score, most notably Aistis Vitkauskas and Commander VG who had a tricky time in the ring and picked up a deduction of 6 points, not least for halting early on the center line at the end of the test.

And there you have it.

Eyes on EN for the full report coming soon.

Go eventing!

MARS Badminton CCI5*: [Website] [Tickets] [Entries] [Schedule] [Live Stream] [CrossCountry App XC Maps] [EN’s Coverage]

Ros Canter and Lordships Graffalo. Photo by Sophie Robins/Girl in the Field.

Nothing in life can be said to be certain, except death, taxes, and, in this era of eventing, the continued dominance of Ros Canter and Lordships Graffalo. The reigning MARS Badminton champions come into this week’s competition as firm favourites to win again, and today, it felt like a comfortable certainty that they’d sail into the first phase lead. We can’t speak quite yet to how the results will look at the end of the day – though we feel fairly confident nothing much will change at the tippy-top of proceedings – but as we hit Friday lunchtime, they’re true to form and back on top with a smart score of 23.7. That puts them 4.7 penalties ahead of yesterday’s leaders, US representatives Tiana Coudray and Cancaras Girl, on their score of 28.1.

“I’m absolutely delighted,” says Ros, who’s mostly been seen this week with second child Seneh, born on January 24, strapped to her even while walking the course.

“I said goodbye to her agood hour and a half before my test because I didn’t want to be anywhere near her,” laughs Ros. “I pumped a load of milk out of the boobs to flatten me out a bit, and then away I go!”

“It’s been a funny few weeks, having just had a baby –– my focus is on a very different thing at the moment, so I’ve had to work really hard the last few days to make sure I’m in the right frame of mind. I was possibly a little bit stressed this morning, but I gave myself a word, had a bit of time by myself, and came out with a real plan. I’m just delighted that it paid off.”

Ros Canter and Lordships Graffalo. Photo by Sophie Robins/Girl in the Field.

Ros and ‘Walter’s’ largely very correct, workmanlike test wasn’t wholly perfect: the flying changes scored very well across the test, and deservedly so, but it was still possible to see a hint of their fragility – a fragility that cost them valuable marks in last year’s test.

“They weren’t [great] this morning!” says Ros. “But that was more me panicking. I think I rode them just how he needs to ride a change. He’s not a horse that really would ever just choose to do a flying change, so I have to change the canter slightly. Last year I had the canter a bit hot, and then I missed the changes. So it’s a really fine balance with him to get to get them relaxed, but on the bridle.”

Ros Canter and Lordships Graffalo. Photo by Sophie Robins/Girl in the Field.

This isn’t Ros’s first rodeo where coming back to the sport after a maternity break is concerned: she did the same in mid-2019 and returned to eventing just one month later.

“I think it’s just been a process. It’s one of those things where, when you’re on a timeframe like I’ve been, you perhaps get on a little bit sooner than you ought to, and then you start worrying that the tummy is never going to knock back into shape, and things like that. And then all of a sudden, it gradually just does – I just haven’t had the time to let it do that and then get back on. I’ve been doing it as part of the process. So it always makes me a bit worried in my head.”

“But physically, I feel good. Mentally, I feel good when I’m on a horse. There’s just lots to do at the moment, and my time is pushed. So it’s just trying to factor in those moments to be a mum and to be an athlete.”

Something that helps enormously, she says, is having a horse like Walter to accompany her through the process.

“I think most people would trust Walter if they got to ride him,” she smiles.  “To be honest, he’s an absolute legend. The more the crowd cheers, the more he enjoys it. Not once did he light up – he stands there and has a scratch, and he thoroughly enjoys being here. So that just means that he has a very rational brain when he’s out on course, and he tends to be very consistent in the way he behaves. And so I tend to know what I’ve got, so that helps me, and then I’ve just got to concentrate on trying to give him a good ride.”

Marcio Carvalho Jorge and Royal Encounter. Ros Canter and Lordships Graffalo. Photo by Sophie Robins/Girl in the Field.

British-based Brazilian Marcio Carvalho Jorge steps into provisional third place after earning a 29.2 with the five-star debutant Royal Encounter – a score better than their four-star personal best.

