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And so we find ourselves at the second of our five-stars on a related distance. No, we’re not over the awesomeness of Maryland and Austin O’Connor and Colorado Blue’s historic win, but it is time to turn our attention to Pau, because, well, as of tomorrow morning, it’s all go in France!
There are riders from twelve different nations competing at the final 5* of the season, with interest from both sides of the Pond, plus a hefty chunk of Europe, as well as Zimbabwe’s international eventer, Julia Norman.
The American contingent comprises of Olympic and Pan-Ams medalist Phillip Dutton, World No. 3 and two-time 5* winner Boyd Martin – who’ve both hopped on a flight straight from Maryland – Allie Knowles and Cosby Green. There may be a couple of early starts if you’re watching from the States, but it’ll be worth it!
We can also look forward to seeing current World No. 1 and Burghley winner Oliver Townend and reigning European Champion and Badminton winner Ros Canter, as well as other British heavy hitters such as Pippa Funnell, Piggy March and Tom McEwen, amongst many, many more.
In a slight scheduling shake-up to what we’re used to at a 5*, the first horse inspection will take place on Thursday morning, rather than the usual Wednesday afternoon. It’ll be at 10am local time / 4am ET / 9am BST, before the first session of dressage which begins at 2pm / 8am ET / 1pm BST. The dressage will continue on Friday at 10am / 4am ET / 9am BST when we’ll have a full day between the white boards, before we move to the cross country course on Saturday – the first horse will leave the start box at around 11:30am / 5:30am ET / 10:30am BST.
We need to note a time change for Sunday’s competition as European clocks will go back an hour at 1am, meaning that, yes, we do get another hour of Saturday night frolics, but also yes, it’ll be confusing mid-way through an event.
The second horse inspection is due to happen on Sunday morning at 11:45am / by my (not 100% trustworthy) calculations that’ll be 6:45am ET / 10:45am GMT. Then the show jumping will get underway at 2:30pm / 9:30am ET (see previous) / 1:30pm GMT.
Will everyone make it to the trot up on time? We’ll have to wait and see!
We’ve got SO MUCH Pau content coming your way – from our, frankly iconic, form guide, to live updates throughout the competition, to complete round-ups of all the action, so keep it locked onto EN – and follow @goeventing – as we prepare to celebrate the final 5* of the season in true EN style.
Les 5 Etoiles de Pau: [Website] [Entries] [Schedule] [Live Stream] [EN’s Coverage]
But wait just a second! You didn’t think we’d overlook the equestrian goings on in Santiago did you?
After success in the dressage ring for both the USA and Canada (read all about it in the News & Reading section below), the eventers get their shot this week, starting with the dressage on Friday. As you can see from the post above, the US team are looking primed and ready for a great competition. Meet the horses and riders here.
Alongside our Pau coverage, we’ll be following all of the eventing goings on at the Games – so go nowhere, and go eventing!
#Santiago2023: [Website] [Sport Schedule] [FEI Info Hub] [Live Stream] [Results] [EN’s Coverage]
U.S. Weekend Preview
Chattahoochee Hills H.T. (Fairburn, GA) [Website] [Entries] [Ride Times] [Volunteer]
Waredaca Classic Three Day Event & H.T. (Laytonsville, MD) [Website] [Entries] [Ride Times] [Volunteer] [Scoring]
YEH West Coast Championships & Last Chance Qualifier (Paso Robles, CA) [Website] [Entries] [Ride Times] [Volunteer] [Scoring]
Major International Events
#Santiago2023: [Website] [Sport Schedule] [FEI Info Hub] [Live Stream] [Results] [EN’s Coverage]
Les 5 Etoiles de Pau: [Website] [Entries] [Schedule] [Live Stream] [EN’s Coverage]
Wednesday News and Reading
News in from Santiago: Team USA have topped the podium in the dressage competition. Chef d’Equipe George Williams says the spirit is “unbelievable” in the young team, which they’ll be sure to carry forward into the Grand Prix Freestyle which will decide the medals for the individual competition later today, when the top 15 riders will come forward (with a maximum of three riders per country). Here’s how the team pulled it together. The USA already had Olympic qualification in the bag, but that wasn’t the case for Brazil, who snagged their ticket with team silver, or Canada, who have also secured their place at Paris with a bronze medal. Find out how Canada booked their flight to France.
We may be looking ahead in anticipation of another great weekend going eventing, but just for a hot minute let’s pause to celebrate the best of the Americans at Maryland, Hannah Sue Hollberg and Capitol H I M. Last year’s event marked the end of Hannah Sue’s long-time partner Harbour Pilot’s career at the top of his sport, and this year she came forward with his best pal, Capitol H I M. Sitting in ninth after dressage, they cruised their way up to sixth following a superb spin across the country. But the climb didn’t end there. A clear round on Sunday saw them finish up in fourth place, best of the Americans and a super 5* result for this special horse. Practical Horseman spoke to Hannah Sue about her time at Maryland, and how Harbour Pilot’s enjoying his retirement. [Something Old; Something New]
The retraining of ex-racehorses has been given a global boost with a training program that focuses on promoting the potential for OTTBs to continue to contribute to sport. FEI Solidarity’s Retraining Techniques for ex-Racehorses (RTR) has been delivered in South East Asia, India and the Caribbean so far, with plans for dates in Europe next year, starting off with Serbia. The hope is that equestrian associations in a variety of nations will be able to see the potential that OTTBs have for a range of second careers, including increasing the pool of competition horses. The program has been particularly successful in Trinidad and Tobago, where the mounted police were one of the organizations to attend the course. The president of the T&T Equestrian Association said that RTR has given local riders the tools to aim for FEI competitions in dressage, eventing and jumping next year. [A Global Boost for OTTBs]
The retirement age in many other sports is pretty young, not so for us horse people though. That’s not to say that we don’t have to worry about the passage of time, however, particularly if we have goals in the back of our minds – especially if they’re the kind of goals that need chipping away at, such as working our way up to, say, Olympic team call-up. No matter how lofty, or grounded, your goals are, that sense of time running out comes to us all at some point – the key is how you react to it. [When Time’s A Tickin’]
Who’s up for a sneak peak into a celebrity barn? I’m putting a health warning on this one – have a tissue handy as you will for sure be drooling once you see the dreamy decor and total pristine-ness (I know not a word, but frankly, I’m lost for them) of Sylvester Stallone’s barn. [Have At It]
And finally, a bit of a weird one but… this guy says his horse was sold without his knowledge while he was in hospital. There aren’t too many details – the horse owner, horse, farm where the horse was being kept, person/s who are accused/suspected of selling/buying the horse, the auction where the horse was supposed to have been sold – the reason why they guy was in hospital – are all undisclosed, but it made the news all the same. No arrests have been made. [Strange, but (Perhaps) True]
Sponsor Corner
Liz Halliday and Miks Master C. Photo by Erin Gilmore Photography.
It’s Pan Am Week! Our US riders are prepped and ready to hit the ground running in Chile. Catch up on their last mandatory outing at Loch Moy Farm in Maryland: Primed and Ready. Coverage of the Pan American Games is sponsored by Ocala Horse Properties.
Video Break
#Icymi (although if you did, where on earth have you been?!) here’s Austin O’Connor and Salty’s fabulous trailblazing run ’round Ian Stark’s course at Maryland on Saturday. They were 12th after dressage and boosted themselves up to 4th with this super showing. They added just 1.2 time, which arguably may not have been the case had they had a later draw. That’s academic though, as in the end, the only clear-inside-the-time show jumping round of the day won them the whole dang thing, and Ireland’s first 5* in 58 years!
