Welcome to Horse & Hound’s live blog from the 2026 LeMieux National Dressage Championships. Our dressage editor Oscar Williams was on the ground at Somerford Park, bringing you results, highlights and reaction as they happened.
From prelim to grand prix, we followed the action across every arena and caught up with riders as the titles were decided. Refresh this page throughout the day for updates, quotes and clips.
Thursday
Hello, it’s Oscar here at a blustery Somerford Park. Today’s championships include the Fairfax Saddles prix st georges (PSG) gold – featuring standout combinations like Gareth Hughes on up-and-coming star Morricone III and Laura Tomlinson on Ostmarks Digal – plus the HorseQuest elementary silver, the Stübben inter I gold and the Absolute Equestrian Collective prelim silver.
The Equissage para gold championship was on early and has already wrapped up – we’ll be bringing you reactions from the winners as we get it.
Gareth Hughes has just ridden in the Fairfax Saddles PSG Gold, scoring 70.21% on Morricone III to go into provisional second behind Matt Frost and Lenika (70.53%).
The 10-year-old stallion looks a good prospect for the future – Gareth describes him as a “stunning-looking horse who is good in both collection and extended paces.”
It’s a mammoth class with 41 competitors and we’re only five in, so there’s still plenty of time for the leaderboard to change.
Results are in from this morning’s Equissage para gold championships:
Sophie Wells rounded off a superb season with a one-two in grade V, winning on MSJ Gold Standard – the mare she rode to an emotional individual gold at last month’s World Championships in Aachen – ahead of her own second ride, Ontario HL.
In grade I, Mari Durward-Akhurst topped the class on Watermill Cruise, stepping into the breach left by the retirement of long-serving partner Athene Lindebjerg, who carried her to individual silver at Aachen.
Grade I
1st: Mari Durward-Akhurst – Watermill Cruise (71.67%)
2nd: Elan Williams – Nalique (71.18%)
3rd: Susanna Wade – Premier Royal Mint (69.72%)
Grade II
1st: Georgia Wilson – Koningin Rava LH (72.56%)
2nd: Vicky Earnshaw – Midline Rioja (65.72%)
3rd: Julie Payne – Divinity (65.39%)
Grade III
No entrants
Grade IV
1st: Laura Scott – CEI Summer Days (69.91%)
2nd: Sara Bates – Tango VII (69.1%)
3rd: Katie Radzik – Korsgårds Tempt-Hit (68.15%)
Grade V
1st: Sophie Wells – MSJ Gold Standard (71.54%)
2nd: Sophie Wells – Ontario HL (67.98%)
3rd: Loretta Joynson – Tresais Lancelot (63.11%)
We have a new leader in the PSG gold – Laura Tomlinson and new ride Ostmarks Digal, who’ve pulled out an impressive 71.67% to lead.
They’d have been among the pre-competition favourites, but there’s plenty more still to come:
Dannie Morgan and Fever Tree (1.30pm, LeMieux Arena) – the up-and-coming horse Dannie has said Carl Hester told him was “the best horse in the country”
Ruby Hughes and Fire Kracka (1.54pm)
Amy Woodhead and MSJ Viva Donnebrog (2.02pm)
Michael Eilberg and EDH Nanouk (2.42pm)
We’re into a break in the Fairfax Saddles PSG gold – here’s how the top five stand:
1st: Laura Tomlinson – Ostmarks Digal (71.79%)
2nd: Matt Frost – Lenika (70.53%)
3rd: Gareth Hughes – Morricone III (70.21%)
4th: Louise Gallavan-Gelder – Fabergé TF (69.21%)
5th: Kate Cowell – Samarkand (69.00%)
Next up when action resumes is Dannie Morgan on Fever Tree at 1.30pm.
Over in the Vector Arena, Harriet Dixon and Dark Storm lead the Absolute Equestrian Collective prelim silver on 71% – a comfortable margin ahead of second-placed Jill Stevenson and Parthago HBF on 69.93%. There are 18 more to go in that class.
Now to the Kudos Arena, where Isabel White and Quatango have led for a while... no, wait – Amber Flynn and Fortuna BG have just overtaken them, scoring 70.67%! Just four riders to go in that one.
Dannie Morgan and Fever Tree are into the arena, restarting the PSG gold.
The eight-year-old gelding flows through the early trot work with lots of suspension. Oh, that’s strange – his scores ranged from 4 to 8.5 on the first medium trot... I didn’t see a mistake.
The trot work was outstanding bar a slight mistake in the second volte, but they’re being hammered on the walk, unfortunately, with Fever Tree rushing the second walk half-pirouette. That’s expensive, because both the collected and extended walk are double-marked.
He flies through the canter work – again there’s some up-and-down judging – to score 66.94% for provisional eighth. That’s one of the big hitters falling by the wayside, and my prediction blown out of the water. But there’s plenty to come from Fever Tree, and Dannie shouldn’t be too disappointed.
The judging was a bit all over the place for this one. Here’s the breakdown, with the judges from abroad – including former Olympian Sven Rothenberger – marking it lower than the Brits:
E – Sue McMahon (GBR): 70.44% (ranked 5th)
H – Richard Baldwin (GBR): 67.21% (ranked 10th)
C – Nick Burton (GBR): 69.85% (ranked 4th)
M – Sven Rothenberger (NED): 64.71% (ranked 12th)
B – Øivind Instefjord Oedemotland (NOR): 62.50% (ranked 13th)
Fresh from her grade I gold on new ride Watermill Cruise, Mari Durward-Akhurst has been telling us more about the horse who's stepping up after the retirement of long-time partner Athene Lindebjerg.
“It’s only our third major show together, so we’re still a bit of a new partnership, but I was really pleased with it,” Mari said. “The connection was better – we just need a bit more forwardness into it, but it’s all coming together. He was amazing, such a good boy in a bigger atmosphere. He just went in and did his job.”
The gelding switched from eventing, and Mari says the physical transformation has taken time: “His walk has got better and better – he’s had to change the muscles from eventing to dressage. He‘s much stronger now; people don’t recognise him, he looks very different to when we got him. It’s taken about a year.
“He’s done loads of carrot stretches, and he’s got his physio routine, same as I’ve got mine – then it’s just the eight-metre circles, he’s over 17hh so they’re quite small for a big horse.”
Looking ahead, the target is clear: “Obviously the aim is the LA Paralympics, and maybe the Europeans next summer. He’s got ginormous shoes to fill after Athene, but he seems to have the temperament, which I think is really important, and he’s got the walk, so it’s just knitting it all together.”
We’ve had a couple more of the favourites go in the PSG gold.
Ruby Hughes and Fire Kracka – who’s not long returned after a suspensory injury suffered in June last year – score 70.12% to slot in just behind her dad, Gareth Hughes on Morricone III (70.21%).
The pair had a mistake in the flying change after the second canter half-pirouette, with the nine-year-old stallion looking late behind from where I sit at H. This horse is known for his extended walk, and it’s outstanding here again, scoring 8s and 8.5s – such a brilliant banker for an up-and-coming horse, seeing as it’s double-marked.
Then it’s Amy Woodhead and MSJ Viva Donnebrog, who are flying through the early trot work – this mare is such an athlete, scoring a 9 for the medium trot. But mistakes in the walk half-pirouette and changes peg them back to 69.24%.
The walk half-pirouettes are proving a challenge for a few combinations out there.
The final results are now in from the HorseQuest elementary silver... and it’s Amber Flynn and Fortuna BG who’ve held on to win on 70.67%.
We’ll try to catch up with Amber after her prizegiving at 2.50pm.
A picture from earlier in the day of Sophie Wells aboard grade V gold winner MSJ Gold Standard – the mare on whom she won World Championship gold in Aachen last month.
With owner Emma Blundell planning to sell the 10-year-old after this season, today’s win could be one of the pair’s last together.
Sophie Wells and MSJ Gold Standard at the 2026 National Dressage Championships
We’ve had a few more go in the PSG gold, but Laura Tomlinson and Ostmarks Digal (71.79%) remain in the lead.
It’s worth remembering that even with a few mistakes, riders will be keen to get a good score on the board – there’s still plenty to play for. The top 15 move forward to tomorrow’s freestyle (11 September), and the overall Fairfax Saddles PSG supreme champion is decided on the combination of today’s score and that freestyle result.
Laura Scott, who won grade IV gold earlier today on CEI Summer Days (69.91%) – a repeat of last year’s win in this class – gave us the lowdown on the ride.
On the test itself: “He was really good – he always loves coming into a big arena, it kind of sets him alight a bit. He were really consistent the whole way through, and he tried really hard for me every inch of the way.”
On the work still to come: “He’s still a bit of a work in progress – he’s building the strength for more collection, but you start to see glimmers of it in his tests. When we can deliver at home what we deliver in a test, he’ll go up a gear again.”
On her ambitions for the gelding: “I’d love to go abroad to an international with him next year, and I’d love to get selected for a team one day – that’s the main goal.
“We’ve obviously got to improve a bit more to get there, but I think he’s got the ability. I’ve just got to keep up with him.”
Laura Scott and CEI Summer Days at the 2026 National Dressage Championships
It’s all happening now – next door to the main arena, in the Kudos Arena, we have the Stübben inter II underway, with 24 starters. The weather looks ominous – a few of the later combinations might get a bit wet. We never luck out on the weather here, do we?
Emma Jablonski currently leads on Higgens Van De Uilenhoek, scoring 67.91%.
A couple more combinations who you’d expect to be right up there have gone in the PSG gold – but Laura Tomlinson and Ostmarks Digal remain in the lead (71.79%).
Michael Eilberg and EDH Nanouk – a Premier League winner this season – score 68.82%, while Fiona Bigwood and Newton Sylvanite score 69.06%.
Just four combinations have exceeded 70% so far – the judges are proving hard to please today.
I caught up with Amber Flynn, who grooms for Irish team rider Jess Dunn – who competed at the World Championships in Aachen – at White Hill Stud, and has just won the HorseQuest elementary silver on Fortuna BG:
“I was thrilled with the whole test, to be honest. My trot work was really strong, and my canter work is always the bit I’m a bit nervous about: the counter-canter and the simple changes. I usually get one or the other, but both felt really solid today, and she felt like she wanted to show off a little bit.
“She won the Area Festival Championships freestyle-to-music novice class last year, but this is our first national championship title.
“I’ve not had loads of prep for this, really, because I was in Aachen with Jess. But it didn’t seem to work against me, so maybe less prep is better for me. Maybe then I can’t overthink it.
“I was a little bit distracted at the beginning of the test because she had a fly on her neck, and she started shaking her head in the first two movements to get it off.
“I thought, I hope this fly isn’t going to stay there the whole test. But luckily, it buggered off, and after that I felt like I could concentrate a bit more. But at first I was a bit worried she was going to do it the whole way round!”
We have a new leader in the Stübben inter I: Tom Goode and Margot have just gone into the lead, scoring 70.77%.
Ruby Hughes – on her second ride of the day, Farrell, Abi Lyle’s former European Championship ride – is next in.
Oh, that’s close – but not quite close enough. Ruby scores 70.44% to slot in just 0.22% behind Tom and Margot.
Back to the PSG gold in the main arena, where it’s really starting to rain now, as Gracie Catling and her exciting Friesian mare Fraithwens Wytske Fan Ter Lune score 64.65% – with unfortunate mistakes in the changes.
