Piggy March and Dargun. Photo by Tilly Berendt.
Piggy March has taken a decisive lead in the Childeric Saddles Little Downham International CCI4*-S on the first day of dressage, taking top spot in both sections and holding fort in the top five with each of her four rides. This marks the very first CCI4*-S to be held at the popular Cambridgeshire venue, which hosts a full calendar of British Eventing competitions and training opportunities throughout the year.
Though the entry list was hit by a spate of withdrawals following the shock news that GAIN horse feeds had found a contaminant in a batch of feed, but even so, 77 horse-and-rider combinations produced tests for the assembled ground jury today across sections P and Q. Riding the syndicate-owned Dargun, Piggy delivered a 26.4 to lead the way in section P, which was presided over by judges Nikki Herbert and Richard Baldwin. Her strong mark was most closely challenged by Kitty King and her 2019 Bramham winner Vendredi Biats, who end the day on 27.3 after a clean test punctuated by some minor cheeky moments.
“We had a few little wobbles and some basic mistakes – and he was quite spooky about the flowers and the wind,” Piggy says. “But on the whole, I was pleased enough in the conditions. I’ve entered here for a bit of experience with this horse; it’ll be our first time at the level together, so I’ll be interested in how our day goes while still trying to be competitive. It’ll be building blocks, but we’ll give it a good go!”
Brookfield Quality contributes to a dominating day for Piggy March. Photo by Tilly Berendt.
Piggy also sits fourth ahead of tomorrow’s jumping phases with the relatively inexperienced Brookfield Quality, owned by John and Chloe Perry and Alison Swinburn, who posted an impressive 29.2 to redeem himself after some green mistakes in his test at last month’s Burnham Market CCI4*-L.
“We call him Nervous Norris at home, because he’s a bit of an odd character,” she laughs. “I was really happy with him today. He’s a new horse at the level – a lovely horse with fabulous movement – and his changes were a bit green today, which was the only disappointing thing about the test. The whole weekend is a learning experience for him, and we’ll hopefully have a fun day tomorrow.
Ever the pragmatist, Piggy wryly muses: “At least I halted square with this one – I didn’t with the other horses!”
Kazuma Tomoto and Brookpark Vikenti. Photo by Tilly Berendt.
She was usurped for third place by former student and young Irish talent Susie Berry, who produced a 28.3 with Helen Caton’s John the Bull, formerly ridden by Jonty Evans, while Japan’s Kazuma Tomoto and his Blenheim runner-up Brookpark Vikenti round out the top five overnight on 29.9.
“I’m thrilled with him – he has it all there, but that’s the first time I’ve had it all together in the ring,” says Susie. “I’ve put quite a lot of pressure on him, because he’s been so competitive at the level below. At the last two four-stars we’ve had some silly mistakes – mainly me! – but this time, we had a clear round.”
While Section P will head directly into showjumping tomorrow morning, a further twenty combinations will come forward to present a test to judges Ann Bostock and Judy Hancock in Section Q tomorrow – though here, too, Piggy’s domination of the first phase will be tough to overthrow. She sits in first and second place, taking the lead with John and Chloe Perry and Alison Swinburn’s Brookfield Inocent on 25 and sitting second aboard the Lancer Stud’s Fonbherna Lancer, who scored a 26.2.
Kevin McNab and Scuderia 1918 A Best Friend. Photo by Tilly Berendt.
Kazuma Tomoto finds himself in the top five once again in Section Q, earning a respectable 30.2 with Bernadette Utopia for third, while Australia’s Kevin McNab holds fourth on 31.9 with the Pau-bound Scuderia 1918 A Best Friend after revising his warm-up tactic with the ‘big but anxious’ gelding.
“His Burnham Market test wasn’t his best, and we’d been trying something new there – we experimented with doing a bit less and keeping him a bit fresher going in,” he explains. “But for a big horse, he does get a bit anxious, and so now we’re back to the original plan and just letting him do a little bit more so he can settle into it.”
Eliza Stoddart and Priorspark Precocious sit in overnight fifth on 32. Tomorrow’s morning dressage session will see several exciting names vie for a competitive slot atop the leaderboard, including Ireland’s Cathal Daniels and Dr Sarah Hughes’ Barrichello, Laura Collett and her two Pau-bound stars Mr Bass and London 52, and young talent Mollie Summerland and Charly van ter Heiden. Dressage will recommence at 8.30 a.m., with showjumping under way from 8:15 a.m. and cross-country starters’ orders at 9.00 a.m. local time (4.00 a.m. Eastern). The pivotal cross-country phase, designed by Jonathan Clissold, will be live-streamed in its entirety by Horse&Country TV.
The top ten in Section P at the culmination of dressage.
The top ten in section Q at the end of day one.
Little Downham CCI4*-S: Website | Live Scores | Ride Times | Live-Stream
