William Fox-Pitt says . . .
“Maureen Summers’s show jumping track [at Blenheim] was, as always, demanding but fair and influential. She has to be one of the best designers of this phase. It is a pity this was her last event before retirement.
“Sometimes the show jumping phase can be disappointing, but here interest was maintained until the end. Horses who weren’t jumping well ended up having three fences down, which is as it should be. The penultimate was a big upright, but it should have been well within the capabilities of horses at this level.”
Stuart Hollings says . . .
“A championship show [such as BSPS] gives a clear insight into the general standard of judging. At times this was confusing with judge A awarding 9/20 and judge B 19/20 for the same performance. Fortunately this was not the norm.
“Putting my neck on the block, although I do like the idea of a ‘celebrity’ judge, the supreme of show should only be judged by those on the judges panels. There were two champions in the final line-up who were outstanding on the night but were overlooked for supreme honours.”
Pammy Hutton says . . .
“Riders have told me that, although they never use forbidden substances, they know those that do. Some even made a point of telephoning to protest their innocence.
“An international trainer of high repute restored my faith with an email, writing: ‘I don’t believe in pastes, I don’t believe in gadgets, I don’t believe in short cuts, I DO believe in dressage — and heartily recommend it.’
“Doping for a competition — over my dead body!”