“I’m very pleased, really happy,” beams Marcio. “He’s such a nice horse, with such a good brain. He coped really well with this crowd. I think it’s his first time in an environment like this, and he was really such a good boy. His brain is always trying to do the right thing. He has such a good brain. This is, I think, his best quality.”

Marcio bought the Irish-bred gelding by Lancelot as a five-year-old with Annabel,  Alastair, and Ken Vere Nicholl, all of whom have stayed on as owners throughout the horse’s journey to this level. Along the way, that’s seen them jump clear around Le Lion’s Six- and Seven-Year-Old Championships twice, finishing top ten as a six-year-old, and take second place in Millstreet’s CCI4*-L a year ago.

“He’s always had such a nice brain,” says Marcio. “And he’s always been very cute. He sleeps all day. Even here, before his dressage test, he was laying down sleeping. He does this every day; it doesn’t matter if he’s at a competition or at home. It’s so funny, but it’s also good, because he rests his body and his legs.”

While Royal Encounter may be a laid-back sort of chap, Marcio – who trains with William Fox-Pitt – also knew that on his day, he’d be able to deliver a very competitive test to become a challenger in this competition.

“We had the expectation. He’s been doing well in four-stars, but we never know ––competitions sometimes go right, sometimes go wrong, and it’s his first time in an environment like that. I didn’t know how we would be, if he would spook or something, but we always thought, if everything goes well, if there’s nothing wrong, it could be a good result. And thanks to god it was.”

Wills Oakden and Keep It Cooley. Photo by Sophie Robins/Girl in the Field.

Last night’s runners-up Will Rawlin and Ballycoog Breaker Boy move to fourth on their 29.3, just ahead of Scottish-based Wills Oakden and Keep It Cooley, who slot into fifth on 29.4.

“We rate him highly – we love the horse,” says Wills of the eleven-year-old, who made his debut at the level at Luhmühlen last year, though didn’t complete cross-country after a smattering of problems. Today, the gelding largely looked considerably more experienced than he did last season, though hopes of a better score were dashed by a couple of breaks to canter in the left trot half-pass.

“He’s still young, and he’s immature and inexperienced at this level,” he continues. “So this week’s about just trying to give him mileage and give him exposure in this kind of atmosphere and around that kind of track.”

This, he says, “is just phase one. We’ll see where we are at the end of it, because there’s a lot to do. But we’re delighted with him in his test, other than that one mistake, which is so annoying because it’s normally his best movement, as well. But it is what it is! You take it, you move on. If that’s the worst thing that’s going to happen this week, then that’ll be fine, and we’ll move on. He’s a really nice horse for the future, anyway.”

Thursday morning leaders Bubby Upton and Cola are now sixth on 29.8, while seventh place on the leaderboard is a very cozy little clubhouse indeed: three riders share the spot, all having scored a 30.3 on very different horses.

Harry Meade and Annaghmore Valoner. Photo by Sophie Robins/Girl in the Field.

The first of those to come forward today was the first horse and rider partnership to come into the ring this morning. Harry Meade and Annaghmore Valoner presented a more uphill, elevated picture than usual, and while that sometimes meant that the Bramham-winning mare’s movement was a touch more conservative than it perhaps could be, it went some way to demonstrating how much physical strength she’s developed over the last few seasons.

“It’s probably been not so much since the end of last season, but the last few years she’s been with me,” says Harry, who’s currently sitting =29^th with yesterday’s ride Et Hop du Matz, and will return this afternoon with Cavalier Crystal.

“With her, it’s all about the softness of her brain, and then allowing everything to come out and up and in front of her,” he continues. “She’s a horse that would naturally have gone into her shell, like a tortoise shrinking back, with a short neck and she’d have gone quickly and breathed heavily. And so for me, it’s all been about filling her with confidence and enjoyment, and never, ever making her feel like she’s done something wrong. When there’s a mistake, you say ‘sorry, that’s my mistake!’ and then do [the movement] again. It’s really important for her confidence that she’s able to exhale and then really grow and come out and travel with that freedom and liberty and flare.”

Today, he says, “I was thrilled with her. She was lovely, just lovely — supple, soft, really accurate. I didn’t think she left anything behind. She’s a horse that I do little and often with. I don’t work her for too long. And ideally,  if she’d not be too early today, it would have been nice to have ridden her one or two more times and just done a bit of poles or something.”

