William Fox-Pitt and Oslo are leading on a 45.8 at Badminton after the first group.
William Fox-Pitt and Oslo are leading on a 45.8 after a lovely test to start things off on Day 1 of dressage here at Badminton Horse Trials. The horse looked very good and very relaxed, and it was a typical test from William where he squeezes every point he can out of each movement. He just moves into first ahead of Michael Jung and Leopin FST, who put in an equally stunning test for a 46.5. Mary King and her Olympic partner Imperial Cavalier are just behind Michael in third on a 47.3. Things went about the way I expected they would in the first group, with William, Michael and Mary leading the way. The quality of the dressage here at Badminton is very exciting, as we’re already getting scores in the mid-40s with the best horses still yet to come.
Michael Jung and Leopin FST are in second place.
Jock Paget and Clifton Lush are sitting in fourth place on a 48.2 and looked really fantastic in Jock’s debut here at Badminton. The test was very accurate, and I thought the changes in particular were flawless. Oliver Townend and Armada are sitting in fifth place on a 51.7. This pair started things off for us this morning, and aside from picking up the wrong lead out of the rein back, I thought this was a very lovely test. Kristina Cook and De Novo News are in sixth place on a 55.5. I really loved the looks of this horse in the jog yesterday, and I thought he looked quite good today. The horse trotted out of the rein back and also broke coming to the final halt, but this was a nice test for this pair. Caroline Powell and Boston Two Tip are in seventh place on a 59.7, and Lucy Jackson and Willy Do are in eighth place on a 63.3.
Mary King and Imperial Cavalier are in third place after the first group.
Francis Whittington and Sir Percival are starting things off in the second group before the lunch break. I’m having trouble getting my video of William Fox-Pitt and Oslo’s leading test to upload, but I’ll be sure to post that during the lunch break (Update: Video added below). In the meantime, enjoy Michael Jung and Leopin FST’s test below. I also have video of Mary King and Imperial Cavalier’s lovely test that I’ll bring you later today. Stay tuned for much more in the second group, including Mark Todd and Milestone and Andrew Nicholson and Avebury.
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Dressage Videos:
Video: Michael Jung and Leopin FST
Video: William Fox-Pitt and Oslo