22-year-old Gracie is one of the most talked-about young riders in British dressage right now. She swept three of four small tour titles at this year’s Winter Championships and produces all her horses herself at the family yard in Oxfordshire – no coach, no ready-made warmbloods.
Of Wytske, she’s previously told us: “She’s the only horse that has ever taken my breath away – we call her a dragon, but she’s a bit like a swan, she’s got this look on her face that she knows she’s better than everyone else.”
And now over to the Vector Arena – I’m getting whiplash – where we have a winner in the Absolute Equestrian Collective prelim silver. Mary Pearson and Bella Vista have taken it on 71.07%, a fraction up on early leaders Harriet Dixon and Dark Storm, who finish second on 71%.
Olivia Oakley is the last to go before the final break in the Fairfax Saddles PSG gold. In a fetching bright blue tailcoat she scores 65.71% on Nulli Secundus 11 to go into provisional 27th. Here’s the current top five, and Laura remains out in front:
1st: Laura Tomlinson – Ostmarks Digal (71.79%)
2nd: Matt Frost – Lenika (70.53%)
3rd: Gareth Hughes – Morricone III (70.21%)
4th: Ruby Hughes – Fire Kracka (70.12%)
5th: Amy Woodhead – MSJ Viva Donnebrog (69.24%)
We have a new leader in the Stübben inter II gold – Michael Eilberg and MSJ Dante VX, runners-up in this class two years ago, score 72.56% to storm into the lead.
I think Michael has this... Just three left to go in this class: Becky Edwards and Dita Von Teese, Rowan Bryson and Izonik and Millie Gover and Kamil.
Amber Flynn and Fortuna BG celebrate winning the HorseQuest elementary silver at the 2026 LeMieux National Dressage Championships.
“I definitely wasn’t expecting to win. It’s a massive class, and I know she’s quite consistent in scores and can pull off a really nice test, but I think I just have to have a bit more confidence riding in a competition test.”
Amber Flynn and Fortuna BG at the 2026 LeMieux National Dressage Championships
The Stübben inter II gold is done and dusted, with Michael Eilberg and MSJ Dante VX taking the win:
1st: Michael Eilberg – MSJ Dante VX (72.56%)
2nd: Tom Goode – Margot (70.77%)
3rd: Ruby Hughes – Farrell (70.44%)
4th: Lucy Amy – Rudy (69.91%)
5th: Anders Dahl – Ellely’s Focus (68.09%)
Mary Pearson and coloured mare Bella Vista celebrate winning the Absolute Equestrian Collective prelim silver at the 2026 LeMieux National Dressage Championships.
Mary Pearson and Bella Vista at the 2026 LeMieux National Dressage Championships
Here’s the last three to go in the PSG gold – can anyone catch Laura? Ben Martin and Jacko B (5.26), Sara-Jane Lanning and Hawtins Lirica (5.34) and Eilidh Grant and Lebora (5.42) still have their chance.
They gave it their best shot – but none of Ben, Sara-Jane or Eilidh could catch winners Laura Tomlinson and Ostmarks Digal who win the Fairfax Saddles PSG gold national title.
Ben and Jacko B scored 67%, Sara-Jane and Hawtins Lirica 68.82% to finish 10th and Eilidh Grant a disappointing 61.65%.
Here are the top 15 who’ve qualified for tomorrow’s Fairfax Saddles PSG freestyle (11 September):
- Laura Tomlinson – Ostmarks Digal (71.79%)
- Matt Frost – Lenika (70.53%)
- Gareth Hughes – Morricone III (70.21%)
- Ruby Hughes – Fire Kracka (70.12%)
- Bryony Goodwin – Krack DE (69.53%)
- Amy Woodhead – MSJ Viva Donnebrog (69.24%)
- Louise Gallavan-Gelder – Fabergé TF (69.21%)
- Fiona Bigwood – Newton Sylvanite (69.06%)
- Kate Cowell – Samarkand (69.00%)
- Michael Eilberg – EDH Nanouk (68.82%)
- Sara-Jane Lanning – Hawtins Lirica (68.82%)
- Amy Woodhead – Extra II (68.68%)
- Alexander Harrison – Ventura (68.59%)
- Robert Barker – Borlandeaus (68.27%)
- Claire Abel – GF Sezuki (67.97%)
Stick with us – we’ll have all the reaction from PSG winner Laura Tomlinson and inter II winner Michael Eilberg to follow..
Michael Eilberg on inter II gold winner MSJ Dante VX:
“This is a class that’s eluded me for a long time. I’ve had some close calls with him, Half Moon Delphi and with other horses too – I’ve always ended up messing up this class somehow. I’m so chuffed because he’s very special to me, and he's the one who got it for me.
“He just did a very solid test. We’ve been working on his confidence in the piaffe, and that was better today. He walked extremely well, showed expression where it was needed, and calmness where it was needed too.
“We’ve had him up at this level a couple of years now, and he’s starting to feel really comfortable – the canter feels really easy for him, everything feels established for grand prix. It’s just the piaffe, because he’s a bit sensitive – he still needs time to mature there.”
Laura Tomlinson on PSG winner Ostmarks Digal:
“I was really happy. He obviously hasn’t competed since Hartpury [July], so it’s been a while – but we’ve done our homework over the summer and that was definitely his best test yet.
“There was a moment in the first half-pass where he could have got a little spicy, but he made a very grown-up decision and stayed with me.
“He’s by Grand Galaxy – I’ve had him since last December. He came from the same yard that had Rose of Bavaria beforehand.
“He’s quirky, but once he knows who his people are, he trusts you. The first couple of times I rode him at a show, I wasn’t overly impressed; he was quite challenging to get on and even yesterday he was a bit fidgety – but today he was already so much better.
“I think once he knows his people, he trusts you, and it gets easier. He’s very talented, and I think he’ll be a really fun horse to bring up the levels.”
Laura also confirmed the gelding won’t contest tomorrow’s freestyle: “He’s going to do the inter I tomorrow instead – that’s enough for him. I don’t want to be greedy. He’s only eight – I don’t want him to do three tests in a row.”
The two walk half-pirouettes were a real challenge for several combinations in the PSG, but Laura and Ostmarks Digal averaged a class high 7.5 across the pair.
“I’ve had them drummed into me heavily since I was a pony rider,” Laura said. “I quite like them, because they trip a lot of people up, so it’s a good one to show off.
“He’s a nice active horse with a very good collected walk, so you don’t have to adjust too much going into the pirouette – you can come in smoother. I think a lot of people push too much from the quarters and the horse gets stuck coming round – for me, it’s all about bringing the shoulder first.”
Michael Eilberg on inter II gold winner MSJ Dante VX: “He’s done me a great service with this class, because this is a class that’s eluded me for a long time.
“I’ve had some close calls with him, and I think he’s been in the mix a couple of times with other horses too, but I’ve always ended up messing up this class somehow.”
Michael Eilberg and MSJ Dante VX at the 2026 LeMieux National Dressage Championships
Laura Tomlinson went early in the order in the PSG gold, back when the class kicked off at 11.04am – and with 41 combinations to get through, it made for a very long wait to find out where she stood:
“It’s not a massive score – I had a couple of higher scores in there, but two not-so-high ones too. I think everyone had me in first except for one. It was such a long day I’d actually switched off from it a bit. I was asleep for an hour just before – passed out in my lorry – and woke up to find out I’d won, which was nice.”
Laura Tomlinson and Ostmarks Digal at the 2026 LeMieux National Dressage Championships
It’s been a packed first day at Somerford Park – here’s how the titles fell:
Equissage Gold Para Dressage Championships
Grade I: Mari Durward-Akhurst – Watermill Cruise (71.67%)
Grade II: Georgia Wilson – Koningin Rava LH (72.56%)
Grade III: no entrants
Grade IV: Laura Scott – CEI Summer Days (69.91%), retaining her title from last year
Grade V: Sophie Wells – MSJ Gold Standard (71.54%), a one-two ahead of her own Ontario HL
Fairfax Saddles PSG gold: Laura Tomlinson and new ride Ostmarks Digal lead on 71.79%.
Absolute Equestrian Collective prelim silver: Mary Pearson and Bella Vista (71.07%), edging out early leader Harriet Dixon and Dark Storm (71.00%).
HorseQuest elementary silver: Amber Flynn and Fortuna BG, known at home as Cookie (70.67%) – fresh off grooming duty for Jess Dunn at the World Championships in Aachen.
Stübben inter II gold: Michael Eilberg and MSJ Dante VX (72.56%), overtaking early leader Tom Goode and Margot (70.77%) – a class that’s eluded Michael for years, finally in the bag.
What’s coming up on day two
Friday brings 145 starts across three arenas – here’s the pick of it:
LeMieux Arena: the D&H gold inter I championship gets going at 8.05am, before the big one – the Fairfax Saddles PSG freestyle gold championship at 3.20pm, where the overall supreme champion will be decided. With Laura Tomlinson sitting the freestyle out on Ostmarks Digal, that title race is wide open.
Kudos Arena: young horses take centre stage first, with the KBIS British Dressage young horse test for four-year-olds at 8.00am, followed by the Bettalife novice gold championship at 10.15am.
Vector Arena: the TopSpec medium silver championship opens the day at 7.50am, with the Fairfax Saddles Prix St Georges silver championship following at 2.00pm.
I’m signing off now, but I’ll be back bright and early tomorrow.
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Enjoy unlimited access to HorseandHound.co.uk
We hope you’re enjoying our coverage of the LeMieux National Dressage Championships, including exclusive insight from our reporters on site.
If you want to read every article on horseandhound.co.uk including our coverage of the National Dressage Championships, plus exclusive interviews and top rider opinion, daily training exercises, vet-approved horse care advice and much, much more, you can support our trusted equestrian journalism by subscribing to horseandhound.co.uk today from just £1*.
*First month offer for new subscribers. Auto-renews monthly. Cancel anytime. Ts&Cs apply.
Friday
It’s Oscar, back at Somerford – and gosh the weather is terrible.
Today’s headline class is the Fairfax Saddles PSG freestyle gold championship (3.20pm), where the overall supreme champion will be decided – among the qualifiers going for it are Matt Frost on Lenika, Gareth Hughes on Morricone III and Ruby Hughes on Fire Kracka, with Laura Tomlinson sitting the freestyle out on Ostmarks Digal, leaving the title wide open.
There’s plenty more besides: the D&H inter I gold, the KBIS British Dressage young horse test for four-year-olds, the Bettalife novice gold, the TopSpec medium silver and the Fairfax Saddles Prix St Georges silver.
The TopSpec medium silver and the young horse test are already underway first thing this morning – we’ll bring you the reaction as we get it.
Fiona Bigwood topped the board in the KBIS young horse test for four-year-olds this morning on BPS Supreme Bella (by Sezuan). The mare is the latest in a striking three-generation damline Fiona has bred and produced herself.
Granddam Atterupgaards Orthilia was Fiona’s ride on the silver-medal-winning British teams at the 2015 Europeans and 2016 Olympics. Dam Donna Bella was Fiona’s World Championship ride in Aachen. And now Donna Bella’s daughter, produced by embryo transfer, has taken the four-year-old title in her own right.