Harry has been hard at work on his own progress in this phase too, and procured himself an upper-level dressage horse to train on at home over the winter.

“I thought I’d just play around a bit over the winter, but actually, I completely enjoy riding him,” he smiles. “I ride him probably two days out of three. I’ve enjoyed working on some of the Grand Prix movements and tempi changes and passage – it’s been good fun. I thought that, having been in this sport for a while, it’s good to mix things up and have a new, fresh thing to work on.”

Emily King and Valmy Biats. Photo by Sophie Robins/Girl in the Field.

Emily King and Valmy Biats are the second horse and rider to sit in that seventh place spot, and while they can hit the mid-20s on their day, their season so far has been a touch stop-start: they had a tricky test at Thoresby’s CCI4*-S early last month, and then a fall from a young horse in the warm-up sidelined Emily for the rest of the week and a short chunk of time thereafter.

“It hasn’t been the smoothest starts of the year, hiccups along the way, but I’m feeling good, feeling strong and healed up, so it shouldn’t hold me back tomorrow,” says Emily.

Their test today represented a marked improvement on that test, and plenty to be happy about as their week gets underway.

“He always goes a little bit anxious with the crowds, and there’s always a balance of keeping him relaxed, but still showing him off enough,” she says. “In the past I’ve tried really showing him off, and then had some bigger mistakes, and then got a bit underpowered, and then had a little bit of an average or lower score. So I was just trying to get that balance with him. But today he did feel really good — in the general work, he felt amazing. He always finds his walk hard, and just wants to gallop, so you have to say, ‘okay, you can in a minute, but you’ve got a little bit to do first!’”

Nadja Minder and Toblerone. Photo by Sophie Robins/Girl in the Field.

The last horse and rider before the lunch break are our final pair in that seventh place position: that’s Switzerland’s Nadja Minder and the evergreen 19-year-old Toblerone, who scored 9s for their first and final halts to top-and-tail their test sweetly.

“I’m very proud – he’s an absolute legend,” grins Nadja. “He was quite lit up in the warm-up, like more than usually, but he’s such a professional, and he tries so hard and just knows his job. He’s an absolute chocolate legend, I always say.”

At nineteen, Toblerone is looking better than ever – and, Nadja says, he feels it, too.

“He feels better now than when I got him six years ago. He’s really got more supple through work and everything, and he’s just also an absolute athlete and machine. He also started [his career] quite late, so he’s not as [high mileage] as other 19-year-olds might be. He doesn’t need that much preparation, and he’s super professional, so I can just go from show to show and only do what’s necessary.”

Nadja is now based back in Switzerland, but did a stint last year based with Piggy March – and that working relationship is one that continues to pay dividends this week.

“I arrived on Saturday at her place, and we did the last polish together,” says Nadja. “She helped me over the past couple of days here, too. We understand each other; we speak the same language – sometimes it can be a bit risky if you work with someone just for a big show, but with her, it works totally fine. And she knows Toblerone so well.”

Fiona Kashel and Creevagh Silver de Haar. Photo by Sophie Robins/Girl in the Field.

Fiona Kashel and another evergreen competitor in eighteen-year-old Creevagh Silver de Haar round out top ten before our final session on a score of 30.5.

“He’s not an amazing mover, but he’s just so correct,” says Fiona. “He’s 18 years old now, and he just seems to have got better with age. He’s stronger in his body, and I’ve actually been amazed how much he’s come on in the last couple of years, with where he’s at with his strength and how his body is coping with it.”

Today, the marks still aren’t quite being given away: “He was on 28.4 last year, and I would say it was as good a test as he did last year. He always keeps his head; nothing really phases him. He’s actually really spooky at home, which is amazing, because he doesn’t spook anything here, and he’s just not fazed by it.”

We’re heading back into the final session of dressage here at Badminton – but we’ll be back before long with the end of day report and all the stories you need to know. Until then: Go Eventing!

The top ten at MARS Badminton at Friday lunchtime.

MARS Badminton CCI5*: [Website] [Tickets] [Live Stream] [Entries] [Schedule] [Scoring] [CrossCountry App XC Maps] [EN’s Coverage]