Latest from Horse & Hound in Sam-watson

‘Numbers will drop more if we don’t act’: top eventer’s suggestion to boost Badminton and Burghley entries

Pippa Roome — Sat, 23 May 2026 14:16:34 +0000

A new five-star pathway could help combat declining entries for Mars Badminton and Defender Burghley, its proposer hopes.

Badminton’s 61 starters this year was its lowest for more than 20 years, and from 2023 to 2026, it had 274 starters in total, compared with 333 in 2011 to 2015 (excluding 2012 when the event was cancelled). Burghley had 52 starters in 2025. This is the same as in 2022, both the lowest starter numbers at the event for at least 20 years. The past four runnings of Burghley (2022 to 2025) have had 228 entries, compared with 292 in 2012 to 2015.

“These numbers will continue to drop, as long as we don’t do something about it,” said Sam Watson, eventer and co-founder of data analytics company EquiRatings. He cited a 36.9% decline at five-star feeder events, CCI2*-L, CC3*-L and CCI4*-L, from 2014/2015 to 2024/2025, while the equivalent short format events dropped by just 2.9%.

“What’s worrying is that this is not by design – it is not part of a vision or plan,” he told H&H.

Sam believes eventing has developed a “commercial horse”, suited to championships, and a five-star horse and that there is no appropriate pathway for the five-star horses, nor are breeders incentivised to breed them.

Badminton final scores

Removal of the steeplechase

Pinpointing the removal of the steeplechase in the early to mid-2000s, he said: “In the old days, we taught gallopers to do dressage and showjumping; now we are trying to teach dressage and showjumping horses to gallop. It took a long time for athletes to realise what they could get away with and then for that to filter to breeders. We are seeing a huge drop in thoroughbred blood. The phase influence at the lower levels doesn’t match it at five-star.”

Sam’s proposal is a few events at two- or three-star long with a steeplechase immediately after cross-country. It would be run at a faster speed than cross-country, jumping “safe profile” brush fences.

“Horses used to be in fourth gear across country, fifth on the chase, whereas now they are all-out across country, which puts them in a different balance. This new phase is a test of whether horses have the gallop needed later in their careers. You can do too much with young horses but also too little,” said Sam, adding that decent prize money would encourage riders and breeders to aim for the events.

Badminton director Jane Tuckwell told H&H that since a peak in the mid- to late 2000s, entries have reduced.

“With increased qualifications, we aim to host the best of the best – as a showcase, we can’t afford to have people who aren’t ready,” she said. “We are always trying to find that sweet spot and if some years we are up a bit and some years down, so be it. This year’s field was high calibre and 60 starters is perfectly acceptable.

“While breeding lines have changed, I don’t think anyone is not trying to breed a Badminton or Burghley winner. It’s a pyramid and some horses are not suitable for the top level for whatever reason.

Beyond the course

“Badminton and Burghley prepare pairs for championships in ways beyond the course, such as the crowds and the pressure.”

Burghley director Martyn Johnson echoed Jane’s point about showcases.

“Increased minimum eligibility results [qualifications] have restricted some that would come to Badminton and Burghley, which isn’t a bad thing, with social licence – we can’t afford to be showing bad pictures,” he told H&H. “I don’t think it’s necessarily a negative if we’re running 60 very good combinations rather than 80 including 20 who shouldn’t be there.

“It’s a big conversation and there isn’t a silver bullet. Thought has to be given to longer-term direction and how championships and five-stars fit in.

“There are a lot of considerations down to grassroots level, where numbers have fallen since Covid. The cost of living, competing and organising events are all up, which are challenges we have to try and counter, while remaining positive.”

Constructive discussion

FEI eventing director Molly Day told H&H Sam has raised important points, and it is positive to see constructive discussion.

“Participation numbers are something the FEI, organisers, athletes and national federations monitor closely,” she said. “I don’t think the drop in five-star entries is cause for alarm, but it’s something we take seriously and continue to analyse.

“I think Sam’s proposal is a really interesting contribution to the discussion – there is definitely value in continuing to explore how we prepare combinations for the demands of top-level eventing, both technically and physically.

“At the FEI, we continuously review athlete and horse pathways in eventing and particularly how we support combinations progressing from lower level to five-star – we do that as part of our everyday and we will continue to do that.”

> What do you think of Sam’s proposal? Write to us at hhletters@futurenet.com, including your name, nearest town and county, for the chance for your letter to appear in a forthcoming issue of the magazine. Letters may be edited for clarity and length.

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Mixed fortunes for Emily King and other top names during Badminton cross-country

Becky Murray — Sat, 09 May 2026 15:45:36 +0000

Emily King and Valmy Biats have dropped down the leaderboard following the Mars Badminton Horse Trials cross-country – while others have enjoyed big climbs.

Emily and the 17-year-old gelding had been lying equal 11th going into the second phase, but it wasn’t to be their day. Emily rode a circle at both fence 20abcd Spillers Sustainability Bay and fence 30abc the Savills Keepers Rails, picking up 40 jumping penalties. The pair also collected 19.2 time-penalties.

“It was so foot-perfect and that nearly was a little bit of the problem,” said Emily.

“I came up to the water [Spillers Sustainability Bay] and he was a little bit flat; I landed and moved him on and he suddenly took a massive stride. I could tell we were going to be on basically no distance to the rail and I just overprotected him. I thought, ‘I don’t want you to scrabble all over it’.”

Badminton final scores

Emily continued: “I did a circle and came again, which in hindsight, I think if the rest was a bit more scrappy I probably would have rolled with it. But the fact it was so perfect and he was so absolutely spot on everywhere, I just made a bit of a mistake. He jumped all the hard stuff, I couldn’t have asked for any better, so I’m really annoyed with myself.”

Brazil’s Marcio Carvalho Jorge is another to drop down the leaderboard, having been sixth after the dressage with 11-year-old Royal Encounter. The pair had 15.2 time-penalties and 20 jumping penalties for a circle at fence 28ab Rathbones Curve.

“He was a good boy, but unfortunately he got tired in the end,” said Marcio, adding the combinations all rode well.

“It’s his first five-star and he did really well for his first one. He was inside the time, if I’m not wrong, near the nine minutes, but then he got tired. But it’s ok, it’s his first time at the distance and he will get there. He will be a good five-star horse in the future.”

Badminton Horse Trials cross-country leaderboard climbers

Ireland’s Sam Watson is one of the day’s big climbers. He has moved up from 53rd after the dressage with Ballneety Rocketman and now lies 20th, thanks to a speedy clear round across country, recording just 0.8 of a time-penalty.

“I did the exact same thing I did with Bushman when he was a youngster. People won’t believe me, but the quarry, I just let him run in there a little bit, because this is a course to put manners on a horse,” said Sam.

“He’s a horse that needs to let me in a little bit as he just takes over. I nearly lost my line on it, but it just got his attention. We can’t ride around that course by ourselves. After that he realised that he was the one jumping the fences, and he was class. He was green in places and he goes really brave in places, and he can gallop. He was a really good boy.”

Laura Collett and 13-year-old mare Bling added just four time-faults to their 33.5 dressage score following a super round across country to lie in 16th overnight.

“I’m absolutely delighted. She’s been waiting to do that all week,” said Laura. “She was phenomenal from start to finish. I couldn’t fault her. She was always looking for the next fence; how much she’s come on in a year is unbelievable.”

Bling ate up Eric Winter’s track showing no signs of tiredness towards the end.