“They're all the same,” Fiona said. “They’ve got the best attitude, they don’t look at anything. They are so similar to ride.”
1st: Fiona Bigwood – BPS Supreme Bella (Sezuan x Don Juan de Hus) 81.6%
2nd: Jezz Palmer – Spotify Anmore (Las Vegas x Daily Diamond) 80%
3rd: Jezz Palmer – Maverick Caledonia Anmore (My Vitality x Floriscount) 78%
4th: Amy Woodhead – MSJ QT (MSJ Q x Quintender) 77.2%
5th: Amy Schiessl – Genesis Santorini (Santos x Don Nobless) 76%
Unlike the five- and six-year-old classes, the four-year-olds had just one shot to impress judges Øivind Instefjord Oedemotland and Spencer Wilton, with no second round – a welfare-led move to avoid overburdening these younger horses. The seven-year-old class will run in the same single-round format, but follow a set floorplan akin to an advanced medium test, judged and scored like a standard BD class.
Young horse action continues tomorrow (12 September) with the five- and six-year-olds; the top three from each class will earn a spot in Sunday’s finals. Former European pony champion Phoebe Peters will again serve as the riding judge.
Fiona Bigwood and BPS Supreme Bella at the 2026 LeMieux National Dressage Championships
Gareth Hughes and Morricone III have just gone in the D&H gold inter I, scoring 70.62% – including an average above eight for his second canter pirouette, shown below – to slot into provisional second behind leaders Laura Tomlinson and Ostmarks Digal (71.97%).
We also have the TopSpec medium silver championship underway in the Vector Arena – Lauren Aston and Free Flo lead (70.47%) with 14 to go, and look set for a remarkable run of triple titles, having won the HorseQuest elementary silver and Bettalife novice silver at successive championships before this. Can they hang on?
Lucy Goodman and Paschalis lead the Bettalife novice gold (70.61%), but we’re in the early stages there.
We’re into a break in the D&H gold inter I – here’s how the leaderboard stands:
1st: Laura Tomlinson – Ostmarks Digal (71.97%)
2nd: Gareth Hughes – Morricone III (70.62%)
3rd: Kate Cowell – Hidalgo II (68.97%)
4th: Sarah Wilkinson – Horacia (68.68%)
5th: Claire Abel – GF Sezuki (68.56%)
Can Laura go two-for-two after winning the PSG gold yesterday?
Interesting to see the field for the Fairfax Saddles PSG freestyle gold (starting in the LeMieux Arena at 3.20pm) – several riders who qualified in the top 15 this morning have opted to do the D&H inter I instead.
The four who were genuinely inside the original top 15 and are still competing: Matt Frost (2nd), Bryony Goodwin (5th), Sara-Jane Lanning (joint 10th) and Claire Abel (15th).
It’s opened the door for names from further down the order, including Dannie Morgan and Fever Tree, sneaking in from 23rd – one of our tips from yesterday.
- Davey Harvey – Benefit (was 17th, 67.62%)
- Lucy Palmer – La Vida Loca (was 19th, 67.15%)
- Ben Martin – Jacko B (was 22nd, 67.00%)
- Dannie Morgan – Fever Tree (was 23rd, 66.94%)
- Kimberley Alice Siddorn – Dexterity (was 26th, 66.38%)
- Fenella Quinn – Kintyre (was 30th, 66.15%)
- Sue Carson – SCS Lumiere KH (was 30th, 66.15%)
- Olivia Oakeley – Nulli Secundus 11 (was 35th, 65.71%)
- Elder Klatzko – Hawtins Fiorino (was 37th, 64.82%)
- Gracie Catling – Fraithwens Wytske Fan Ter Lune (was 38th, 64.65%)
- Fiona Brennan – Leroy (was 39th, 63.77%)
Fun and games: our odds for the Fairfax Saddles PSG supreme title
With PSG winner Laura Tomlinson not contesting the freestyle, the door’s wide open for the supreme title – whoever wins supreme needs a big score today on top of a solid PSG score yesterday, so we’re weighing both:
Matt Frost & Lenika – 2/1 – strongest PSG score of anyone left in this field (70.53%), so he’s the one to catch.
Dannie Morgan & Fever Tree – 3/1 – came into the PSG lower down the order (66.94%) but has real freestyle upside – Carl Hester’s already called this horse the best in the country and a big kür could make up the ground.
Bryony Goodwin & Krack DE – 4/1 – tidy PSG score (69.53%) gives her a cushion; needs a clean freestyle rather than a spectacular one
Sara-Jane Lanning & Hawtins Lirica – 8/1 – solid PSG platform (68.82%)
Claire Abel & GF Sezuki – 12/1 – the last of yesterday’s top 15 in this field, but they have more ground to make up than the four above.
The rest – 20/1 and upwards – a big freestyle from further down the order could still cause an upset, but they’re starting from further back
Drama in the TopSpec medium silver! Lauren Aston and Free Flo have been knocked off top spot – by the tightest of margins.
Jack Morris and Quality Always Wins MFS post an identical total of 70.47%, with the pair separated only by their collective marks, where Jack edges it – 0.2 up overall.
Louise Bell and Peaky Blinder – known at home as Duggy – have just been in the D&H inter I gold, scoring a disappointing 62.85% after mistakes in the walk and the changes.
It’s a rare off day for a horse who Louise said earlier in the year give her “Valegro vibes”, racking up three PSG wins and two at inter I since stepping up to small tour, with scores nudging 70%.
The eight-year-old, bred by Louise herself out of her top showing mare Working Girl and sired by Uthopia, faced injury setbacks as a youngster but has more than made up for lost time since.
Still in the inter I – Amy Woodhead and MSJ Viva Donnebrog improve on yesterday’s PSG score (69.24%) to post 70.56% today. It’s good enough for provisional third, but not enough to catch Laura Tomlinson and Ostmarks Digal, who are still more than a percentage point clear of the field on 71.97%.
Dannie Morgan and Fever Tree have just been, scoring 69.82% to go into provisional fifth – an improvement on 66.94% from the PSG.
There were still plenty of highlights, with eights for his trot work (shown below) and for his changes. But the walk proved the stumbling block again, with Fever Tree really striding out in front – perhaps a winter spent hacking some big hills would help.
It just goes to show horses aren’t machines, and the development of top horses isn’t always linear – we’ll be seeing much more of Dannie and Fever Tree at championships to come.
We're into the lunch break in the D&H inter I gold, and Laura remains out in front:
1st: Laura Tomlinson – Ostmarks Digal (71.97%)
2nd: Gareth Hughes – Morricone III (70.62%)
3rd: Amy Woodhead – MSJ Viva Donnebrog (70.56%)
4th: Matt Frost – Lenika (70.12%)
5th: Dannie Morgan – Fever Tree (69.82%)
The TopSpec medium silver has drawn to a close, with that dramatic tie holding right to the final result:
1st: Jack Morris – Quality Always Wins MFS (70.47%)
2nd: Lauren Aston – Free Flo (70.47%)
3rd: Charlotte Wood – Alfred De Niro (68.97%)
4th: Violet Hawkins – DZL Royal Sunrise (68.50%)
5th: Sophie Bass – Invisible Touch (68.14%)
Jack takes the win on collective marks after finishing dead level with Lauren.
I caught up with Mary Pearson who won the prelim silver yesterday with Beth Grimwood’s 12-year-old coloured mare Bella Vista:
“It was massive, and quite nerve-wracking – to go straight after an eight-minute break as well. But she was super, she went really well, pretty much perfect to be honest.
“There was a hold-your-breath moment at the halt, where her quarters swung right out to the left and it almost looked like she was going to turn around – but we saved it, and it was fine after that.”
We’re into a break in the Bettalife novice gold, and there’s a tie for second at the moment:
1st: Dylan Deutrom – Norma Jean II (71.90%)
2nd: Lily Laughton – Viva Valentine (71.87%)
2nd: Lucy Scudamore – Replay V H (71.87%)
4th: Lucy Goodman – Paschalis (70.61%)
5th: Bryony Goodwin – Fendi x (70.52%)
A big threat to Laura Tomlinson and Ostmarks Digal’s lead has just gone in – Becky Moody and Magic Dream, a former seven-year-old national champion, score 69.79% to go into provisional sixth.
At times, she was trending on a score close to Laura’s, and it looked mighty close, but the pair lost their line in the extended canter, and Magic Dream broke onto the opposite lead.
Just before Becky, Abbie Newbury and Seagry Firstamour produced an elegant test, showing a lovely frame, to score 67.77%.
I think Laura is well on her way to a second national title of the week.
We have a new leader in the Bettalife novice gold – Lily Laughton and EQP Deidre have just gone in to score 73.19%, moving to the top of the board ahead of previous leader Dylan Deutrom and Norma Jean II (71.9%).
I don’t think anyone’s catching that!
The D&H gold inter I has drawn to a close, and it’s a second national title of the week for Laura Tomlinson:
1st: Laura Tomlinson – Ostmarks Digal (71.97%)
2nd: Gareth Hughes – Morricone III (70.62%)
3rd: Amy Woodhead – MSJ Viva Donnebrog (70.56%)
4th: Matt Frost – Lenika (70.12%)
5th: Dannie Morgan – Fever Tree (69.82%)
Olivia Oakley and Nulli Secundus 11 get the PSG freestyle underway with a Les Misérables-themed routine scoring 67.69%.
I caught up with 28-year-old Jack Morris – the Topspec medium silver winner on Quality Always Wins MFS and a name worth remembering. The Aberdeen-born rider only returned to the UK this February after four and a half years based in Denmark and this was his first major championship on home soil – won, on top of everything else, off the back of a wildcard entry after a disappointing regional qualifier:
“He was very with me, mistake-free – I was really pleased with how he listened. You could see how tight the scores were, though – I was twitching for about two hours waiting for nearly everyone to go in, real nail-biting stuff. It came down to one mark in the collectives in the end, so it was too close for comfort, and I didn’t feel like it was a good enough score to carry me through, so I couldn't relax after I’d finished.
“[Quality Always Wins MFS] was originally from MFS stud and I took him abroad when I was working in Denmark. He did the Danish six-year-old final there, and now he’s qualified for the seven-year-old final here tomorrow too.
“The aim is just to keep building myself up, build my name, and show what I can do. I didn’t have the best regionals, truth be told, so to come here on a wildcard and redeem that by winning has been super. It’s been great to get that kind of support coming home as a new face on the scene after being away so long.”
Jack Morris and Quality Always Wins MFS
We’re into a break in the Fairfax Saddles PSG freestyle, with five down so far – and Gracie Catling leads the way:
1st: Gracie Catling – Fraithwens Wytske Fan Ter Lune (70.1%)
2nd: Olivia Oakeley – Nulli Secundus 11 (67.69%)
3rd: Fiona Brennan – Leroy (66.9%)
4th: Elder Klatzko – Hawtins Fiorino (66.76%)
5th: Ben Martin – Jacko B (66.20%)
Laura Tomlinson and Ostmarks Digal lead the lap of honour for the D&H inter I gold – the pair’s second title of the championships after winning PSG gold yesterday.
