Catch up with all the latest news from the world of horse trials in our weekly column from Eventing magazine editor Kate Green
Blyth Tait injured in run up to WEG
Blyth Tait‘s world championship title defence has taken a blow when he was injured at Lulworth yesterday. His grey mare Lily The Pink chucked her head up, cracking Blyth’s cheekbone and damaging the bone area around the eye. He will be out of action for a month.
His World Games ride, Ready Teddy, was in action at the Mitsubishi Eventing Grand Prix last Friday (26 July). Despite the use of earmuffs to deaden the applause which tends to upset him, the 14-year-old looked pretty strong and finished well down the order.
Action from Lulworth
WEG horses were out at Lulworth, where Matt Ryan’s veteran Olympic gold medallist Kibah Sandstone, now 18, won an advanced section, beating New Zealand’s Dan Jocelyn on Silence.
Ireland’s Mark Kyle, who is long-listed on his partner, Tayna Liddle’s Drunken Disorderly, won another section, beating William Fox-Pitt on his new ride, the Lissacks’ Midnight Dazzler.
Bettina Hoy, who wasplaced in an advanced section on Woodsides Ashby, won the three-star CIC on another of her WEG-listed horses, Ringwood Cockatoo. Ireland’s Sasha Harrison, who has to prove her horse’s fitness for WEG, was second on All Love Du Fenaud.
AndrewHoy was fourth on his WEG hopeful, Moon Fleet, and Leslie Law was fifth on Diamond Hall Red, the horse who won Burghley in 1999 with Mark Todd but had last year off.
Four other riders finished in the top 13 and Lucy Wiegersma, who won an advanced on Friday Feeling, made a good start to her new partnership with Jane Starkey’s In The Purple.
For all British Eventing’s results visit www.britisheventing.com
Looking ahead to this weekend’s Gatcombe
This weekend all eyes will be on the Doubleprint Festival of Eventing which, for the first time, features the British advanced, intermediate and novice championships.
Eighty-seven horses are entered for the British Open CIC***; the 2000 winner William Fox-Pitt has entered his winning horse Moon Man, plus his WEG-listed Tamarillo, Stunning and Springleaze Macaroo.
Other WEG-listed British riders are:
- Pippa Funnell riding Walk OnStar and Primmore’s Pride.
- Mary King with Ryan V, 5th at Punchestown, and King Solomon
- Jeanette Brakewell and Over To You
- Polly Stockton and All Black
- Tina Cook with Douce de Longvaut and Captain Christy
- Leslie Law has entered Shear L’Eau and Shear H20.
International entries include Andrew Hoy on Darien Powers and Mr Pracatan, his wife Bettina on Unsung Hero. Matt Ryan has Kibah Sandstone and Balmoral Mr Slinky, Sweden’s Linda Algotsson has My Fair lady, and, for New Zealand, Kate Lambie has Nufarm Alibi and Dan Jocelyn Silence while Andrew Nicholson has Mr Smiffy, Fenicio and the Hickstead Grand Prix winner Mallard’s Treat.
Will this impressive line-up all run?
It remains to be seen, however, whether such an impressive field will actually run; historically, most team horses tend to be withdrawn and run two weeks later at Thirlestane. However, there should still be plenty of “names”, including two former Badminton winners: IanStark with Jaybee and Chris Bartle with Word Perfect.
Visit www.gatcombe-horse.co.uk for a full list of horses and riders entered.
Pony European Championships
While Gatcombe is on, the Derby House Saddlery British Pony team will be contesting the Pony European Championships at Hagen, Germany, where the home team has an incredible record at this level and will start favourites.
Britain has had a lean two years, apart from the individual silver medal won by Holly Lemke in Spain last year, and the team of Tamsyn Hutchings, Lucy Egginton, holly Rayner and Angus Smales plus reserve Alice Whitehead will be hoping to improve on last year’s result when they werenarrowly beaten into fourth by Ireland.
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