“I’m a bit annoyed I didn’t use her a bit more, she galloped the whole way to the line. I’m not used to riding one so blood,” said Laura.

“There were a couple of single fences where I just took too much away and should have just let her roll and trust her jump, but the combinations I couldn’t fault her. Pretty much everything rode to plan, it’s all a bit of a blur but she was absolutely amazing.”

Just behind Laura and Bling on penalties is Tom Rowland and 16-year-old Dreamliner. They finish the day on 37.8 after jumping clear across country, with 5.6 time-penalties.

“I’m really proud of him. It’s his third time here and he has done very, very little since Badminton last year. He seems to like it here,” said Tom.

“It was a bit of a hairy round because I knew that to be competitive and fast, you had to be up on your minutes early on. With him I’ve always sort of left a bit in the tank, and this year I definitely emptied the tank more than I’d have liked.

“He dug really deep for me. I had this obsession of being in the time at five-star and I haven’t done it. I thought ‘today’s the day’, but he couldn’t have gone any faster and that twistiness at the beginning does take it out of them.”

How to watch and listen to Badminton Horse Trials

To watch Badminton Horse Trials live or via catch up, including the trot-ups, from the comfort of your home anywhere in the world, you need a 2026 Badminton TV Pass. Badminton TV is once again powered by ClipMyHorse.TV, but you do not need a full ClipMyHorse.TV subscription to watch – you can just subscribe to Badminton TV for £22.99. Go to badminton-horse.tv to sign up. If you are already a ClipMyHorse.TV premium member, Badminton TV is included in your subscription. Also check out the Badminton app, which provides free live results and much more this year. Sign up for Badminton Plus membership for £4.99 to access the live Radio Badminton broadcast and receive exclusive offers from on-site exhibitors. Search for Badminton Horse Trials in your app store.

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‘It was a challenging 12 minutes’: rider jumps around Burghley cross-country with broken stirrup

Gemma Redrup — Sun, 07 Sep 2025 09:18:37 +0000

Ireland’s Sam Watson and Ballyneety Rocketman have risen from 33rd after the dressage to 16th going into the final showjumping phase at the 2025 Defender Burghley Horse Trials. But his cross-country round wasn’t without incident.

Sam and the 11-year-old he co-owns alongside his wife, Hannah, picked up 23.2 time-faults around the Derek di Grazia-designed cross-country course, mostly due to the gelding becoming very keen after jumping the Irish Horse Board Cottesmore Leap at fence 11. But Sam also suffered a tack malfunction just one minute into the course, when the outside of his stirrup snapped.

“A lot of things were thrown at me, including my stirrup breaking one minute into the course at the Lion Bridge at fence four,” explained Sam. “I decided the leather was okay, but it meant my foot was slipping off the side of it.

“You have to give it to my horse though, he dug deep in that moment.”

Sam said that he had to think very quickly to analyse the situation and make a decision about what he was going to do.

“I had to think about how I was going to manage to jump round with the stirrup broken and then change my tactics a little bit. And then when he became keen I had to add in some little turns to regain rideability – it was a challenging 12 minutes.”

Speaking further about his broken stirrup on the Burghley Horse Trials cross-country course, Sam Watson explained: “There was nothing keeping my foot in, so I had to get a bit more balance in my toe and tried to take the weight onto my knee, but my horse wanted to jump the fences and I have to credit him for that.”

To stay up to date with all the breaking news throughout Burghley and other major shows this year, subscribe to the Horse & Hound website, from £1 a week. Horse & Hound’s 20-page magazine report on Burghley is published in 11 September issue, including full analysis and exclusive comment from six-time Burghley winner William Fox-Pitt.

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‘I spoke to him the whole way round’: Alice Casburn and Topspin impress on Burghley cross-country course

Gemma Redrup — Sat, 06 Sep 2025 14:05:37 +0000

At the halfway stage of the Defender Burghley Horse Trials cross-country today (Saturday 6 September), Harry Meade holds first and second with Cavalier Crystal and Et Hop Du Matz on 33.3 and 35.1 respectively. But 23-year-old Alice Casburn and her reliable five-star partner Topspin have gone into third.

This is their fourth Burghley and 10th five-star start and they seemingly cruised around the Derek di Grazia cross-country track today, just picking up 4.4 time-faults for finishing 11 seconds over the 11min 24sec optimum time.

Alice and Topspin were initially given two flag penalties, but these were removed following a review.

“He was absolutely amazing and I definitely felt the pressure today – if anything goes wrong, it’s certainly not on his part,” said Alice. “I actually managed to enjoy myself this time and soak it in.”

Alice revealed that she had a hair analysis test undertaken on Topspin to try and understand why he hasn’t always thrived in the dressage phase.

“The analysis basically just told me that it is because he doesn’t see the point,” said Alice, who scored 31.4 to sit in 20th after the dressage. “Normally I get really bogged down in the dressage and that I’m getting ready for Burghley and my flatwork isn’t good enough, but I didn’t get hyper-fixated on it this year.

“We took him for a jump before his dressage yesterday and just tried to keep his morale high and I think we’ve finally got it right.”

Topspin, who is a home-bred 17-year-old, owned by Alice’s mother, Caroline, looks as fit and well as ever at this year’s Burghley.

“We’ve just tried to keep him out as much as possible and we’ve done less events this year,” explained Alice. “He loves showjumping, so he’s gone out and done a lot of that, and I suppose we’ve just got less caught up about the result.

“I spoke to him the whole way round today because it helps him relax and breathe – I was very vocal today.”

Burghley Horse Trials cross-country: fast rounds and promising horses

British-based Frenchman Gaspard Maksud and Zaragoza have slotted into fourth at this stage after their Burghley cross-country round, which saw them pick up 5.6 time-faults.

“She’s a cracking horse and tried her hardest for me –I couldn’t be prouder,” said Gaspard of the 12-year-old mare, owned by Martin Thurlow and Jane Young. “She’s a big galloper, those kind of fences she loves and she tried so hard for me.

“I took a bit more time to set her up to not make silly mistakes and it all paid off.”

New Zealand’s Caroline Powell and the promising 13-year-old gelding High Time, who she co-owns alongside Ruth Armstrong, Serena Greenwell, Jo West, Tom Craig and Annabel Jenks, put in a super-smooth round to jump clear and pick up 11.2 time-faults to currently sit in sixth.

“He was amazing out there. He’s a relatively new horse for me and he was foot-perfect today,” said Caroline. “He’s very exciting and just loves the cross-country – I was always very excited to get him over these bigger cross-country fences. The course walked well and rode well.”

Ireland’s Sam Watson had his hands full during his cross-country round with Ballyneety Rocketman, but they jumped clear, picking up 23.2 time-faults to currently sit in 10th.

“My stirrup broke early on and I had to balance on my knee,” explained Sam. “My horse started as I wanted him to for the first three minutes but then he opened up after the Cottesmore Leap and I had a brake malfunction.

“To give credit to my horse, his footwork was amazing – his rideability wasn’t, but his desire to jump around Burghley was.”

Alex Bragg and Ardeo Premier, who were in ninth after the dressage, got off to a good start on their cross-country round, but ran out at the corner at the Dairy Mound at fence 9b. They also ran out at the second part of the Pedigree Brushes at fence 16 and opted to retire.

‘Eternal love and gratitude’: Olympic eventer’s farewell to horse who changed his life, shaped his future and was his best friend

Eleanor Jones — Sun, 15 Jun 2025 16:27:00 +0000

Olympic eventer Sam Watson has paid tribute to his first top horse, who changed his life, shaped his future – and was his best friend.

