The youngest competitor in the field at Badminton Horse Trials, presented by Mars Equestrian, this year is 20-year-old Alice Casburn, for whom this is also a Badminton debut. And what a debut she has had, having just one fence down in the final phase, finishing 19th overall.
Alice rides her mother Caroline’s 14-year-old gelding Topspin, who is a second generation home-bred. Riding is in Alice’s blood too, as Caroline (née Sizer) rode at the World Equestrian Games in 1994 and also rode at Badminton.
“My mum’s not a teary person and she just bawled her eyes out – I can’t believe it,” said Alice after her clear cross-country jumping round, where the pair picked up just 4.8 time-faults. “He was phenomenal and I came out a bit more shell-shocked than he did, especially towards home. He was amazing, is honest and I couldn’t be more thrilled with him.
“I am so pleased just to get round – it caused carnage this morning and I sort of thought, ‘Oh gosh, I’m a first-timer’. I’m also quite vocal, so I was talking to him the whole way round but it’s an amazing feeling and when I got to the finish line, I was quite teary.”
Topspin is a horse of many talents as he’s also a Grade A showjumper and has jumped 1.80m in a puissance with Alice in 2019.
Alice’s mum said after her dressage test on Friday: “As long as Alice is happy and enjoying it, that’s the main thing.”
The young Norfolk rider, who has plans to keep riding full-time, for the time being at least, admitted that she gets nervous.
“I’m really, really nervous and then as soon as I get on, I’m ready to go and pretty happy with everything. I can understand why people keep going and going and going in this sport as I can see how you can get addicted to the adrenaline,” said Alice Casburn after her Badminton Horse Trials cross-country round.
Read our full Badminton form guide in this week’s issue of Horse & Hound (issue dated 5 May 2022). Our bumper 20-page Badminton report will be in our 12 May issue and keep fully up-to-date with all the action during Badminton week via horseandhound.co.uk, where a host of features and reports will be published.
You might also be interested in:
‘It’s mind-blowing’: meet Badminton first-timer Amanda Pottinger and her ‘gutsy’ little thoroughbred
‘She’s been on box-rest for two weeks’: mare brushes off disrupted preparation to complete Badminton
The Horse & Hound Badminton Daily Podcast day four: Cross-country review | Riders’ thoughts on the day | Final day preview
Three horses held at final Badminton Horse Trials trot-up: three top-20 contenders withdrawn from the competition
Subscribe to Horse & Hound magazine today – and enjoy unlimited website access all year round
Horse & Hound magazine, out every Thursday, is packed with all the latest news and reports, as well as interviews, specials, nostalgia, vet and training advice. Find how you can enjoy the magazine delivered to your door every week, plus options to upgrade your subscription to access our online service that brings you breaking news and reports as well as other benefits.
