Olympic team gold medallist and world number one Oliver Townend is in pole position once again at Hambro Sport Horses Burgham International Horse Trials – an event at which he has enjoyed multiple wins in the past few years.
Riding Paul and Diana Ridgeon’s 14-year-old Swallow Springs, on whom he was third at Badminton this spring, Oliver scored 22.6 in the dressage to top section H of the feature class at the Northumberland event, the Hambro Sport Horses CCI4*-S.
Oliver said: “It’s great to be back at Burgham, which has been a happy place for me and my team over the years. It’s just a shame that Swallow Springs’ owners weren’t able to be here to see him – I was very pleased with the way he went and he’s a lovely horse to ride.”
Young British star Yasmin Ingham is close behind him with a score of 23.7 on Moorecroft Ltd’s Rehy DJ.
Izzy Taylor, winner of Burgham’s CCI4*-S in 2021, heads up the second section of the Hambro Sport Horses CCI4*-S (section I), having achieved a mark of 25.4 aboard Sarah van Vegchel’s 11-year-old mare Ringwood Madras. Izzy has a 2.6-mark lead over local rider Harry Mutch, who scored a personal best of 28 on Carole Mutch’s HD Bronze.
Izzy said: “The exciting thing about ‘Maddie’ is that I think there is so much more to come from her. This weekend should set her up well for Burghley in September.”
In the Howard Russell Construction Ltd CCI3*-S, Oliver Townend also is in first place in section A with 23.3 on Cooley Rosalent, while his team-mate from the Tokyo Olympics, Tom McEwen, is in control in section B with a mark of 27.7 aboard Brookfield Cavalier Cruise.
The CCI3*-S competitors progress to showjumping and dressage tomorrow (Friday, 29 July), while dressage continues for the CCI4*-S class and the Holme Dodsworth Metals Ltd CCI2*-S gets underway. There are also British Eventing national classes at intermediate and novice level.
There are a great selection of tradestands and food and drink outlets to help spectators enjoy a great day out in the picturesque Northumbrian countryside.
Section leaderboards are below, full results here