The BETTALIFE novice gold has wrapped up, and it’s a big day for Lily Laughton – taking both 1st and joint 3rd:
1st: Lily Laughton – EQP Deidre (73.19%)
2nd: Dylan Deutrom – Norma Jean II (71.9%)
3rd: Lily Laughton – Viva Valentine (71.87%)
3rd: Lucy Scudamore – Replay V H (71.87%)
5th: Amy Schiessl – Luxe Utopia MFS (71.39%)
Okay, we’re into the last 10 for the PSG freestyle, and I’ll be with you every step of the way for each.
First in after the break is Fenella Quinn and Kintyre – a striking dappled grey. The pair are riding to music from The Greatest Showman. They’re clean through the early work – oh no, a mistake in the changes.
Kintyre’s a little up and down in some of the trot work rather than forward, but they go into a nice square halt, and they score 66.45%.
Davy Harvey and Benefit – another grey – are in next and bringing the party vibes, with songs including Rasputin and Hips Don’t Lie by Shakira getting some toes tapping in the stands. Nice contact and frame, but another mistake in the changes... and in the extended walk – they score 68.03%.
And I lied – I’ve missed a couple while interviewing inter I winner Laura Tomlinson! We’ve also had Kimberley Alice Siddorn and Dexterity, who scored 66.93%, and Sue Carson on SCS Lumiere KH, who scored 64.53%.
More to come from Laura shortly...
Lucy Palmer and La Vida Loca – great dramatic music that suits the horse, and some fantastic lines, including a medium trot into a half-pass on the same diagonal.
Gah, another mistake in the changes, La Vida Loca getting his legs stuck under him a bit in the four-time changes – better in the threes, but he shifts a bit to each side as he does them, and doesn’t quite settle in the halt. They score 67.85%.
Dannie Morgan and Fever Tree next – 25 national titles to his name, can he add a 26th?
They’ve had a frustrating week but Fever Tree is such an athlete and powers through the trot work – come on Dannie!
But the walk – which has been his achilles heel in the inter I and straight PSG – again proves a challenge and some of the later work is a little rough around the edges but that athleticism powers him into the lead on 71.58%.
Here’s how the top five stand as we go into the final break:
1st: Dannie Morgan – Fever Tree (71.58%)
2nd: Gracie Catling – Fraithwens Wytske Fan Ter Lune (70.1%)
3rd: Davy Harvey – Benefit (68.03%)
4th: Lucy Palmer – La Vida Loca (67.85%)
5th: Olivia Oakeley – Nulli Secundus 11 (67.69%)
Laura Tomlinson on second title of the week with Ostmarks Digal:
“It might have been a fraction more oomph, a little more spectacular in parts than the PSG, but it was a bit green in the canter because it's still only his second inter I.
“We had one mistake in the first change after the first pirouette, but other than that, he did a really clean test again. He’s so elegant to watch – he just feels like everything I’d want to feel at this stage in a future superstar.
“By next spring or summer he’ll be doing his first inters, and probably grand prix too. He’s got pretty good changes at home, hasn’t done 15-ones yet, but he’s well on his way. We’re just plugging away at his confidence in the piaffe-passage – the pieces of the puzzle are already there, it’s just starting to put them together now. That’s as much a confidence thing as a physical one for him.
“He’s exceeded my expectations this week, especially given I hadn’t had much chance to compete him recently. Before, when he went a bit green or wobbly, he might have got tricky – here he hasn’t at all; he’s just kept answering my questions.”
Laura Tomlinson and Ostmarks Digal at the 2026 LeMieux National Dressage Championships
Laura Tomlinson looks ahead to her two rides in tomorrow’s grand prix and it sounds like she’s going to for it:
“Forest Hill’s last to go tomorrow, Full Moon’s on early, which is annoying me. It’s hard to say what to expect – it’s not high-scoring, but a good solid test early in the class seems to hold up.
“There are some really good horses in there – Charlotte [Dujardin], Fiona [Bigwood], and plenty of others... My aim is to ride as powerful, clean and tidy a test as possible on Full Moon – he’s only 10, next year he’s 11, and I need him to step up a level of focus, there’s so much in the tank I can’t fully show yet.
“I’m fed up of getting 69s, so if I don’t go for it and have a few mistakes, I’ll still end up down there – I may as well go for it.”
Back to the PSG freestyle – Sara-Jane Lanning and Hawtins Lirica lead us off after the break, scoring 69.3% to go into provisional third.
Leaders in the race for the supreme title, Matt Frost and Lenika, are next. Another one with a great-looking frame – that's been a theme of these championships. But Lenika gets a little stuck in the first half-pirouette, and again in the second.
They score 70.6% – not enough to overhaul Dannie and Fever Tree in this class, but enough to hang onto the lead in the race for the supreme title, which takes the combination of both the PSG gold and freestyle scores.
Down to the last two in the PSG freestyle: Claire Abel and GF Sezuki are in now, with Bryony Goodwin and Krack DE closing out the class.
Bryony is the most likely to catch Matt in the race for the supreme title – she’ll need to score more than 71.49% to do that.
Before we go to them though, we have results from the Fairfax Saddles PSG silver championship in the Vector Arena:
1st: Charlotte Smithwhite – Luciano (69.27%)
2nd: Tess Wilson – Hyatt (68.41%)
3rd: Beau Williams – King Liberty (67.27%)
4th: Alex Ingoe-Connolly – Seagry Donna Diva (67.06%)
5th: Tracey Nelson – Charisma DD (67%)
Charlotte Smithwhite and Luciano at the 2026 LeMieux National Dressage Championships
Charlotte Smithwhite on PSG silver winner Luciano:
“I’m really pleased – I didn’t have a fantastic warm-up, he felt a little insecure, but it got better as it went on. We had a clear round apart from the fours, where we had a mistake, and I thought that might cost us, but luckily it didn’t in the end.
“I've trained him from elementary/medium level – I bought him as an eight-year-old, he’s now 11. He’s just done his first inter I, which is exciting, and hopefully we’ll do a grand prix by the end of the year or early spring. He’s suddenly really matured, and it showed today – he’s looking much more solid, and finds the work much easier.
“I’m hoping he’ll be the first grand prix horse I’ve trained all the way myself. I rode under-25 grand prix previously when I was working for Matt Burnett, but that was six or seven years ago now, so it’s been a long time.”
Claire Abel and GF Sezuki score 68.3% to go fifth, so it’s all down to Bryony Goodwin and Krack DE – a former PSG silver medallist at the nationals.
They’ve got great music, from The Great British Bake Off and The Holiday, but they’re a bit ahead of the music to start, and – oh no – they get stuck in the first canter half-pirouette. They score 70%.
So here’s the final results of the Fairfax Saddles PSG freestyle and it’s Dannie Morgan and Fever Tree who take the class.
1st: Dannie Morgan – Fever Tree (71.58%)
2nd: Matt Frost – Lenika (70.5%)
3rd: Gracie Catling – Fraithwens Wytske Fan Ter Lune (70.1%)
4th: Bryony Goodwin – Krack DE (70%)
5th: Sara-Jane Lanning – Hawtins Lirica (69.30%)
But it’s a different story for the overall Fairfax Saddles PSG supreme title, decided on the combined total of Thursday’s PSG gold and today’s freestyle. Matt Frost’s stronger PSG score proves decisive, taking the title despite finishing runner-up in both classes:
1st: Matt Frost – Lenika (141.029)
2nd: Bryony Goodwin – Krack DE (139.53)
3rd: Dannie Morgan – Fever Tree (138.516)
4th: Sara-Jane Lanning – Hawtins Lirica (138.124)
5th: Claire Abel – GF Sezuki (136.27)
Hang tight, we’ll be getting both Dannie and Matt’s thoughts on their tests....
Dannie Morgan on his up-and-down week with freestyle winner Fever Tree:
“I’ve had a bit of a shocker this week, if I’m honest. He’s such an amazing horse, just a few teething problems – I changed the bit a few weeks ago, and I think it was the wrong move, because he wasn't so confident in the contact in the PSG. I reverted back to the old bit today, and he was happy as anything, so that was great.
“I feel a bit silly, really, that I made that error at this show – I probably should have worked it out earlier, but you’re learning all the time. I’m just lucky to have such a fabulous horse. The PSG was a bit of a disaster, he got his tongue over the bit coming down the first centre line, so I did the whole test like that. Today, the connection was better – I just wanted to give him a relaxed ride and some confidence in the arena, and luckily it was enough.
“After this he’s going to have a break, then it’s Horse of the Year Show in October [The Future Elite Championships], and we’ll just carry on slowly ticking away with training.”
Matt Frost on PSG supreme champion Lenika:
“I’m delighted, but it’s unexpected – it’s such a hot class, and she’s such a cool horse. I can’t believe how consistent she’s been this year. It’s our first season together, I've had her since March, and she’s surpassed any expectation I ever had of her, so to do this has been the icing on the cake.
“She’s big-moving, and I’m still getting used to riding her differently to my other horse. But she’s just so cool in the ring – she doesn‘t look at anything, and she tries the whole time. I think we're beginning to trust each other more now.
“She’s showing all the work for grand prix now. I want to do a few international small tour shows with her, enjoy her at that level, and then over the winter – Carl Hester’s been really helpful with training – we’ll look at maybe stepping up to inter II next year, and grand prix after that.”
Matt also had kind words for Dannie Morgan, who took the freestyle class itself: “It’s great to see Dannie back out on top again – he’s my best friend, and he didn’t have the best of luck earlier in the show, so it’s nice to see him doing what he does best.
“The top five all had amazing horses in that class, so it’s just about who makes the fewest mistakes, and Lenika’s pretty cool; she doesn’t tend to throw me off guard.”
Matt Frost added that he was battled cramp during his supreme title-winning ride on Lenika: “I was getting cramp today for some reason, so I’ve been necking loads of electrolytes and trying to stretch and stay supple. When you get a new horse you ride slightly differently – she’s not as big as my other horse, so I have to sit a little differently too.”
Matt Frost and Lenika at the 2026 LeMieux National Dressage Championships
So it’s been another packed day at Somerford Park. The weather improved somewhat, at least – fingers crossed my car doesn’t get stuck in the field on the way out. Here’s how the titles fell:
D&H gold inter I: Laura Tomlinson and Ostmarks Digal (71.97%) – a second national title of the week for the pair.
KBIS young horse test for four-year-olds: Fiona Bigwood and BPS Supreme Bella (81.6%) – the latest in a three-generation damline Fiona has bred and produced herself.
TopSpec medium silver: Jack Morris and Quality Always Wins MFS (70.47%), taking it on collectives after tying on the raw total with Lauren Aston and Free Flo – a first major championship on home soil for Jack since returning from four and a half years in Denmark.
Bettalife novice gold: Lily Laughton and EQP Deidre (73.19%), with Lily also taking joint third on a second ride, Viva Valentine.
Fairfax Saddles PSG freestyle gold: Dannie Morgan and Fever Tree (71.58%) – redemption after a difficult PSG performance.
Fairfax Saddles PSG supreme champion: Matt Frost and Lenika, taking the overall title on a combined score of 141.029 from Thursday’s PSG gold and today’s freestyle – pipping his best friend Dannie Morgan to it, despite finishing second in today’s freestyle itself.
Fairfax Saddles PSG silver: Charlotte Smithwhite and Luciano (69.27%), in a tight class that went down to the very last rider.
Tomorrow’s headline act is the LeMieux grand prix gold championship, alongside the first round for the five- and six-year-olds.
