Overnight leaders Ros Canter and Lordships Graffalo. Photo by Tilly Berendt.
We’re quite accustomed to this point to some Sunday morning drama, but perhaps because we’ve gotten our fill of drama in the form of endless episodes of The Hills late at night while writing our reports, we were blessed with a completely drama-free morning here as we come to the conclusion of Defender Burghley.
One pair, Selena Milnes (GBR) and Gelmar, did withdraw ahead of the morning’s activities.
As much as we all love our fair share of drama, let’s be honest: the best thing you could possibly see on a Sunday morning is fresh, fit horses who don’t look like they’ve just finished running 11 and a half-plus minutes the day before. We remarked all day yesterday how well the horses were finishing, and it’s a testament to both the immaculate cultivation of the ground and the management on course by the riders. Importantly, these horses were looked after by their hard-working #supergrooms and teams of physios and vets through the evening, ensuring that their bodies felt as good as prime for today’s final effort.
Tom Crisp and Dassett Rock Star. Photo by Tilly Berendt.
To that end, we’ve had all presented pairs sail right through to the show jumping, which begins with just a few riders in the bottom third of the field beginning at 10:45 a.m. BST / 5:45 a.m. EST. The top 20 will begin at 2:30 p.m. BST / 9:30 a.m. EST. As always, you can tune in live on Burghley TV here (subscription required).
Austin O’Connor’s groom Francesca Denning with Colorado Blue. Photo by Tilly Berendt.
Some special awards were also given out at the trot-up, the first being the Spillers Horse Care Prize, awarded to the groom of the best-cared-for horse in recognition of their hard work and dedication. Francesca Denning won the top honors for her care of Austin O’Connor’s Colorado Blue. Tilly Hughes, #supergroom to Laura Collett and Bling this week, was runner-up for this prize.
The Wordshipful Company of Farriers Best-Shod Award, judged on the horses’ condition of feet, making/preparataion and fitting of the shoe and nailing/position of clips, was awarded to Cool Jack, the ride of Burghley debutant Alexander Tordoff who was unfortunately eliminated on cross country yesterday very near the finish (Alex, you did the hard bits – you are a Burghley rider!), was given this top honor.
We’ll be back later on today with our final report from Defender Burghley — stay tuned and Go Eventing!
Many thanks to Kentucky Performance Products for their support of our Defender Burghley coverage! Click here to learn all about their science-backed and time-tested nutritional support products for horses.
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