A date clash between the Mitsubishi Motors Badminton Horse Trials and Rolex Kentucky Three-Day Event in 2011 (news, 4 May) has been averted.
Badminton had announced that due to a tie-in with TV, its dates would run over the May Day bank holiday from 2010, meaning a conflict with Kentucky in 2011.
This would have been potentially disastrous as both events are part of the HSBC FEI Classics series and Rolex Grand Slam.
But now Badminton organisers have agreed that in 2011 their event will run a week earlier (22-25 April) and, in 2016, Kentucky will be put forward a week to avoid a second clash.
Event directors Hugh Thomas at Badminton and Kentucky’s Janie Atkinson said the agreement showed the “good relationship” between the international events.
This article was first published in Horse & Hound (10 September, ’09)
