We all tend to think of great eventers as natural cross-country horses, super brave and willing to take on anything. But Laura Collett is happy to admit that her top ride, London 52, has had to learn how to tackle this phase.
“He’s never been the bravest horse,” she says. “When he was a young horse, it was about building a partnership so he trusted what I was asking him. He preferred to jump over water than go through it and coming from a jumping background, he knew how to walk and canter but not to trot.”
London 52 was foaled on 28 May 2009, by Landos out of a Quinar Z mare called Vernante.
Laura explains how she found him: “I was at Peter Thomsen’s yard in Germany looking at four-year-olds and saw ‘Dan’ being exercised. It was early in his seven-year-old year, he was quite sassy and had a look about him that caught my eye. He was out of my budget and I had to talk nicely to Keith Scott and Karen Bartlett so they joined me in buying him.”
London 52 turned heads from early in his career – he was second in his first event, a BE100 in 2016 at Nunney, won his first intermediate less than a year later at Withington and was competitive through the levels internationally.
By the time he competed on the British squad for the first time, at the 2019 European Championships at Luhmühlen, he had already won twice at CCI4*-S level, including in the prestigious eight- and nine-year-old championships at Blenheim Horse Trials, and been second four times at four-star.
London 52 wins the eight- and nine-year-old class at Blenheim 2018 under Laura Collett.
But things didn’t go to plan at Luhmühlen when the pair were third after dressage but came to grief at the final water fence.
“After that, Tina Cook said on the Sunday of the event, ‘Surely you’re going to take him to Boekelo? You don’t want to finish the year on that note,’” explained Laura in an exclusive H&H column in 2020.
Boekelo, where the pair had been second in 2018 and then won in 2019, proved a turning point. Previously, although Dan had appeared a star to the observer, to Laura he had always felt insecure.
Laura went on: “Between the Europeans and Boekelo, we went cross-country schooling a few times. We treated him like a baby, trotting to fences, trying to build his confidence and encourage him to trust himself because he’s always been quite a shy horse.
“Going to Boekelo, I just wanted to put things right – to win was a lovely extra. It felt like the event was a turning point; now, Dan has belief in himself. He felt amazing cross-country and finished knowing he’d done well. After Boekelo, he had eight weeks in the field to switch off and he came back looking and feeling like a different horse, physically and mentally.”
After that, the pair went from strength to strength. They scored their first five-star win at Pau Horse Trials in the Covid-struck season of 2020, helped secure the British Olympic team gold in Tokyo and then went on to win Badminton Horse Trials in 2022.
Laura Collett and London 52 at the Tokyo Olympics.
“Every time Dan does something great, I think it’s the best day of my life, then he goes and does something else,” said Laura.
In the spring of 2023, London 52 was set to return to Badminton and defend his title, but an overreach put paid to that. Instead, he headed to Luhmühlen Horse Trials, where he joined an exclusive club of horses who have won three different five-stars.
“He’s got such a reputation that I don’t want to let him down; he deserves to be a multiple five-star winning horse so I’m just glad I’ve allowed him to be that,” said Laura after her win.
The pair helped Britain to a European team gold at Haras du Pin later in 2023, finishing ninth individually.
London 52: the groom’s view
Laura’s travelling groom Tilly Hughes says that London 52 is a little nervous at events, but at home he’s more confident and cheekier.
“In the morning, he’ll push the stable door and nudge you to hurry up and take off his rug, though he’ll never actually go out,” she says.
“He can be naughty to catch. He’ll be grazing but as soon as he sees you, he trots circles around you, which is nerve-racking as you don’t want him to injure himself. You have to leave and come back – then he’s like, ‘Oh, I do want to come in, I just wanted to play first.’”
Dan has taken Tilly to many prestigious events all over the world and she says he’s “one of my favourites, a really sweet horse”.
You may also be interested in:
How Laura Collett won Badminton: a pillar-to-post victory captured in pictures, plus ‘ride’ London 52 round the cross-country
The apple connoisseur: Badminton leader Laura Collett’s groom Tilly Hughes on how to keep London 52 happy
Vendredi Biats – from a ‘disappointing’ first viewing to triple medallist with Kitty King
Lordships Graffalo – meet Ros Canter’s supreme star who eats tack, licks cars and loves a cuddle
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