‘She’s been on box-rest for two weeks’: mare brushes off disrupted preparation to complete Badminton

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ecky Heappey and DHI Babette K on the crossc-country at Badminton
Becky Heappey and DHI Babette K jump the Clarence Court Egg Boxes at Badminton.
(Image credit: Peter Nixon)

Becky Heappey (née Woolven) was overjoyed to complete Badminton Horse Trials for the first time, having endured a torturous preparation. She only knew for certain that she was going on the eve of the event, which is presented by Mars Equestrian.

The 16-year-old mare pulled a muscle in her back in the field a fortnight before the event.

Martha Terry
Martha Terry
Features editor

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.