Home-bred Bushman, who ran with different prefixes, spent his life with Sam, taking him to his first youth championships – and to complete four Badmintons, three European and two World Championships and a Burghley, as well as being the first horse to earn 1,000 Eventing Ireland points. He stayed with the family to enjoy a happy retirement until his age caught up with him and he had to be put down last week at 26.

Sam told H&H that had it not been for “George”, he would have stopped eventing, but the Puissance gelding ignited his love for the sport.

“He was the ultimate footsteps in the sand partner,” he said. “There were times when I let him down more than usual and he found a way to carry us both home. He was brave, generous, sympathetic and he absolutely adored the sport.”

Sam was 13 when George was born, just old enough, he said, to have started helping with the foals, so he knew him from the start. But he and George were not intended to be a partnership.

“My sister Rozzie was doing juniors at the time, and he was a beautiful, very striking foal, with a lot of presence,” he said. “So she singled him out and thought ‘This is, this is going to be my first Badminton horse’. She was definitely first in line and I actually wasn’t that interested. I wasn’t really doing that much on horses at the time. I was probably more happy just leading him around and being on the ground.”

First outing

So Rozzie took George to his first competition as a four-year-old – a day that did not end well.

“He tripped over a cross-pole or something in the warm-up, and didn’t even get in the ring, and she went off to A&E,” he said. “That was 20-odd years ago and I still mention it to her all the time!”

Rozzie was not badly hurt, and she and George carried on.

“As a four- and five-year-old, he was very spooky,” Sam said. “Rosie tried him in young event horse classes, and he just kept spooking and stopping at things. She thought he was too much horse and my dad was still riding at the time, so he did a couple with him, but without much success either.

“So I was actually third in line. It was just ‘We’ve got to do something’. It’s typical; we couldn’t sell him, because he was a horse who was stopping at ditches and water and anything that looked a bit suspicious. So I took the reins at the back end of his five-year-old year.”

The Watsons did not think George would be a young rider horse as Sam only had one more year in that age group, and George by then was only seven.

“And he hadn’t shown much promise,” he said. “But that was the year he took off.”

Sam said George was an intelligent horse, and maybe, having spooked and stopped as a youngster who was working things out, he then realised what it was all about, and that he enjoyed it.

“In a way, we were two young lads who didn’t really know what we were doing, but we suited each other,” he said. “I guess I was brave, and that maybe gave him a bit of confidence; I’d put my leg on and off we’d go, we’d just hunt along.

“I didn’t have high expectations; he was my only horse really at the time, and hadn’t been doing much. I think it probably even helped the fact that plan A had been to be Rozzie’s horse, and we were kind of plan B, but we suited each other.”

First championship

George, aged seven, and Sam went to a very wet young rider Europeans in 2006, where they finished a whisker off an individual medal in fourth.

“That was when we realised he liked the mud!” Sam said. “Once he got the hang of it, there was no stopping him. It really suited me, because I could just keep cantering, across country, and if there was a trick, all I’d have to do is sit up a bit and he’d back himself off. He was never going to be too brave that he’d get into trouble or anything, and once the penny dropped, he was the perfect partner. If I was wrong, he’d put himself right, because he was intelligent and he looked at what he was doing.

“I think it really goes to show that this sport is so much about partnership and trust, and if at first it’s not succeeding, that doesn’t mean it never will. You’ve got to work it out, give them time and not put too much pressure on. It took a good while for the penny to drop with him; three years of learning, but from that seven-year-old season, he was phenomenal.”

The following year, aged eight, George was one of only a handful of horses who went clear inside the time at Boekelo three-star (now four-star) – and “there was no stopping him”, Sam said, which changed his own direction.

“In 2008 I was in my final year at college and very much thinking that as soon as I finished uni, I’d go and get a real job, and there wouldn’t be time for horses,” he said. “That’s kind of what Rozzie had done; young riders, and then gone and worked as an estate agent and never really went any further. I thought I’d do the same thing.

A different future

“So if it hadn’t been for him, there would certainly have been no eventing. Even the timing – I was born on 28 December, and if I’d had another year in young riders, I’d have taken it, I don’t think I would have stepped up, I don’t think I’d have gone as well, and I think it would all have fizzled out. But we were out of young riders. So then I think Barbary was my first four-star, and then that spin around Boekelo, it gave me the thrill of eventing, I just thought, ‘This is life – this is it’. I got the drug and, and I had a partner who suited me and wanted to do it. So that was it.”

The combination went on to success at the very top, and Sam picked out their win at Hopetoun three-star (now four-star) in 2011 as a highlight, as they beat the likes of Nicola Wilson and William Fox-Pitt on three horses to take the victory.

“That was the first time I realised that we could actually be all right,” Sam said. “That was huge progress, for me and him. I think he’ll always be, I’ll always remember him as, the horse who brought me into the sport and who I learned with, and we did everything with, and I would always describe him as my best friend. But there was the competitive side as well. I think it’s really nice we did do the odd polished performance as well and pull off a few good ones.”

“To do what we did, you need to find a horse brave enough but forgiving enough, intelligent enough, kind enough,” he added. “I didn’t know what I was doing, and he didn’t know. I hadn’t inherited him off someone, we had to learn everything together. So he’d be doing his first Badminton, but at the same time he was looking after me. And I think that’s just incredible. You need an incredible horse to do that.”

So without George, there would have been no eventing, no EquiRatings – and no Hannah. Sam met his wife, known as Sparks, when he was at Pau with George in 2008, so “my equine partner of a lifetime connected me to my human partner of a lifetime”.

Part of the family

Sam added that other highlights were winning the Mallow and Cappoquin three-stars – but that mainly he remembers George being part of the family.

“With the kids and him, we had the family,” he said. “He was very much Sparks’s horse as well; he was such a family horse. And I think, the fact that I’d ridden him as a young rider, and he took me to France, to where I met Sparks, then Sparks and I had this journey through all these championships and Badmintons, and we did all that.

“I think it was in the latter stages of his career when we had the kids – that Mallow one in particular, it was just that George had kept going and everyone knew him, and he’d done all the championships and things like that. He was just our family horse that I think everyone appreciated as well. And when he won, everyone would be so happy for him; for Ireland as well. He’d done a lot and contributed a lot. I guess I just remember pushing the buggy around with the kids and being a family and having George. And it was a good day.”

Sam added that George was not flash or an attention-seeker. He was quiet and composed, and adored Sparks.

“I like to think he had a soft spot for me as well!” he added.

“I think when you have a horse that long; when you go away to championships and things, and spend a lot of time with a horse, you start to just see them differently. It’s like seeing a person you really know. The whole best friend thing – I don’t throw that term around lightly. And even at the age of 26, that kind eye he had was still there, and he was still himself. And it was great he kept that.”

Happy retirement

George jumped double clear at his last event, Ballindenisk in 2017, then settled into his retirement. Sam’s mother hacked him a few times but “I don’t think she had quite as much control as she would have liked, so that didn’t last too long!” Sam said. So he lived happily in the field, acting as Uncle George to some of the youngsters, and part of the family to the end, when the call had to be made.

“It was the hardest thing,” Sam said. “I know it was the right thing but Christ, it was hard. I can’t remember the last time I had tears running down my cheek, and it was always going to be tough.

“But it’s so amazing to reflect on it now. It’s been a long time since I thought of events like Hopetoun, and all those championships and those first Badmintons. It’s been lovely and special to reflect on it all.

“Thank you, my boy. Eternal love, gratitude and admiration from us all.”

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‘I’m gutted for him because he gave me his all’: cross-country blip drops Bubby Upton down the Badminton leaderboard

Martha Terry — Sat, 11 May 2024 12:18:52 +0000

Bubby Upton was defending second position, protecting a dressage score of 27.3, as she set out on the Mars Badminton Horse Trials cross-country course on her long-term partner Cola. This is a lovely partnership to watch across the country, Bubby riding with a loose rein, no martingale and the pair seemingly thinking as one. But though Cola is such a careful jumper, he misjudged the stride coming into the Agria Silver Birch Rails and they activated the frangible device, adding 11pen.

After that Bubby seemed to nurse Cola home, but he continued to jump well right to the finish. This completion represents a massive moment in Bubby’s recovery from serious injury last year, and while there may have been slight disappointment to slip down the leaderboard, she looked elated with her horse, pointing to him to give him the credit as she went through the finish flags.

“I’m so proud of my horse, he never fails to give me his all,” said Bubby. “It was so unbelievably tough out there. I had to work hard which is rare on that horse. I’m gutted for him about the pin because he was faultless; he just chipped in at the last minute and didn’t quite read it. I’m sad for him because it’s not a reflection on how hard he tried.

“I’ve never felt him that tired, he’s a cross-country horse through and through but he never gave up on me. It’s the hardest ride I’ve ever had. It’s an incredible course and Eric Winter’s an amazing course-builder, but it was tough, even tougher than last year.”

Badminton final scores

Swiss rider blasts into lead at Badminton Horse Trials cross-country

The best round of the first raft of riders came from Swiss rider Felix Vogg, who was lying 15th after dressage on his Luhmühlen winner Cartania. This neat little mare was catlike all the way round, flicking up her back legs over the tricky log element at the Holland Cooper Vicarage Vee. They finished with 10.8 time-faults.

“I am sitting on a really good mare, I knew she would handle it after last year, but this year it’s a totally different course,” said Felix. “It’s a long time since there’s been a Swiss winner, and last year I was the first in over 50 years just to finish here. To win is a milestone, but I don’t think we’re close to that yet.”

Zara Tindall wasn’t in a competitive position after dressage, in 48th, but she put in a great Badminton Horse Trials cross-country round to finish clear with 18.4 time-faults.

“He’s such a good jumper but he’s tricky and comes on and off the bridle, I’m like ‘not now!’ He’s got loads of scope as he’s only a little horse. I had to work hard, but when you get it done it’s such an achievement,” she said.

Zara added that the ground is a factor.

“The ground is dead, it looks fine but the horses aren’t bouncing off it,” she said. “I had to fight for it but I did enjoy it at the end. My horse hates people so galloping around in front of all these people is another thing!”

Sam Watson was tipped for a fast time on SAP Talisman having finished 1sec over the time at Burghley. However, he rubbed his tummy on the palisade going into the Mars Badminton Lake, and activated the MIM system on this new deformable device, incurring 11pen.

He then chanced the tricky direct route at the final log element of the Mars Sustainability Bay (fence 18). At this stage, no one else had yet attempted this without turning a circle before this separately numbered fence, but it didn’t look comfortable, and he later had another 11pen at the Holland Cooper Vicarage Vee. He went on to complete, a minute over the time.

“Thank God for the pins, they save me from making bad decisions,” said Sam. “I got greedy at the lake. I had a strong Burghley round behind me and I saw an opportunity, [but] I was too aggressive at the lake. The horse got me out of the trouble, the pins got me out of trouble. I’m lucky and I’m proud of the horse.”

Max Warburton’s bid from equal 10th place came to an early end when Monbeg Exclusive ran out the final corner at Voltaire Design Huntsman’s Close (fence 7), and had a second drive-by at the LeMieux Eyelash Brushes (fence 15).

How to watch Badminton Horse Trials

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To ensure you keep up to date with all the breaking news, behind the scenes insight, and the best of the action throughout Badminton Horse Trials with no limits on how much you can read, subscribe to the Horse & Hound website from as little as £1 a week. Sign up now. And don’t miss our bumper 22-page magazine report on Badminton, including in-depth analysis and exclusive comments from top names, in the issue of Horse & Hound dated 16 May.

‘It’s very clever’ and ‘you’ll need a nimble horse’: riders’ thoughts on the 2024 Badminton cross-country course

Gemma Redrup — Thu, 09 May 2024 18:22:56 +0000

Competitors have been sharing their initial reactions after a first look at the 2024 Mars Badminton Horse Trials cross-country course, which is designed by Eric Winter (8–12 May).

Following a particularly wet winter in the UK, the sun is now shining relentlessly over the park at Badminton, and, alongside their thoughts on the fences, riders have also discussed how the ground will ride with these drying conditions.

Top British rider Pippa Funnell, who is seventh to go with Majas Hope, said “it’s beautifully presented and very clever”.

“There are lots of questions all the way through and we’ll be glad to get through Huntsman’s Close – it’s a tough ask early on,” said Pippa. “Then the same applies at The Lake and the Vicarage Ditch area is very intense – it seems like we are in that area for a much longer period of time compared to previous years.”

Badminton final scores

Pippa continued: “There are plenty of big drops, and if I’m honest, the fence I really don’t like is the log coming out of the water at the MARS Equestrian Sustainability Bay [fences 17AB and 18] – it’s an ugly thing and horses can’t see it until the last second.”

The angle on the final part of fence 17AB and 18 coming out of the water. (Image credit: creditUnknown)

Tom Rowland agreed with Pippa, commenting there are “a lot more skinnies” than in previous years and “some really very, very tight acute turns, including coming out of fences 17 and 18”.

“You will need a really nimble horse, including at Huntsman’s Close,” said Tom, who has two rides this week in Dreamliner and KND Steel Pulse.

Irish rider Sam Watson, who is riding SAP Talisman, says that this year’s Badminton Horse Trials cross-country course “offers more chance of run outs than Eric normally builds”.

“It has all his normal features of slowing you down, using terrain, every lump and bump, but I’ve never known the Vicarage Vee (and there’s pretty much two of them) to be fence 25 on course,” continued Sam. “I don’t think it has ever been so close to the finish line.

“So it’s going to be interesting to see how horses are at that stage because the ground is dead, there’s a lot of jumping to do and a lot of concentration required – horses and riders are going to have to hold it all the way to the end.”

Young British rider Alice Casburn, who is riding Topspin, agreed saying: “I got brain ache walking the course.”

Alice’s mother Caroline Casburn (née Sizer) previously rode at five-star level and Alice commented: “Mum said if you put one of these questions in a four-star track, it would ride well, but the difference at this level is that there is an accumulation of effort with big fence after big fence.”

Australia’s Bill Levett was more relaxed about this year’s Badminton cross-country course. He said he believes it is “softer than previous years”.

“I think it allows you to get your lines better and it’s one of Eric’s better tracks. There are plenty of long routes too, so if you’re riding a first-timer, there’s a way over most of the combinations and opportunities to regain confidence.”

Ground conditions have also been a talking point, with the drying weather following a particularly wet winter.

Kylie Roddy said: “I truly believe that the ground is going to be a massive influencing factor. There is some softer going out there at the moment, which could become sticky.”

She continued by discussing the temperature forecast on Saturday when cross-country day rolls around.

“I think at the moment we’ve got 23 degree heat on Saturday. When you think about the winter these horses have had, they’ve probably not even galloped in temperatures near to that, so there’ll be a fatigue factor that kicks in and it’ll be a case of competitors riding efficient lines – I think that will pay dividends on Saturday.”

Sam Watson agreed saying: “That’s when sitting on a real blood horse will give you some confidence.”

How to watch Badminton Horse Trials

Enjoy the best of Badminton with Horse & Hound

To ensure you keep up to date with all the breaking news, behind the scenes insight, and the best of the action throughout Badminton Horse Trials with no limits on how much you can read, subscribe to the Horse & Hound website from as little as £1 a week. Sign up now. And don’t miss our bumper 22-page magazine report on Badminton, including in-depth analysis and exclusive comments from top names, in the issue of Horse & Hound dated 16 May.

Sam Watson on his Olympic journey: ‘I bottled selection for London 2012, but Tokyo was different’

Pippa Roome — Sun, 28 Jan 2024 16:30:52 +0000

Irish eventer Sam Watson is aiming for his second Olympics in Paris this summer, but he says by the time he actually rode at his first, in Tokyo, it was no longer his absolute be-all and end-all.

“My sister and my business partner Diarmuid Byrne – who both know me very well and follow my career – were so relieved when I went up the centre line in Tokyo,” he remembers, in an interview on episode 145 of The Horse & Hound Podcast, released this week. “They were like, ‘Oh, he’s made it to the Olympics’ because that must have been my ninth championship, but it was my first Olympics.”

Sam continues: “I bottled London – I made a mistake in my last event before London, that looking back on it to me was because I didn’t know what mindset to be in. I was so excited and focused about potentially going to London that I forgot to ride well in the fences in the selection trial. And so I made a mistake and rode quite badly and that’s not the message you need to give your selectors on the last run. So I lost my place.

“Back then, I would definitely have said, ‘Oh, I have to be an Olympian, I have to make it to an Olympics. You know, that’s what it’s all about.’”

Older and wiser nine years later, Sam felt differently by the time he was selected for the Tokyo Games in 2021, with the buckskin Tullabeg Flamenco.

He explains: “I was comfortable enough in my own skin by then that there are no results or ‘achievement’ that’s going to validate me as a person or define who I am as a person, as long as my wife still loves me and my family still love and respect me and same with my kids, and the people around me would think I’m a sound enough fellow and can make a difference.

“So actually, Tokyo was just all about producing horses through to top level and that’s what I enjoy doing now. I would view myself more as a trainer than an athlete.”

The Olympics was also interesting for Sam Watson because he works in high performance through the data analytics company he co-founded, EquiRatings.

“As someone who works in performance and who has an inquiring mind about performance, the Olympics is the pinnacle of performance and you have all the other athletes there as well,” he says. “So I definitely enjoyed it from that point of view and it was a privilege to be part of it as someone who works in performance management.

“You want to be there as part of your job. You don’t feel you need to be there to validate who you are as a person and that’s the difference – as a younger athlete, I felt like I had to be an Olympian to prove my worth. By the time I was old enough to go to Tokyo, I was just happy to be there and go through that process as a performer.”

Hear Sam talk about his two potential rides for Paris 2024 and how he juggles working for EquiRatings and being a top-level rider on episode 145 of The Horse & Hound Podcast.

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The Horse & Hound Podcast 145: top Irish event rider Sam Watson

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‘He didn’t go in a stable until he was nine’: meet Sparkles Watson, the groom of ‘wild’ Burghley runner SAP Talisman

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Horse & Hound magazine, out every Thursday, is packed with all the latest news and reports, as well as interviews, specials, nostalgia, vet and training advice. Find how you can enjoy the magazine delivered to your door every week, plus options to upgrade your subscription to access our online service that brings you breaking news and reports as well as other benefits.

The Horse & Hound Podcast 145: top Irish event rider Sam Watson

Gemma Redrup — Thu, 25 Jan 2024 06:45:13 +0000

On our 145th episode of The Horse & Hound Podcast, we speak to top Irish event rider Sam Watson. He talks about his data analytics company EquiRatings, as well as his own eventing career, including winning team silver at the 2018 World Championships. We hope you will enjoy listening.

Episode 145 of The Horse & Hound Podcast, our popular audio service, is now live.

Each episode is available for H&H fans to listen to via your favourite podcast app, as well as here on the website. Search for “The Horse & Hound Podcast” in your preferred podcast app and click subscribe to be notified about each new episode.

View all episodes of The Horse & Hound Podcast

On our 145th episode of The Horse & Hound Podcast, we speak to atop Irish event rider Sam Watson. He talks about his data analytics company EquiRatings, as well as his own eventing career, including winning team silver at the 2018 World Championships.

“The emotional moment was coming back into Dublin Airport and my dad was there. He had brought his medals and the fact that dad had gone to America and won a silver medal for Ireland 40 years previously was a great generational moment for us and great to share with everyone” – Sam Watson on the moment he arrived back from winning team silver at the 2018 World Championships in the USA.

We would love to hear your feedback on all our podcasts, so please do send your thoughts to pippa.roome@futurenet.com

Horse & Hound Podcast: episode 145

Catch up with more episodes of The Horse & Hound Podcast…

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‘He didn’t go in a stable until he was nine’: meet Sparkles Watson, the groom of ‘wild’ Burghley runner SAP Talisman

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The Horse & Hound Podcast 144: Amateur showing rider Floriann Gilston | Feeding a veteran

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The Horse & Hound Podcast 143: Emily King | When to call a qualified saddle fitter

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The Horse & Hound Podcast 142: Carl Hester on 2023 and the Paris Olympics | Feeding during the winter

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The Horse & Hound Podcast 141: John & Michael Whitaker

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Horse & Hound magazine, out every Thursday, is packed with all the latest news and reports, as well as interviews, specials, nostalgia, vet and training advice. Find how you can enjoy the magazine delivered to your door every week, plus options to upgrade your subscription to access our online service that brings you breaking news and reports as well as other benefits.

Incredible rounds, smart debuts and heartbreak: 11 must-reads about Burghley cross-country day

Gemma Redrup — Sat, 02 Sep 2023 16:55:05 +0000

The cross-country day is now complete at the Defender Burghley Horse Trials 2023 and it was another day of drama, spell-binding rounds and high-profile upsets. Here is a round-up of the key stories you won’t want to miss from Saturday 2 September

It was an action-packed Defender Burghley Horse Trials cross-country day, over Derek di Grazia’s track.

Watch a round-up of today’s action in the video below

Tim Price holds the lead after jumping clear but finishing 20 seconds over the time with Vitali.

Why Tim’s round wasn’t as smooth as he had hoped

Oliver Townend had a rough start to the day…

What happened to Oliver’s early rides?

…but it ended well with Ballaghmor Class

Find out what Oliver had to say about this 16-year-old five-star stalwart

Some of the early riders enjoyed fantastic rounds and have reaped the rewards

What happened to the early competitors?

There was drama for Ros Canter, who was in fifth after the dressage

Find out what happened to Ros and Pencos Crown Jewel

Burghley Horse Trials cross-country day was disappointing for Tom McEwen, who was in fourth after dressage

Find out why Tom and Toledo De Kerser didn’t complete

Pippa Funnell and Sam Watson enjoyed good rounds

What Pippa said, plus Sam’s review of his remarkable little horse’s round

We caught up with Sam’s wife and groom Sparkles Watson prior to him going cross-country

Find out what Sam’s horse is like and how Sparkles juggles the many aspects of her life with great success

Burghley dreams were dashed for some experienced partnerships…

Check out what happened to Emily King and Zara Tindall

…but British first-timer Emma Thomas enjoyed a fantastic round

Find out what this young rider had to say before she went across country on her game little horse

We also met Boyd Martin’s groom Steph Simpson, to find out what it’s like working for the top US rider

Read about why Steph loves her job and what it was like travelling over from the USA with two horses for this week’s competition

Horse & Hound has a team of reporters covering all the Burghley action. To keep reading on our website after five articles, readers will need to buy a subscription. Visit horseandhound.co.uk/join to buy a Horse & Hound website unlimited subscription or, for great value, visit magazinesdirect.com for a combined magazine and website subscription. If you are already a magazine subscriber, the cost to upgrade your subscription to include full website access is minimal – call 0330 333 1113 to find out more.

‘He didn’t go in a stable until he was nine’: meet Sparkles Watson, the groom of ‘wild’ Burghley runner SAP Talisman

Gemma Redrup — Sat, 02 Sep 2023 09:32:31 +0000

Hannah “Sparkles” Watson isn’t just the wife of Irish eventer Sam Watson, who is competing at the Defender Burghley Horse Trials this week, but she is also his groom and she owns half of his horse competing here this week, SAP Talisman.

“I never thought I would own a horse that would compete at Burghley – it feels quite surreal,” says Sparkles Watson, who first started grooming when she was 18, initially working for Lucinda Fredericks before going to Dag Albert and then to Pippa Funnell for seven years. “Burghley is an amazing place – it gives you goosebumps coming here. It’s so intimidating but it’s got such a lovely feel about it and is so friendly, but just terrifying at the same time.”

Sparkles Watson says that SAP Talisman, a 13-year-old she co-owns with Sam’s mum Julia Watson, is “a little wild”.

“We’ve had him since he was four and he’s a tiny little barrel of a thing – he just never grew – he’s barely 16hh. He never lived in a stable until he went to his first international as a nine-year-old as he lives out 24/7 – we couldn’t get him into it!

“He’s quite tricky but he’s an out and out cross-country machine. I think they have to be quite special when they’re competing at this level and are barely 16hh.”

Sparkles says that the horse spends as much time out of the stable at events as possible.

“I’ve looked after him every day since he was a four-year-old, so I know him well. I’ll take him hand-grazing, lungeing or just for a walk – I’ve been walking him up to the main arena five or six times a day here to try and keep him relaxed and familiar with it.”

SAP Talisman scored 35.4 in the dressage, which Sparkles says is “like him getting 25”.

“Just getting him into the arena and being able to contain him is such an achievement,” she explains. “I can’t watch the cross-country though – people have to update me with a series of thumbs up signals as Sam goes around the course!”

Sparkles married Sam in 2012 after they met on the eventing circuit and they live at the Ballybolger Stud in Co Carlow. Together they have two sons, Archie and Toby, and Sparkles runs the yard and family life seamlessly.

“I’m a morning person so I get up at 5am each morning before Sam and the boys get up so that I can get everything organised,” she explains when asked how she manages to juggle everything. “Sam is amazing –he’s very relaxed and he just lets me get on with it. He rides and I look after the horses and it is just so easy between us.”

Sparkles says that some people have told her she doesn’t have to groom anymore now that she is married with children.

“I genuinely love doing it. It’s not a chore to do,” she says.

In terms of advice for aspiring grooms, Sparkles says: “I had no idea what I was doing when I started, I’ve been keen to learn and am still learning every day now. You have to be meticulous in everything you do – all the little things add up to the bigger picture.”

‘Come on, we’re at a World Championships – we need to work’: early riders reflect on Pratoni’s cross-country course

Gemma Redrup — Sat, 17 Sep 2022 10:11:02 +0000

Early riders have shared their thoughts on Giuseppe Della Chiesa’s track after completing their eventing World Championships cross-country rounds in Pratoni Del Vivaro, Italy this morning (17 September).

The optimum time of 9mins 50sec is proving hard to achieve and there have been conflicting opinions on the course, which some riders have been vocal about.

First to go of the Irish riders, Sam Watson, put in a solid performance with SAP Talisman, jumping a clear round and collected just 2.4 time-faults.

“There are very few moments on the course when you can just relax, because with the terrain whether you’re going uphill or downhill, it’s always work,” said Sam. “But come on, we’re at a World Championship – we need to work for 10 minutes.”

Sam was thorough in his analysis of his round and the track riders are facing today on the eventing World Championships cross-country course.

“My horse is balanced and a real athlete – he’s small, hardly 16hh, so footwork is his forté. I added in a few combinations, which I don’t think many other people will be able to do,” said Sam. “I really enjoyed our round, even though it was hard work. If it’s not hard work, we all go clear in the time and today doesn’t matter so much. Today we’re out of our comfort zone and there’s nothing wrong with that – it’s high performance sport.”

Sam was full of praise for Giuseppe’s track.

“I think Giuseppe, you have to be a genius now to push us out of our comfort zone and make it horse-friendly. To jump around, the speed we go is our decision – it’s our responsibility. We must know how much energy the horses have, we must know how fit they are. We must manage that from the start to the finish, and if we don’t, it’s on us, it’s our responsibility. So the course-designer for me has done his job. It’s a very safe track to jump and it’s a hard track to ride – congratulations, Giuseppe.”

Germany’s Christoph Wahler (pictured), however, felt differently about the course. Riding Carjatan S, he also jumped clear, incurring 9.6 time-faults.

“I didn’t really like it, to be honest. I think Michi [Michael Jung] said some very true things about the course designing yesterday, and that’s pretty much my opinion too,” said Christoph. “He jumped amazingly well, over everything that I put him in front of. And I think then he just got a little bit tired and I had to do some alternative routes where he just didn’t feel bouncy and powerful enough in the canter to ride the direct lines. But in the end, it is what it is. It’s a clear for the team. I would have liked to go faster, but today I couldn’t.”

France’s Astier Nicolas had a mostly good round with Alertamalib’or, bar a run out at fence 7c, the final part of the Slide, and also 11 penalties for a broken frangible device at fence 18, the Goldspan Farm. He incurred 8.4 time-faults.

Speaking of his run-out at the Slide, Astier said: “I had to make a choice between not stopping at the top and controlling the slope down. But I lost a bit of control going down the hill and ended up on a two-and-a-half stride distance, so the horse had to save his skin – really it was my fault.”

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Keep up with all of the breaking news, behind the scenes insight and the best of the action throughout the World Eventing Championships with no limit on how much you can read from as little as £1 per week with a Horse & Hound unlimited website subscription. Sign up now. Plus enjoy our full 20-page magazine report (on sale 22 September) including opinion from Mark Phillips and ground jury president Christina Klingspor.

Change to major nation’s squad for eventing World Championships

Pippa Roome — Tue, 06 Sep 2022 11:03:23 +0000

Joseph Murphy has withdrawn from the Irish eventing World Championships squad for next week’s event (15-18 September) in Pratoni del Vivaro, Italy, because his ride Calmaro has had “a setback in training”.

Felicity Ward and Regal Bounty will take their place.

Horse Sport Ireland’s acting high performance director for eventing Dag Albert explained: “Unfortunately Joseph’s horse has had a setback in training and so the decision has been made not to take the risk and travel him to Pratoni. He is a young horse and has had an outstanding year and we will save him for future championships.

“We have a great reserve ready to travel, Felicity Ward and Regal Bounty who have been really consistent this year in their performances. This is an exciting opportunity for them to be part of the World Championships squad.”

Joseph and Calmaro finished ninth at Kentucky Three-Day Event this year and fourth at Aachen, so will be a significant loss to the Irish squad.

Felicity, 32, makes her championship debut after she and Regal Bounty finished 15th at their first five-star, Luhmühlen Horse Trials, in June.

The full Irish eventing World Championship squad is:

Susie Berry with 10-year-old gelding Monbeg By DesignOwner: Helen CatonBreeder: Fiona MolloyBreeding: by Pacino, out of Eskerhills Lexis (by Puissance)Groom: Crisy Salmon

Padraig McCarthy with 13-year-old mare Fallulah

Owners: Amanda and Nicholas Boyle, Diane Brunsden, Peter Cattel and rider

Breeder: Michael Norris

Breeding: by Fidertanz, out of Devona (by Di Versace)

Groom: Jess Elliott

Austin O’Connor with 13-year-old gelding Colorado BlueOwners: rider and The Salty SyndicateBreeder: Mellon StudBreeding: by Jaguar Mail, out of Rock Me Baby (by Rock Kind)Groom: Francesca Denning

Felicity Ward with 11-year-old gelding Regal BountyOwner: James O’CallaghanBreeder: Miriam De FeuBreeding: by Orestus VDL, out of Edge Of Reason (by Senang Hati)

Sam Watson with 11-year-old gelding SAP Talisman

Owners: rider’s wife Hannah and mother Julia

Breeder: Rosemary Ponsonby

Breeding: by Puissance out of Ali Row (by All Royal)

Groom: rider’s wife Hannah

Non-travelling reserve:

Michael Ryan with 11-year-old gelding Chinook EclipseOwners: Carol and Tom HenryBreeder: Michael LynchBreeding: by Chinook Eclipse out of Mats Lady

Making eventing safer: new tool to help riders assess their form accurately

Lucy Elder — Tue, 01 Feb 2022 08:26:16 +0000

A HOTLY anticipated new tool to improve cross-country safety is available for riders to use for the first time.

EquiRatings’ Horse Form Index (HFI), developed with the FEI, has now been launched publicly, meaning that riders and owners can use it.

EquiRatings founder Sam Watson told the FEI eventing risk management forum (22 January) that the aim is to give riders another way to help them gauge their performance when planning their next event.

“It is about getting people to look at their performance objectively,” said Sam.

It works by calculating horses’ most recent performances, giving a A++ (current maximum of A at CCI5-L and A+ at CCI4-L, owing to the sample size being too small at these levels) to E assessment grade for each level at three-star and above. This grade is accompanied by a description, from “excellent” to “significantly low (unsuitable for this level of competition)”, to help riders make informed choices.

“In the language we are using, we would like this to become something that people start thinking about – not just saying, ‘Am I qualified’ but ‘What’s my level of form?’”

He added that it will give some people a new objective, which is to improve their rating at the level they are at.

It does not replace minimum eligibility requirements (MERs), but is a way of helping riders understand how prepared they are. The HFI will also be available for officials at competitions, through the FEI entry system, and national federations will be able to view HFI ratings when entering horses.

Development of the HFI, which builds on EquiRatings’ extensive research and previous form indexes, was initially presented at the 2021 FEI eventing risk management forum. The completed index was revealed at this year’s forum and it is readily available for any rider to use on the FEI website.

Sam said he has been using the HFI himself, for a horse he is thinking of taking to Badminton.

“I should have this horse in the C category by the time we go, with one more run, but currently he would be in the D category,” said Sam, adding that the result surprised him. “That has just raised my awareness. I think a lot of this horse – he has been to the European Championships and jumped clear, but it made me think he isn’t as experienced potentially as I was maybe thinking. It just got me thinking that this spring is important, do not take that cross-country for granted, even though you think he is a good cross-country horse, try and get ourselves better prepared and push those ratings up.”

He said getting the wording right has been really important, as that is what turns stats and data into language people can understand, which is what ultimately makes the tool useful.

“When someone is on the fence about making a decision, as they often are [on whether] this horse is ready for the next level or not, they now have an objective tool to help them make the decision,” said Sam.

“We have talked in the past about trainers and it can be a difficult conversation when you’re being employed by an athlete to give that advice.

“They could nearly use this rating as a benchmark to help them have those difficult conversations.”

For more information on how to view your rating, visit: inside.fei.org/fei/disc/eventing/risk-management/hfi

‘It’s best not to get involved with the reins’: Padraig McCarthy seals Ireland’s hike up the leaderboard with speedy Leonidas II

Martha Terry — Sat, 25 Sep 2021 15:33:14 +0000

Ireland is lying in fifth place at the conclusion of the European Eventing Championships cross-country day in Avenches, Switzerland (25 September). The team has pulled up from 11th after dressage with three good clear rounds over this flat and twisting track.

Padraig McCarthy was Ireland’s anchorman with the 17-year-old Leonidas II, who were one of only seven pairs to jump clear inside the 10min 7sec optimum time. This hauled them up from 47th individually to 14th on their dressage score of 33.1.

“I had a really great round – he can sometimes be strong, but he felt very relaxed,” he said.

Padraig was not in fact chasing the time with the horse, who went to the Rio Olympics with Mark Todd.

“Sally [Corscadden, Ireland’s high performance director] said the main thing was to go between the flags and not worry about too many time-faults, but with Leonidas the direct way is often the best; he’s a very fast horse,” said Padraig.

“I tried to keep him as controlled and focused as I could, but he’s quick and he never tires. For me the consideration was never about taking more risk [taking straight routes] but he just doesn’t turn as well.

“He jumps a bit like a deer, but he is normally a very safe horse – the best thing is not to get too involved with the reins! He ran all the way to the end and he will keep going and going.”

Irish pathfinder shows the way at European Eventing Championships cross-country

Ireland’s Sam Watson was the third rider out on the course at the start of the day, riding Ballybolger Talisman, and the first to jump clear. He clocked up 6.8 time-faults on the 10-year-old Puissance gelding.

“His engine and stamina were superb,” Sam said. “We put in a couple more strides in a few places than was the plan, but he always wanted to go through the flags.”

There was one nervous moment, however.

“I had one big scare coming on to the racecourse, as there was a bit of juice on the ground and he nearly went right down on the turn,” Sam explained. “He had pulled a shoe off probably earlier and that just affected the grip. That was a fright but had nothing to do with the fences.”

This result pulled them up from 50th after dressage to 29th overnight.

“It’s like he’s read the cross-country book”

Cathal Daniels was second out for Ireland on LEB Lias Jewel, but had a run-out at Christine’s Corners at fence 16b. Next up was Joseph Murphy, riding as an individual, but while Sam rode his luck with his slip on the flat, Joseph’s horse Cesar V came down enforcing elimination.

As third team rider Clare Abbott headed out on her nine-year-old Irish Sport Horse Jewelent, she was wary of her compatriots’ slip-ups.

“He’s an old horse on young shoulders, it’s like his read the cross-country book,” said Clare, who jumped clear with 5.6 time-faults. “After Joseph having his tip-up I was careful on every crossing. He’s laid-back and you have to poke him along every inch of the way. But wow, what a good boy, he was absolutely brilliant.