I also sat down separately with novice gold winner – and rising star – Lily Laughton, and with top judge Sven Rothenberger. I’ll be bringing you what they both had to say tomorrow, so plenty to look forward to.
But for now I’m signing off. Thanks for joining me – scroll back through our posts to catch up on the action.
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Saturday
It’s Oscar, back at Somerford Park for day three.
Today’s headline class is the LeMieux grand prix gold championship (10.05am), with the top 10 progressing to tomorrow's grand prix freestyle. Some big names to watch for: Ruby Hughes on Farrell (10.29am), Fiona Bigwood on Donna Bella (10.45am), Laura Tomlinson on Full Moon II (10.53am), Charlotte Dujardin on Braveheart II (12.17pm), Gareth Hughes on Mowgli-Olympia MC (12.33pm), Matt Frost on Kerouac (12.41pm), and Laura Tomlinson again, on Forest Hill, going last at 12.57pm.
The grand prix class is being livestreamed – check out our guide if you’d like to watch along.
There’s plenty more besides: the D&H gold inter I freestyle (1.50pm), and the KBIS British Dressage young horse tests for five- and six-year-olds. The TopSpec medium gold and D&H inter I silver are already under way this morning – we’ll bring you the reaction as we get it.
A remarkable turnaround for River Rise Onassis
Sadie Smith has won the KBIS young horse test for seven-year-olds on River Rise Onassis, scoring 81.17% for owner Sue Garrard – but it's the horse's journey back to this arena that makes the result so special.
Almost exactly a year ago, River Rise Onassis was travelling home from these same championships, having finished third in last year”s six-year-old final, when her horsebox was hit from behind on the M6 in atrocious weather and overturned across all three lanes.
Sue Garrard, driving, escaped with her but was left dangling in the horse area for three hours, trying to keep Sassy calm amid sharp metal and glass while they waited for a vet to arrive and sedate her. “I thought she was dead,” Sue said at the time.
A year on, River Rise Onassis is back at Somerford Park – and this time, it’s a much happier story. We’ll be hearing from Sadie after the prizegiving...
Here’s the top five:
1st: Sadie Smith – River Rise Onassis (Glamourdale x Amsterdam) 81.17%
2nd: Jayne Turney – Vienna WD (Vitalis x Elegante) 76.58%
3rd: Ruth Hole – 00 Heaven (Imposantos x Charmeur) 74.9%
4th: Dannie Morgan – Freya VII (Fidertanz x Rosengold) 74.62%
5th: Jack Morris – Quality Always Wins MFS (Quantensprung x Krack C) 73.43%
We’ve had the first of our five favourites go in the LeMieux grand prix – 18-year-old Ruby Hughes and Farrell score 69.59% to go into the provisional lead.
A really solid clear round from Ruby – extended canter right to the marker, nice changes, not spectacular, but super solid, and she kept her concentration right to the end.
There were barely any mistakes: if you’re being picky, perhaps Farrell wiggled a little side to side in the passage, and the last piaffe looked a bit underpowered – but that is nitpicking!
A nice moment at the end, too – Farrell looked a little surprised by all the applause. A fantastic experience for the pair of them.
Now it’s the World Championship team silver medallists – and perhaps bookies’ favourites – Fiona Bigwood and Donna Bella.
Donna Bella’s quarters go out to the right in the trot, but then they’re into some fantastic trot work, crossing well in the half-pass.
And that’s a lovely rein-back – oh no, wait, Donna Bella rushes out of it, throws in a few strides of canter and then passage, before Fiona gives her a reassuring pat and they’re back on track.
Into her first piaffe, it absolutely starts pelting it down. Donna Bella looks a little tense in the collected walk, in the same place she had the mistake earlier, but the mare holds it together, and they go clear through the rest of the test.
They score 70% to go into the provisional lead – but that score is an invitation for the combinations still to come, especially, you’d imagine, Charlotte Dujardin and Braveheart.
I don’t envy Laura Tomlinson, next in on Full Moon II – it’s horrendous weather, she might need to wipe the rain out of her eyes to see where she’s going.
Laura said yesterday she was going to come out all guns blazing: “I’m fed up of getting 69s, so if I don’t go for it and have a few mistakes, I’ll still end up down there – I may as well go for it.”
But straight after her first halt, Full Moon careers backwards, taking a dislike to something behind the judge at C. Some great work follows, but the talented gelding never looks quite settled, and runs back again in the first piaffe – he doesn’t seem a fan of piaffing on the final centre line either.
Laura said yesterday she needed Full Moon to step up “a level of focus,” but it’s not to be today – she gives an apologetic, it-is-what-it-is gesture to the judges after her salute. They score 63.5%.
We’re into the first break in the LeMieux grand prix, and Fiona Bigwood leads the way:
1st: Fiona Bigwood – Donna Bella (70%)
2nd: Ruby Hughes – Farrell (69.59%)
3rd: Alexander Harrison-West – Kickback (68.17%)
4th: Daniel Bremner – Houston V (64.89%)
5th: Daniel Sherriff – I’m Bayford Hall Incognito (64.87%)
The D&H inter I silver has drawn to a close in the Vector Arena, and it’s been a nail-biter – just 0.32% separates the top five:
1st: Michael Whippey – Genson Blue (68.24%)
2nd: Nicole Turner – J’Eton Hit LDS (68.21%)
3rd: Charlotte Smithwhite – Luciano (68.09%)
4th: Lucy Mills – MSL Saltarello Hit (68.03%)
5th: Elice Willett – Gerento (67.91%)
Yesterday, I caught up with German Olympian and FEI level 3 judge Sven Rothenberger, who’s been judged the PSG and inter I so far this week, to get his take on the standard on show at Somerford Park.
“I honestly never judged so many young horses at a national championship like here. You have quite a large amount of complete horses, elastic-moving horses, with very good talent, on a high level.
“With the first 10 or 12 horses in a range of two percent, it’s a very high level – not just one or two horses, several. Some had problems, some had highlights, but on average we have a very high quality of good young horses.
“I have to say the horse of Laura Tomlinson’s horse [Ostmarks Digal] seems to be a talent to take the weight and make the difficult movements later. I had the feeling that after every extended movement, she was able to do a very collected movement too – that showed me the horse really took the weight onto the hind legs, with the shoulders coming up, so it always had an uphill tendency.
“In the PSG I liked very much the horse of Fiona Bigwood [Newton Sylvanite], which was a little tense in the corner and lost a lot of points there, but had a lot of elasticity and a very strong hind leg.
“In the inter I there were horses like Becky Moody’s, who had mistakes, but if they don’t make the mistakes, they have high quality. Some had contact issues today – if those are solved, they might be fantastic horses in the future too.”
Sven also shared some more reflective thoughts on the cost of the sport at the moment:
“The standard is getting higher and higher, but we have to be careful that people can still afford having horses, because it’s so expensive nowadays... we are losing a lot of young people at the moment because families cannot afford it anymore.”
We're into the second break in the LeMieux grand prix – here’s how the top five stand:
1st: Fiona Bigwood – Donna Bella (70%)
2nd: Ruby Hughes – Farrell (69.59%)
3rd: Alexander Harrison-West – Kickback (68.17%)
4th: Olivia Oakeley – Full House (67.33%)
5th: Daniel Bremner – Houston V (64.89%)
Next in when action resumes is Charlotte Dujardin on Braveheart II.
The 12-year-old gelding looks on top form in the warm-up.
We’re running a little behind schedule here, but the grandstand has filled up now that Charlotte is entering the arena.
Well, that was just a cut above – Charlotte Dujardin and Braveheart II fly into the lead on 75.04%, a personal best in front of five judges.
From the off they were almost foot-perfect – quality half-passes, the canter pirouettes were the standout, so much tighter than the combinations that had come before.
They only dropped below an average of seven on three movements: the rein-back; a transition out of the passage into canter, which got a little stuck; and the extended walk – Braveheart’s compact, with wee front legs, so not the most natural at striding out. But all the collected movements were exceptional.
Charlotte’s more than five percentage points up on nearest challengers Fiona Bigwood and Donna Bella too – that’ll be a massive boost in the race to be crowned overall national champion, which takes combined results from the grand prix and tomorrow’s freestyle (13 September).
We’ve got three more to come in the grand prix – Gareth Hughes and Mowgli-Olympia MC have just shaken up the leaderboard, going into second on 70.46%, but it’s hard to see anyone catching Charlotte.
We’ve also got the results in from the TopSpec medium gold, which started first thing this morning in the Kudos Arena – another win for Dannie Morgan, adding to his PSG freestyle victory yesterday, this time on Fürst Lady III:
1st: Dannie Morgan – Fürst Lady III (72.92%)
2nd: Bryony Goodwin – SJL Niko (72.11%)
3rd: Lara Butler – San Serai ZK (70.67%)
4th: Katie Bailey – Hillgrounds Foxtrot (70.47%)
5th: Ryan Todd – Merikanto SLF (70%)
Charlotte Dujardin storms to victory in the LeMieux grand prix riding Brave Heart II to a new personal best of 75.04% – putting her out of sight of the rest of the field.
1st: Charlotte Dujardin – Braveheart II (75.04%)
2nd: Gareth Hughes – Mowgli-Olympia MC (70.46%)
3rd: Fiona Bigwood – Donna Bella (70%)
4th: Ruby Hughes – Farrell (69.59%)
5th: Alexander Harrison-West – Kickback (68.17%)
Laura Tomlinson was last to go on her second ride Forest Hill, finishing 9th on 65.52%.
Stay with us – I’ll try to catch up with Charlotte after the prize-giving at 2.22pm.
Here’s the full list of the top 10 who move forward to tomorrow’s freestyle, plus our (very unscientific) odds on who takes the overall national champion crown:
Charlotte Dujardin – Braveheart II (75.04%) – 1/10. Nearly 4.6% clear of the field – she’d need a shocker tomorrow to lose this.
Gareth Hughes – Mowgli-Olympia MC (70.46%) – 12/1. Best of the rest, but a big ask to make up that gap.
Fiona Bigwood – Donna Bella (70%) – 14/1. In the mix, needs a big kür.
Ruby Hughes – Farrell (69.59%) – 20/1. What a story that would be.
Alexander Harrison-West – Kickback (68.17%) – 33/1.
Olivia Oakeley – Full House (67.33%) – 40/1.
Spencer Wilton – Woodcroft Django Mon Ami (66.57%) – 50/1.
Kimberley Siddorn – Dutch Class (66.44%) – 50/1.
Laura Tomlinson – Forest Hill (65.52%) – 66/1.
Daniel Bremner – Houston V (64.89%) – 66/1.
Purely for fun – not to be taken too seriously, but that’s how we’d price it up!
Next to go in the LeMieux Arena is the D&H gold inter I freestyle – and there’s a familiar theme in the race for the supreme title.
Laura Tomlinson isn’t contesting it with Ostmarks Digal, so once again, yesterday’s leader won’t be adding to her tally, and the supreme title (decided on the combination of Thursday’s straight test and today’s freestyle) is up for grabs.
Best-positioned from those actually going today – it’s tight:
Gareth Hughes – Morricone III (70.62% yesterday, 2nd) – the clear favourite by yesterday's scoreline, needing only a solid freestyle to be hard to beat.
Matt Frost – Lenika (70.12%, 4th) – last to go in the freestyle at 5.35pm, so he’ll know exactly what he needs.
Dannie Morgan – Fever Tree (69.82%, 5th) – fresh off yesterday’s PSG freestyle win, in good form.
Becky Moody – Magic Dream (69.79%, 6th) – agonisingly close to the podium yesterday, right in the mix again.
Sarah Wilkinson – Horacia (68.68%, 8th) and Claire Abel – GF Sezuki (68.56%, 9th) – both would need a big kür to make up the ground on Gareth.
Amy Woodhead, 3rd yesterday on MSJ Viva Donnebrog, also isn't in this freestyle field, so she’s out of contention for the supreme title too.
And here’s something from yesterday’s BETTALIFE novice gold winner, Lily Laughton, on six-year-old mare EQP Deidre (Dreamboy x Danone):
“She’s super cool, she knows her job inside out. She gave me an amazing feeling – she hadn’t seen an atmosphere like this before, so I didn’t really know what to expect, but she absolutely loved it, and I couldn’t be happier with her.
“I love riding the younger ones and bringing them up, and they’re all super talented – I’m very excited about it.”
On how she got the ride: “It kind of came out of nowhere, really. Deidre’s owner lives right next door to us – she said come and have a ride on her, see what you think, and I fell in love with her.”
I’m off to grab a coffee now, but we’ll be back soon with test reaction from today’s winners...
I’m back and here’s what Charlotte Dujardin had to say about her grand prix winning test on Brave Heart:
“I’m really pleased with him. I’ve not done a great deal of shows with him. At home he’s always felt really impressive, really excited to go, and then I get to a show and he goes into himself a bit – he closes down, goes a little shy on me.
“So it’s just been about building his confidence to grow into himself and be a performer. Today, as I went through the test it got bigger and better, and I feel like he’s getting better and better every show we do.
“It’s a tricky arena – in the warm-up you’ve got the stands with people sat behind you and you can hear them getting up and down, which makes them a little tense. Then when you go in, there’s lots of flapping, everything’s quite close. But he doesn’t look at anything – I didn’t even do the arena walk, he literally just goes in, and he really did give it a good go today.
“He was so close, so, so close [to selection for Aachen]. I just needed a few more runs, and then I think, for sure, he would’ve been there. But it was what it was – how could I be disappointed? I felt like I’d done everything there was to do. There will always be another time. I was lucky enough to go to Verden [Dressage World Breeding Championship for Young Horses] instead and watch my own horse [Secret Agent] do what he did, and that was amazing.
On her mindset, she also added: “I don't even think about [how many titles she has]. I wouldn't even know – I never really count.
“I don’t compare myself to anybody, I just do my own thing. My goal is to beat myself – always asking what did I do in that competition, what could I have done better, what do I need to go away and work on. My mindset is to always become better, try and be a better version of myself throughout. I am very, very competitive, though.”
We’re into a big break in the D&H inter I freestyle – here’s how the top five stand at the moment:
1st: Bryony Goodwin – Sheepcote Just Daisy (72.28%)
2nd: Davy Harvey – Hercules III (71.28%)
3rd: Louise Gallavan-Gelder – Fabergé TF (70.68%)
4th: Judy Harvey – SP Bento (70.3%)
5th: Anna Wilson – Escojunio Ballante (69%)
You can read the full story on Charlotte’s grand prix win here: ‘I couldn't be happier’: Charlotte Dujardin storms to grand prix victory at the National Championships
While the grand prix has understandably stolen the headlines today, we’ve also had the assessment and pre-judging round of the five- and six-year-old KBIS young horse championships going on in the Kudos Arena. The top three from each will go through to tomorrow’s finals.
The six-year-olds are still underway, but for the five-year-olds, we know that Rowan Collins and Melody HC top the group on 86.4%, ahead of Tom Goode on Dynamic Prince (85.2%) and Sarah Millis on Toddington Reet Petite (83.6%) – all three through to tomorrow’s final.
I caught up with Michael Whippey, who won the D&H inter I silver championship on Genson Blue – a first national title for the pair, and coming hot on the heels of the 10-year-old gelding’s grand prix debut just last month:
“It’s been an inter I for a while now, and I was really pleased. He came out a bit fresh – he always broncs in the medium canter, so in the warm-up I did the medium canter deliberately, true to his nature he did it, then I just circled around and went straight in. He was a bit on his toes, but it was a really nice test.
“I bought him from Woodcroft when he was a foal, quite a few years ago now, originally to train up to PSG and sell on, but he’s never gone anywhere now – he’s just the sweetest horse, and a real pleasure to train.
“We did our first grand prix last month, actually, a few days before the summer regionals – not the test we’d hoped for, but it’s a bit of a bucket-list thing, isn’t it? I’ve ridden grand prix now, he’s the first horse that I’ve won a regional title on, now a national title too – just a horse of a lifetime, really.”
Michael Whippey and Genson Blue at the 2026 LeMieux National Dressage Championships
We’ve also got the top five from the BETTALIFE novice silver in the Vector Arena:
1st: Isabel White – Sir Quattrohall (71.74%)
2nd: Helen Hopewell – Ototo ASD (71.52%)
3rd: Jack Morris – Jaxx-Joker MFS (71.13%)
4th: Alexandra Heard – Sycamore Stirling (70.55%)
5th: India Edwards – Poughkeepsie (69.94%)
Some big names still to come in the D&H inter I freestyle, with a genuine shot at the supreme title on the line:
17.03 – Dannie Morgan and Fever Tree – fresh off yesterday’s PSG freestyle win, in fine form
17.19 – Gareth Hughes and Morricone III – yesterday’s straight-test leader among those still to go, so the man to catch
17.27 – Becky Moody and Magic Dream – agonisingly close to the podium yesterday, right in the mix again
17.35 – Matt Frost and Lenika – last to go, so he’ll know exactly what's needed
I’ll be in place to watch all four and keep you updated.
Dannie Morgan and Fever Tree score 73.4% to go into the provisional lead – just!
They’re 0.35% ahead of second-placed Sara-Jane Lanning and Hawtins Lirica.
Lots to love in their test – there were nines for the extended trot where Fever Tree can show off his athleticism.
But the walk remained an issue and the canter pirouettes were a little rushed.
Gareth Hughes and Morricone III go into the lead on 74.28%. The pirouettes looked exceptional again – Morricone is such a fine-looking horse.
A tad unsettled in the contact at times, but Gareth is doing all he can to give him his head. He flicks his toes in the collected walk – almost a Spanish walk at times – and keeps that flick a little into the extended walk, which costs him a bigger score there.
He must've had a mistake in the changes, because he picked up a couple of 5s – but I missed it, as did a couple of the other judges, who gave him 7.5s.
Becky Moody and Magic Dream next, entering to Paint It Black from the TV series Wednesday – a recurring motif in her small tour freestyles.
This is an exceptional test – a fantastic frame in the trot, compact but with the nose out in front. One mistake, where Magic Dream anticipates a walk-canter transition, but fantastic and forward throughout.
They score a massive 76.95% to go into the lead.
That leaves last-to-go Matt Frost and Lenika with a lot to do – but they’re still well in the race for the supreme title.
Lenika is such an attractive horse – fabulous trot – but she lurches in a couple of the transitions, including from the first halt, which pegs them back to 73.25% and fourth in this class.
It means Becky has taken the freestyle – but stay with us while we tot up the numbers for the overall supreme title...
And Becky takes both titles!
The D&H gold inter I freestyle results:
1st: Becky Moody – Magic Dream (76.95%)
2nd: Gareth Hughes – Morricone III (74.28%)
3rd: Dannie Morgan – Fever Tree (73.40%)
4th: Matt Frost – Lenika (73.25%)
5th: Sara-Jane Lanning – Hawtins Lirica (73.05%)
And the overall supreme title, on the combination of Friday’s straight test and today’s freestyle:
1st: Becky Moody – Magic Dream (146.744)
2nd: Gareth Hughes – Morricone III (144.893)
3rd: Matt Frost – Lenika (143.368)
4th: Dannie Morgan – Fever Tree (143.223)
5th: Sara-Jane Lanning – Hawtins Lirica (140.55)
Becky Moody on inter I supreme champion Magic Dream – who improved from 69.79% in yesterday’s straight test to 76.95% in today’s freestyle:
“I was really pleased with her. Honestly, yesterday I felt just really short of match practice – I feel like I’ve really turned a corner with her in training, but I just hadn’t been into a competition arena with her enough, so we made a couple of costly mistakes. It was really cool to come in and put it right today.
“Everything else takes a bit of a back seat when you’re focused on the worlds [with Jagerbomb] – I’ve had clients doing the Asian Games, youth riders doing the Europeans, and it all takes up a lot of time. The training at home’s been going really well, but I just haven’t been able to get her out and about enough – the last big show she did was Myerscough Premier League back in March.
“Last year here she was quite tricky in this arena – hot, a little sensitive. It’s a funny one, that arena – a month later she went to HOYS and was great, she copes with that environment amazingly, but something about this one puts her a little on edge. She was loads better this year, though, so I was really pleased with that.”
Looking ahead, Becky says Magic Dream will have a quiet winter: “She won’t be doing London – she’s not quite ready for that as a developing grand prix horse in that kind of environment. I want to spend the winter with her doing lots of low-key inter IIs, just building her confidence – she’s got real ability for the work, she’s just still a bit nervous of it.”
Becky also confirmed she’s planning to bring Jagerbomb to the London International Horse Show in December. If you’re already planning your trip, here’s our guide to where to stay near the ExCeL so you can catch her and Jagerbomb in action.
We’ve also got the top three from the KBIS young horse test for six-year-olds in the Kudos Arena:
1st: Bryony Goodwin – Simply Secret (84.4%)
2nd: Lily Laughton – Viva Valentine (83%)
3rd: Jezz Palmer – MS Broadway M (81.4%)
All three go through to tomorrow’s final.
Day three winners at the LeMieux National Dressage Championships
Another huge day at Somerford Park, headlined by Charlotte Dujardin – here’s how the titles fell:
LeMieux grand prix: Charlotte Dujardin and Braveheart II (75.04%) – a personal best more than five percentage points clear of the field.
D&H gold inter I freestyle and supreme champion: Becky Moody and Magic Dream – an impressive turnaround from 69.79% in Friday’s straight test to 76.95% in today’s freestyle, enough to claim both the freestyle class and the overall supreme title (146.744) ahead of Gareth Hughes and Morricone III.
TopSpec medium gold: Dannie Morgan and Fürst Lady III (72.92%), adding to her PSG freestyle win from yesterday.
KBIS young horse test, seven-year-olds: Sadie Smith and River Rise Onassis (81.17%) – a remarkable story, with the pair back on top exactly a year after their horsebox overturned on the M6 travelling home from these championships.
D&H gold inter I silver: Michael Whippey and Genson Blue (68.24%) – a first national title, hot on the heels of their grand prix debut last month.
Bettalife novice silver: Isabel White and Sir Quattrohall (71.74%).
KBIS young horse tests, five- and six-year-olds: Rowan Collins and Melody HC (86.40%) topped the five-year-olds, with Bryony Goodwin and Simply Secret (84.40%) leading the six-year-olds. Top three in each go through to tomorrow's finals.
