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Today’s the day – the day that entries officially open for the Best Weekend All Year at the Defender Kentucky Three-Day Event! It’s time to start stalking those entry lists, making your predictions for who’ll come forward, speculating over who’ll perform so well that they’ll chuck themselves straight into contention for an Olympic call-up… the most beautiful time of the year, in my nerdy mind, because at this point, anything could happen. The plot twists, the moments of glory, the shock upsets; they’re all still to come. I, for one, cannot wait. Want to make sure you’re there to catch all the action? You can still benefit from advanced ticket pricing – head to the box office here to nab yours.
Events Opening Today: Defender Kentucky Three-Day Event, Spring Bay H.T., Unionville Horse Trials, Longleaf Pine H.T., F.E.N.C.E. H.T., Twin Rivers Spring International
Events Closing Today: Ram Tap National H.T., Pine Top Spring H.T., Ocala Winter II, Carolina International CCI & H.T.
Tuesday News & Notes from Around the World:
So often, equestrian media is dominated by names from ‘big six’ nations. But beyond those global superpowers, there are so many riders breaking down barriers and playing a colossal part in building an equestrian industry in countries for whom competing on the world stage is a brand new novelty. One of those? Lithuania’s Aistis Vitkauskus, who we’ve been following at EN for a few years now. Get to know him, his cool, quirky Commander VG, his philosophies, and his love for fly-fishing in this profile from the FEI.
This year’s MARS Badminton Horse Trials is a special one. Okay, let’s be real, it’s Badminton – they’re all special! But this year, the world’s first five-star celebrates a big birthday, and we’re looking forward to all the celebrations of the history and future of this magical competition. Want to start feeling those butterflies nice and early? You’re in luck: on April 9, there’ll be a preview evening in Gloucestershire, packed with some of the biggest names in eventing and guaranteed to be heaving with fascinating stories and interesting insights. Get your tickets here and I’ll see you at the bar.
Costs continue to rise for eventers, and so it’s always exciting when a chance to save money pops up. That’s what’s been offered by British eventing organisers BEDE Events, who have launched a ‘loyalty scheme’ for repeat competitors: compete in five BEDE events through the season, and at the sixth, you’ll have your start fee waived. More money for cheesy chips! Sign me up, tbh.
The season is officially underway, but there’s so, so much left to come. Catch up with US Eventing in the latest episode of the USEA Podcast, where host Nicole Brown is joined by EquiRatings’ Diarm Byrne, USEA CEO Rob Burk, and President Lou Leslie to find out how they reckon it might unfold – from team predictions to exciting moments yet to come, and plenty more besides. Tune in here and get excited!
Photo by Lorenzo Castagnone, via Unsplash.
Sponsor Corner: We have some unfortunate news for equestrians out there…. if you’re not already experiencing mud season, you will be soon. With mud season comes skin problems. Luckily, Kentucky Performance Products has the quick and dirty facts on equine skin conditions. Discover how to prevent them from happening in your horse and what to do once they appear here.
Watch This:
As if eventing at the top level and vying for a place on the French Olympic team wasn’t enough, young British-based upstart Gaspard Maksud — who you may remember from his sparkling sixth place finish at the 2022 World Championships — has spent his winter learning the ropes around seriously beefy showjumping tracks. Check out his first-ever trip around a 1.50m course:
