Burnham Market Horse Trials: CCI4*-S dressage report

One rider dominates the dressage in both CCI4* classes at Burnham Market. Find out who – and why wanting to do it right is sometimes the CCI4*-S leader’s downfall

Britain’s Izzy Taylor holds pole position in both of Barefoot Retreats Burnham Market’s CCI4* classes after dressage – as well as topping the CCI4*-L with Monkeying Around, she is in first place in the CCI4*-S on Camilla Behrens’ Hartacker.

Eight-year-old Hartacker, bred in Italy and by Spartacus, scored a Burnham Market record dressage mark of 20.3 at his first four-star competition.

“He was beautiful,” said Izzy with a smile. “He’s got a lovely brain, is very trainable and desperately wants to do it right, which is his downfall in some ways because he tries too hard. But he was 100% with me every stride of the way.”

Yasmin Ingham shot into second place with a polished, impressive test on Sue Davies and Janette Chin’s nine-year-old French-bred Banzai Du Loir with 22.3.

Sweden’s Therese Viklund also scored 22.3 for joint-second place with Diabolique, a 12-year-old German mare by Hoftanz.

Oliver Townend and Sally-Anne Egginton’s Cillnabradden Evo are known for their prowess in this phase, having scored a stunning 19.7 at Badminton in 2019. Here they achieved 23.3 for fourth place, 0.4 of a penalty ahead of top-level stalwarts Sarah Bullimore and Reve Du Rouet.

China’s Alex Hua Tian and his 2016 Rio Olympics ride Don Geniro took sixth a fraction of a mark behind on 23.8. Ros Canter and Lordships Graffalo are seventh on 24.5, while Kitty King (Cristal Fontaine) and Tom McEwen (Toledo De Kerser) both scored 25.7.

Half of this CCI4*-S class – into which the eight- and nine-year-old CCI4*-S transferred from Blenheim has been enfolded – showjumped on Friday afternoon (18 September), while the remaining half will jump on Saturday morning before the CCI4*-L cross-country starts. Tom McEwen, first into the arena on his 2018 World Equestrian Games team gold medallist and Pau CCI5* winner Toledo De Kerser, set the standard with a faultless clear round.

Izzy and Hartacker jumped clear to maintain their dressage lead going into Sunday’s cross-country, as did Oliver and the 14-year-old Cillnabradden Evo. Banzai Du Loir and Diabolique are yet to jump, while Reve Du Rouet rolled one pole and Don Geniro was clear but collected 0.8 of a time-fault. Lordships Graffalo picked up 0.4 of a time-fault.

Organiser and course-designer Alec Lochore and his team are working hard on the cross-country ground, which was firm when the riders arrived on Wednesday. He reiterated that the ground machines produce the greatest effect when used as close to the time of competition as possible.

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