What’s coming up on the final day
Sunday brings the grand prix freestyle, where the overall national champion will be crowned on the combination of today’s grand prix and tomorrow's freestyle scores. Charlotte goes in as the clear favourite but nothing’s decided yet.
The young horse finals for the five-, six- and seven-year-olds also take place, alongside the rest of the closing day’s championships.
I will also have more rider reactions to come from Charlotte, Becky, Dannie, Sadie, and more.
That’s it from me for today – I’m signing off, but I’ll be back for the finale tomorrow.
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Sunday
It’s the final day at Somerford Park, and the big one is the Kudos grand prix freestyle at 3.10pm, where the overall national champion will be decided – Charlotte Dujardin goes in as the overwhelming favourite – more than five percentage points clear of the field.
The order for the top 10:
3.10pm – Darren Hicks, Tramontana Tiger Feet
3.19pm – Anne-Marie Cowan, Woodcroft Royal Charter
3.28pm – Tom Goode, Furstenrausch PS
3.37pm – Alexander Harrison-West, Kickback
3.46pm – Kimberley Siddorn, Dutch Class
3.55pm – Olivia Oakeley, Full House
Break
4.14pm – Ruby Hughes, Farrell
4.23pm – Charlotte Dujardin, Braveheart II
4.32pm – Fiona Bigwood, Donna Bella
4.41pm – Gareth Hughes, Mowgli-Olympia MC
Elsewhere, the young horse finals get going in the LeMieux Arena, with the five-year-olds at 12.25pm and the six-year-olds at 1.55pm – both drawing on the top three qualifiers from Saturday.
Stick with us all day for the reaction as it happens.
Some big scores already this morning – results are in from the Absolute Equestrian Collective preliminary gold in the Vector Arena, and it’s been a tight one at the top:
1st: Jezz Palmer – Spotify Anmore (75.93%)
2nd: Imogen Swann – SJL Zebedee (75.47%)
3rd: Lily Laughton – Angelica V (75.27%)
4th: Amy Schiessl – Genesis Santorini (73.13%)
5th: Greg Sims – Kilan Double 07 (72.67%)
We’ve also had winners crowned across the British Dressage under-21 championships this morning:
Children on horses: Amelia Dovey – Sheepcote Jackson (77.93%) – the gelding was Britain’s first-ever children-on-horses gold medallist under Amelia’s sister Ella-Grace
Pony: Amelia Goodear – Furioso V.H. Enkershof (69.62%) – part of the pony team at the Europeans in Le Mans this summer
Juniors: Abigail Gray – Jack Diamond (68.89%) – the gelding won inter II here last year with Becky Moody
Young riders: Myles Graham – Fred Astaire WD (71.81%) – part of the fourth-placed young rider European team this summer
Results are in from the advanced medium gold in the LeMieux Arena, and it’s another title for Dannie Morgan – his third of the week, on a third different horse:
1st: Dannie Morgan – Freya VII (71.64%)
2nd: Lucy Palmer – La Vida Loca (68.61%)
3rd: Jayne Turney – Vienna WD (68.44%)
4th: Olivia Oakeley – Nulli Secundus 11 (68.42%)
5th: Nikki Barker – Lestingdale VS (68.42%)
That confirms Dannie’s position as the show’s leading rider, with titles on Fever Tree, Fürst Lady III and now Freya VII – bringing his total national title count to 28.
And we’re into the KBIS British Dressage five-year-old championship – a reminder of your finalists: Rowan Collins on Melody HC (Morricone x Danciano), Tom Goode on Dynamic Prince (Dynamic Dream x Foundation), and Sarah Millis on Toddington Reet Petite (Valverde x Lord Leatherdale).
I always feel like we could make more of these young horse championships – after the grand prix, they’re probably the biggest draw. Perhaps more horses in the final round, more prize money (top prize is currently £1,000), or an auction? I don’t know, might be a scheduling nightmare! But they’re a massive draw in Europe.
Ride judge Phoebe Peters – who’s travelled over from where she’s based at Reesink Horses in Eibergen, the Netherlands – tries first, Toddington Reet Petite. Here's what she had to say:
“A really, really nice start – super rideable, workable horse. Obviously, they’re only five years old, and it’s quite a big atmosphere for them to be in, but she was really nice on my leg, really nice in the contact, really nice feeling.
“The Lord Leatherdale bloodline always gives the horses really super adjustability, and that was something you could already feel with her. She’s only five, but you can really feel the ability to go forward and trot on, and also already showing super collection in both paces.”
Next she tries Tom Goode’s Dynamic Prince, who’s a little tentative to start with:
“Compared to the last one, who was quite short and compact in the body, this guy is big – a little more length in his body. You have to consider how that affects how the horses develop – a big horse like him probably needs a bit more time to develop the strength behind, to carry himself a bit more.
“But again, a really super feeling on him. He was a little unsure at the start – different rider, everything like that – but after a few rounds he adapted really nicely to my aids. In the canter, I had the feeling the adjustability was good; the trot maybe needs a bit more time, but also a really nice feeling.”
Asked what else she looks for beyond rideability when trying young horses, Phoebe explained: “Generally, with the young horses, I look more for the walk and the canter quality. The trot is more trainable – as long as the mechanics are good, a good hind leg, we can normally develop the trot a bit more. So having that really nice swing in the walk, relaxation through the back, and the canter a little uphill.
“I had moments with him in the canter where you could really feel he could bring that uphill balance. I think he'll develop into a really nice horse.”
Judge Spencer Wilton added his own thoughts on the gelding: “To reiterate what Phoebe’s just mentioned, a completely different type of horse – very tall, very elegant, extremely good-looking. You can see really rangy, big, ground-covering paces, and horses born like that just sometimes take a little longer to gain and learn adjustability, mainly through the fact that it just takes time for them to strengthen.
“But a super elegant horse, and really lovely to watch – very eye-catching, and fills the arena. He looks like he's going to have a very exciting future.”
And finally, the ride of Rowan Collins’ Melody HC:
“It was really nice to feel – actually, as she got a bit more used to me, how relaxed the walk could get. She has a really nice feeling of swing from behind through the body in the walk, so I really liked that.
“In the canter, she already feels like she’s showing nice adjustability – you can ride forward and back very easily, she’s super balanced. Really good feeling.”
And the results are in... Sarah Millis and Toddington Reet Petite (Valverde x Lord Leatherdale) take the five-year-old title, with Rowan Collins and Melody HC (Morricone x Danciano) second, and Tom Goode and Dynamic Prince (Dynamic Dream x Foundation) third.
Under-21 champions on their winning rides
Amelia Dovey (children on horses), Sheepcote Jackson: “It feels surreal – I can’t believe what a year I’ve had, and how he felt in there.”
On taking over the ride from her sister: “It feels like there’s a lot of expectation, but at the same time, I just feel like if I ride my best, it doesn’t matter how it goes really.”
Amelia Goodear (pony riders), Furioso V.H. Enkershof: “He was such a good boy today,and I was so pleased. His half-passes, shoulder-in and simple changes were great – we’ve been working really hard on those.”
On her season: “It’s been unbelievable – we’ve had definite lows where we’ve not performed our best, but also highs, going to the Europeans and winning here. He’s made all my dreams come true this year.”
Abigail Gray (junior riders), Jack Diamond: “We didn’t have a clean test, we missed one of our changes, but we’re still getting to know each other. We’ve been together for four months, and we’re starting to see an improvement since our last test at Wellington.”
On taking over the ride from Becky Moody: “Becky was riding him before, and I’ve taken him down the levels. I’m from Aberdeen, but I’m currently taking a gap year training at Becky’s, helping warm up her horses.”
Myles Graham (young riders), Fred Astaire WD: “It was a joy to ride – every stride I enjoyed riding. He is a one-of-a-kind horse, and I’m super grateful to Dan Sherriff and Lindsay Roberts, the owners of Fred – I wouldn’t be on this journey without them.”
On his ambitions: “I’ve known from a very young age that this is what I want to do. I want to aspire to be on a senior team – that’s one of my lifelong dreams.”
Abigail Gray on Jack Diamond and Myles Graham on Fred Astaire WD at the 2026 LeMieux National Dressage Championships
Sarah Millis on five-year-old champion Toddington Reet Petite:
“I’m really pleased with her, very proud of her. She’s actually out of a mare bred by a good friend of mine, Camilla Brogaard – she’s not a big breeder, but she had a nice mare and produced some nice foals. It’s like watching your baby grow up, and she showed herself so well today.
“I wasn’t expecting her to win the whole thing. I know her rideability and trainability, but the five-year-olds have been a really strong class this year, so I was just hoping she’d get through to the final – this was the icing on the cake.
“She was actually selected for the World Breeding Championships as a five-year-old and got through the selection at Wellington – but we felt it might be a bit too much too soon for her at this stage, so we didn’t take her there in the end. This is the biggest atmosphere she’s been in, and she's literally just soaked it all up.”
Five-year-olds done and dusted – next up is the KBIS British Dressage six-year-old final. Your three finalists: Bryony Goodwin on Simply Secret (Secret x Waikiki), Lily Laughton on Viva Valentine (Viva Gold x Ampere), and Jezz Palmer on MS Broadway M (Bon Courage x Royal Classic) – who won the five-year-old title here last year.
First to ride for Phoebe is the ride of Jezz Palmer – MS Broadway M (Bon Courage x Royal Classic) – who she also rode last year in the five-year-olds:
“It was really cool to feel how he’s developed since last year. Compared to the five-year-old, we’re looking for even more adjustability, the beginnings of taking more weight behind – especially in the canter, where I did a little easy working pirouette, just because his canter felt like I could ask for that. It was really nice to feel the development he’s made in the last year – he’s done a good job in terms of development.
“Last year he had a really big canter, with a lot of air time and power. What was really nice to feel now is that he has a lot more gears in the canter – I felt like I could really sit him back. You could already imagine feeling like you could go into a pirouette with him.
Sven Rothenberger, judging: “With this horse, it's a really impressive and expressive horse with a lot of dynamic – very good freedom of shoulder in trot and canter, a lot of uphill airtime in the canter. What Phoebe showed us, as she also mentioned, is that when you let him be a bit more in self-carriage, you can see this horse open up and present himself with real presence.
“But as always, where there’s light, there’s also a little to criticise. We liked the walk very much, and the canter, but in the trot, at times, the horse wasn’t perfectly balanced – perhaps it’s just a moment, but we have to make a decision today.
“Our other small criticism is that when he was stretching on a long rein, he was a little bit looking for his balance, and this needs to be developed more in the future – that this horse trots through the body and develops a bit more pushing power from behind, so the connection between the front and hindleg is a bit more solid.”
And next is the ride of Lily Laughton – the stallion Viva Valentine (Viva Gold x Ampere) – who had the top-scoring canter yesterday:
Phoebe: “The canter gave a really super feeling – he has so much airtime, he’s uphill, he’s balanced. You can go forward; you can set him back already. His canter feels like it’s got so much scope, but also the ability to collect, which was a really good feeling.
“Compared to the last horse, this one’s a little bit smaller – Jezz’s horse is a really big, impressive horse, but then you feel the difference in adjustability. This one maybe doesn’t have as much power, maybe doesn’t have as impressive a front leg in the trot, but you could already feel really nice adjustability, and the ability to go sideways was really easy.”
