Ros Canter rode a tactful round on her Burghley first-timer Pencos Crown Jewel (Jasmine) to hold overnight fifth place in the Land Rover Burghley Horse Trials cross-country phase.
Ros said after dressage that she would not be chasing the time, wanting to give Kate James and Annie Makin’s mare a happy experience. They set out in seventh on a score of 24.2, but as only one horse – Classic Moet – had gone inside the time, Ros did well to move up a couple of places.
The pair were a delight to watch, jumping smoothly and economically. Ros nursed the 13-year-old by Jumbo over the final few fences, and finished 30 seconds outside the time for 12 time-faults.
“I can’t tell you how you how amazing she was,” said Ros. “I was quite apprehensive, now I don’t have Alby [her world champion Allstar B], I’m stepping into the unknown. I broke Jasmine in as a three-year-old and at every level I thought she wouldn’t go any higher, so she’s taken longer to get to this level than others.
“I was probably a bit cautious today, to protect her as she’s very much a mare.”
Ros admitted to a few nerves having to wait all day for her round.
“I said to my husband I’ll watch a few horses then come back and play with my daughter, but I soon texted to say that wouldn’t be happening,” she said. “You can’t get the thoughts out of your head and you have to commit to the feeling.”
Horse & Hound Newsletter
Never miss out on the latest happenings in the equestrian world
Pippa Funnell enjoyed a great round on Majas Hope, but couldn’t make up much ground on her 10th-placed dressage score with 12.8 time-faults. She holds ninth ahead of tomorrow’s showjumping phase (Sunday, 4 September).
This rangy galloper looked to give Pippa a smoother ride than her first horse Billy Walk On, who also jumped clear, but Majas Hope still took out three flags at corners. Like most of the horses, he too had to dig deep at the top of the hill before turning downhill for home after the Cottesmore Leap.
“It felt really great, I’m chuffed,” said Pippa. “Probably if Piggy was on top he would have made the time, I hold up my hand! There were a few little places where I balanced him and took a bit of speed away, like before the Cottesmore Leap. But maybe those little things are why I got two horses round Burghley. I’m so happy with both horses.”
Keep up with all of the breaking news, behind the scenes insight and the best of the action throughout Burghley Horse Trials with no limit on how much you can read from as little as £1 per week with aHorse & Hound unlimited websitesubscription. Sign up now. Plus enjoy our full 20-page magazine report on Burghley, including in-depth analysis and exclusive comments from Nick Burton and Mark Phillips, in next week’s magazine (8 September).
Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now
Martha is an experienced journalist who is mad-keen on horses and dogs. Her reporting CV includes the Paris Olympics, European championships, Aachen World Equestrian Festival and World Cup finals. After growing up with assorted liver and white springer spaniels, she enjoyed 14 years with two rescue dogs. Now, her constant companion is Fidget, an extremely energetic and habitually muddy black and white springer. Martha has written on topics as diverse as a top horse’s clone to the best GPS trackers for dogs, as well as equestrian and rural matters for Country Life, The Field, The Times, The Spectator and The Telegraph alongside Horse & Hound.