Isobel Wessels, judging: “Outstanding, really outstanding – and I’d also like to congratulate Phoebe on doing such a good job. She was straight away working on those gears, the freedom and activity, ground cover, airtime – all the things we’re looking for, this horse has an abundance of. When Phoebe let the horse stretch at the end in the canter, you really saw the natural self-carriage, and this was quite exceptional.
“What I really appreciated was that Phoebe used this wonderful canter to improve the quality of the trot, so the trot gradually became less quick, more ground-covering, more elastic. The walk is phenomenally good. Overall, I just think it looked like a really lovely package.”
And lastly, Phoebe rides Bryony Goodwin’s Simply Secret (Secret x Waikiki):
Asked about the key qualities she looks for in a horse with medal-winning potential, Phoebe said: “As I said with the five-year-olds, a lot of it is the character, the rideability, how workable you feel a horse is, the walk, and the quality of the canter.
“It’s the feeling of the horse's attitude in terms of his acceptance of the aids, and whether it’s something you think you can work with in the future.
“He’s a super well-trained horse, and I think that was also what impressed the judges yesterday. He’s really easy-going, really nice in the frame – you can feel that today; you can just ride him really nicely through the movements, through the transitions.”
And the results are in from the six-year-old final... Lily Laughton and Viva Valentine (Viva Gold x Ampere) take the title, with Bryony Goodwin and Simply Secret (Secret x Waikiki) second and Jezz Palmer and MS Broadway M (Bon Courage x Royal Classic) third.
Just under an hour until the big one – the Kudos grand prix freestyle gets under way at 3.10pm, with the overall national champion being crowned at the end of it.
That class is being live streamed, if you’d like to follow along with us, check out our guide on how to watch the National Dressage Championships.
Jezz may have been third in the six-year-olds, but earlier today he won the Absolute Equestrian Collective preliminary gold on four-year-old Spotify Anmore (Las Vegas x Daily Diamond), scoring 75.93%. Here’s what he had to say:
“He’s only four, and he’d actually done the four-year-olds a couple of days before, so I was a bit worried he might be tired. He felt good in the warm-up, and he’d been a bit fresh in the four-year-old class, so I thought I’d do a little more with him in case he got distracted. But actually he was really calm today – which meant the transitions were good, and he let go through the walk more. The feeling he gives, at four years old, is unreal.
“We bought him in Holland – I’d tried a lot of horses out there, and I know the yard we got him from quite well. The first time I got on him, they said ‘Don't move’ – he was so sensitive, but it never felt ungenuine, it just felt like he was a bit scared.
“The lady who does our backing had him for six months, and honestly, he wouldn’t be where he is today without her. She got him trusting us, and now he’s very much one of those horses – if he knows you and trusts you, he’ll give you everything. If someone else gets on, he’s like, ‘Who are you?’ He’s very aware of who’s riding him.
“He was second in the four-year-olds to Fiona Bigwood, with a couple of big mistakes – he got a bit nervous, a bit tight and didn’t let go through the walk enough, which is exactly what I wanted to focus on today. He went in so excited today, like he already knew he’d got it.
“He’s got the biggest future – he has talent for all of it. Everyone who sees him wants to ride him. He’s a bit sensitive, but he’s never nasty, he just doesn’t have a nasty bone in his body. We’re really lucky to have found him – we get offers for him every week now.”
Lily Laughton, on six-year-old champion Viva Valentine:
“Phenomenal. I didn’t really come here thinking he was going to win it – he’s still very inexperienced, he’s never seen anything like the main arena, so he was just so cool, he has the best head on him. I can’t ask for any more, so I’m very happy.
“He’s never seen anything like that atmosphere, and with Phoebe [Peters] it was a new rider on him too – I’m always the one who rides him – and he’s still young, so you never know how they’re going to react. But Phoebe is such an amazing rider – as soon as she got on him, I knew he’d be fine.
“Watching someone like her ride him was amazing, so cool – she’s one of the best riders in Britain, someone I looked up to when I was young going to ponies. For her to ride my horse in the finals was really special.
“The comments from the judges – especially Sven [Rothenberger], who’s come over from Germany were just amazing, we all cried, it’s more than I could have ever imagined.
“His canter is ridiculous – we call him mini-Glamourdale, he’s like a pint-sized version of him. I’m very excited for what’s to come. He finds everything so easy – he’s already starting piaffe, and as Phoebe said, you can bring him back and collect him, which you obviously need for grand prix. So I don’t see why he might not go all the way up – we’ll see.
“It’s been an amazing competition. All the horses have really exceeded my expectations.”
Dannie Morgan on advanced medium gold winner Freya VII
Dannie Morgan’s third title of the week – on a third different horse – came in the advanced medium gold this morning, on seven-year-old Freya VII. He’d been sitting in the lead since an early draw, with a long wait to find out if it would hold:
“Really delighted with her – it’s always such a strong class, the advanced medium gold here. She’s just a seven-year-old, so probably one of the younger horses in the class, but she’s got a super temperament, she makes my job easy.
“She went round for a clear round and really gave her best shot – we were second in the arena this morning, so it was a long wait.”
On winning three titles now, on three different horses to be confirmed the championship’s leading rider: “I’m not actually finished yet, I’ve still got two more horses in the elementary gold, so we’ll have a go at that too.
“It’s been a great week, and I’m really delighted for my team and my owners – a lot goes into preparing the horses to come here, so it’s nice when you can pull off a few results.”
Dannie Morgan and Freya VII at the 2026 LeMieux National Dressage Championships
We’ve also got the results in from the advanced medium silver in the Vector Arena:
1st: Katie Alexandra Scott – Liverpool KS (71.58%)
2nd: Anna Burns – San Isidro (69.72%)
3rd: Joe Roome – Acqua Marina Della Caccia (68.81%)
4th: John Norcross – Impulz W (68.75%)
5th: Alicia Laughton – Armada Bathsheba (68.75%)
We’re into a break in the grand prix freestyle, and Alexander Harrison-West has surged into the lead:
1st: Alexander Harrison-West – Kickback (72.93%)
2nd: Kimberley Siddorn – Dutch Class (70.18%)
3rd: Olivia Oakeley – Full House (68.90%)
4th: Darren Hicks – Tramontana Tiger Feet (67.78%)
5th: Tom Goode – Furstenrausch PS (67.35%)
I’ll be with you every step of the way now for the final four...
First in after the break is Ruby Hughes and Farrell – fourth in the grand prix on a solid 69.59%.
With up-beat dance music, featuring tracks from Kygo, and an ambitious floorplan, straight from passage into a near half-piaffe pirouette – but it doesn’t quite come off, with Farrell looking a bit hesitant.
The difference between his collected and working frames is impressive. Farrell takes a while to settle into his walk work, and there's a mistake in the canter pirouette – such a shame.
They score 67.86% – but a remarkable achievement to be doing that at just 18-years-old.
Charlotte Dujardin next – this is her and Brave Heart’s first freestyle together. He looks like he could passage for days. The first piaffe is a little slow in and out if you’re being picky.
A fantastic extended trot down the centre line and he walk looks better today too. It’s just tiny things now – like the finer details of the transitions between movements – preventing some of the eights from being nines.
Fantastic pirouettes and ones on a curving line. Charlotte guns it on the the extended canter, though Brave Heart’s a touch wide behind in the piaffe.
This is going to be big – 79.4%!
Fiona Bigwood and Donna Bella are next and produce a safe clear round – scoring 75.05% to go provisional second.
Not enough to catch Charlotte but I think Fiona will be delighted with that.
Last-to-go Gareth Hughes and Mowgli-Olympia MC – the nine-year-old gelding looks to be a serious talent for the future.
It's 79.35% – an exceptional score in its own right, but a mistake in the changes still leaves them in third, a mark of just how strong this freestyle has been.
That confirms it: Charlotte has won the freestyle, and she's the 2026 national dressage champion!
Here are the full results from the Kudos grand prix freestyle – and Charlotte Dujardin has taken it in some style again:
1st Charlotte Dujardin – Braveheart II (79.40%)
2nd Fiona Bigwood – Donna Bella (75.05%)
3rd Gareth Hughes – Mowgli-Olympia MC (73.95%)
4th Alexander Harrison-West – Kickback (72.93%)
5th Kimberley Siddorn – Dutch Class (70.18%)
6th Olivia Oakeley – Full House (68.90%)
7th Ruby Hughes – Farrell (67.83%)
8th Darren Hicks – Tramontana Tiger Feet (67.78%)
9th Tom Goode – Furstenrausch PS (67.35%)
10th Anne-Marie Cowan – Woodcroft Royal Charter (66.18%)
Hang tight, we’ll have all the reaction from Charlotte to come...
Charlotte Dujardin on winning the freestyle and the national title, on Brave Heart II:
“It feels very good – it was a nice end to the show, and the sun was shining, which is even better, so we didn’t get wet!”
"That's actually [Gio’s] music – the music I used at the Tokyo Olympics. All year I’ve been doing specials, focusing on that and the grand prix, and then I was thinking, oh no, I’m going to have to do a freestyle – what am I going to do?
“I thought, okay, I’ll have to use one I’ve already got, so I thought this might work. He’d literally never done the floorplan before – I just had to give it a go and see what happened, and that’s what happened.
“He got a bit ahead of the music at the start, so I was a touch too far ahead waiting for it, but he gave everything a really good go, and I was so proud of him – it’s a very technical, difficult test, lots coming in and out of it, piaffe pirouettes, changes on the curves.
“I just changed the end and didn’t do another piaffe pirouette – I think for him, he’s just done loads of it already. But I was really, really happy with him, no big mistakes, it just felt like a really good experience for him.
“He’s such a sweet horse, you can’t fault him – he comes out for the prize-giving and just stands there for everyone to pat him, have pictures, see him. The crowd, the spectators coming over for photos – it’s very, very nice. I’ve just had a really nice time.”
Charlotte Dujardin and Brave Heart II at the 2026 LeMieux National Dressage Championships
And that’s a wrap on the 2026 National Dressage Championships – what a ride. We’ve had all the seasons condensed into four days, but we’re closing out under beautiful sunshine.
Thank you for following along all week – it’s been a genuine pleasure bringing you all of it. See you at the next one.
Today’s winners:
Absolute Equestrian Collective prelim gold: Jezz Palmer – Spotify Anmore (75.93%)
KBIS young horse final, five-year-olds: Sarah Millis – Toddington Reet Petite (Valverde x Lord Leatherdale)
KBIS young horse final, six-year-olds: Lily Laughton – Viva Valentine (Viva Gold x Ampere)
British Dressage advanced medium gold: Dannie Morgan – Freya VII (71.64%)
British Dressage advanced medium silver: Katie Alexandra Scott – Liverpool KS (71.58%)
Under-21 Championship, Children on Horses: Amelia Dovey – Sheepcote Jackson (77.93%)
Under-21 Championship, Pony Riders: Amelia Goodear – Furioso V.H. Enkershof (69.62%)
Under-21 Championship, Junior Riders: Abigail Gray – Jack Diamond (68.89%)
Under-21 Championship, Young Riders: Myles Graham – Fred Astaire WD (71.81%)
Kudos grand prix freestyle gold, and 2026 national dressage champion: Charlotte Dujardin – Braveheart II (79.4%)