“He is the most honest, genuine, ground-covering horse; you never have to touch the reins and he never gives a moment’s trouble.”

This moved the pair up from 31st into the top 20, on a score of 36. Ireland have their work cut out to make the podium tomorrow, however. Britain leads on 69.1, with two fences in hand over Germany. France is lying third, ahead of Switzerland and then Ireland. Ireland are on 109.4, three fences behind the bronze medal position.

‘I let him go’: galloping pathfinders prove the European Championship eventing track is jumpable

Martha Terry — Sat, 25 Sep 2021 10:13:31 +0000

The pathfinders at the European Eventing Championships cross-country phase in Avenches, Switzerland, have shown that the track is jumpable, and the time achievable.

Although the first two riders incurred jumping penalties, Ireland’s Sam Watson came out next and jumped clear a few seconds over the time.

The sixth pair out, Jean-Lou Bigot and the hard-pulling Utrillo Du Halage, laid down the gauntlet for the third-placed French team, finishing seven seconds inside the time on their dressage of 29.5. He even had time to take a long route at the angled fence 6.

“It’s a championships, so for the team, and as I was early to go, I couldn’t take any risks,” said Jean-Lou. “It didn’t take too much extra time, and I started to realise by the third minute that I could make the time. This is a very good galloping horse, so I let him go, and I had time to set up for the jumps.”

Starting out at 11am Swiss time, trailblazer Jordy Wilken and his grey Burry Spirit, from the Netherlands, set the tone as they came home safely, albeit with an early run-out at fence 4C (The Hollow) and 21.6 time-faults. The second pair out, Belgium’s Kris Vervaecke and Guantanamo Van Alsingen, also ran out – at 16b – but the early signs show that the course is jumpable.

European Eventing Championships cross-country: “I had one big scare”

Sam Watson, third out to go for Ireland, put in the first fast round, riding Ballybolger Talisman. They added 6.8 time-faults to their 50th-placed dressage of 33.5 and jumped clear, and an initial 15 for missing a flag at the last water complex was quickly removed. The fourth pair out, Malin Josefsson and Golden Midnight, were even better – indicating the time would be achievable as the top-ranked horses come to the fore. They stopped the clock 13 seconds over for 5.2 time-faults.

“His heart to jump through all the fences is top-class,” said Sam. “His engine and stamina were superb. We put in a few more strides in places than was the plan but he always wanted to go through the flags. I just had one big scare coming on to the racecourse, he slipped –nowhere near a fence – and nearly went right down. He pulled a shoe earlier and that was a frightener.”

Britain’s Mike Etherington-Smith designed the cross-country track at this Swiss racecourse venue. It consists of 40 jumping efforts and 32 fences over a distance of 5,678 metres, to be covered in 10min 7sec to avoid time-penalties.

Germany’s Ingrid Klimke is in the lead after dressage with SAP Hale Bob Old, on a score of 20.2. Ros Canter is just 0.4 behind on her own and Caroline Moore’s reigning world champion Allstar B.

Two Irish riders in the top 20 at European Eventing Championships

Gemma Redrup — Thu, 23 Sep 2021 15:10:10 +0000

The Irish squad got their European Eventing Championships dressage campaign underway in Avenches, Switzerland today (23 September), with individual rider Joseph Murphy their highest placed rider after the first day. Joseph scored 30.8 with The Way Forward syndicate’s Cesar V, for equal 13th place

“I was actually pleased with our test – I probably didn’t get exactly the same feeling as it was getting outside as the ground is a little bit deeper in the main arena,” Joseph explained afterwards. “I made one mistake in the first flying-change and that was very costly, but in general I’m really pleased – he’s a lovely horse and Tracie Robinson has done a great job training the Irish.”

Cathal Daniels, who is on the team, is close behind Joseph in 16th riding Jo Breheny’s 11-year-old mare, LEB Lias Jewel, on a score of 31.1 after their test during day one of the European Eventing Championships dressage phase.

“There was one major mistake in the walk – she was a little bit tense and a little bit stressed in there,” Cathal said. “I think the rest of it was quite well presented and I think she did a very good job.”

Sam Watson, first to go for the Irish team, was pleased with his test on Ballybolger Talisman, even though their score of 33.5 leaves them in 24th after the first day of dressage.

“I’m happy with that, to be honest, because he’s a ‘Covid baby’ in that last week was the first time he’s left Ireland, when he competed in Aachen,” Sam said of the 10-year-old by Puissance. “He’s electric, he’s so blood and he so wants to explode, but he didn’t and I’m really proud of them when they do that, when they kind of hold it together on the big stage. Now I can’t wait to go cross-country, because that’s his forté.”

The Irish team is in sixth place after the first day of competition. The remaining Irish riders, Clare Abbott (Jewelent) and Padraig McCarthy (Leonidas II) will complete their dressage tests tomorrow at 9.37am and 1.15pm (BST) respectively.

‘Like we’ve come out of a washing machine’: top riders’ thoughts on European Eventing Championships cross-country course

Gemma Redrup — Thu, 23 Sep 2021 13:14:55 +0000

Some of the world’s top riders have shared their thoughts on this year’s European Eventing Championships cross-country course, which has been designed by Mike Etherington-Smith.

There are 32 numbered fences and the optimum time is 10min 7sec for the 2021 European Eventing Championships cross-country course in Avenches, Switzerland.

“It is a real championship course and I’m going to have to walk it a lot of times because there’s great potential for getting lost and going the wrong way up strings,” explained Piggy March. “There’s plenty of places to just run off things and it’s very technical. The single fences are all big enough too with a lot of twists and turns, so we have got to be on our A game. For sure it’s not going to be a dressage competition.”

Piggy highlighted fence six (pictured above) as a possible early problem for riders.

“It’s a very big fence on an angle, with a bunch of trees just to the side that can put you off your line if you were to spook – that would be a fence that I will look at quite a lot. I think the time will be tight as it is such a twisty track.”

Izzy Taylor agreed with Piggy, saying “it’s definitely not all going to be based on the dressage”, and warned that riders might be “lulled into a false sense of security” early on, but said that “by the end I think we’re going to feel like we’ve come out of a washing machine – there’s a lot to do out there, a lot, but it’s a very good track.”

Sam Watson felt some riders might make the mistake of thinking Mike Etherington-Smith’s track is softer than it is.

“You might think for the first seven or eight minutes that he’s built a slightly softer championship,” Sam explained. “Then jeez, it turns into a proper championship course in the last two minutes, which I think is so clever. You’ve only got 10 minutes, which is all there is space-wise here, and he’s looped us a good bit which I think will mentally be quite tiring for the horses and will slow us down a little bit.”

Sam highlighted the end of the course as a place where riders could run into trouble.

“To put the questions at the end is much more difficult for horses when they’re not so fresh and I think it’s a very clever course. I think the good ones will fly around and will go inside the time, but I think you have to have a very good horse [to do that].”

Germany’s Christoph Wahler echoed Sam’s sentiments about the layout of the course.

“It is very twisty, but with some very nice fences in the way they’re designed,” he explained. “It won’t ride very soft and easy with regards to all the turns and the changes of direction. It will be a little bit like driving a golf cart.”

Two withdrawals from Irish squad for European Eventing Championships – plus one rider joins an exclusive group

Pippa Roome — Mon, 20 Sep 2021 19:01:20 +0000

Two pairs have been withdrawn from the Irish team for the European Eventing Championships this week in Avenches, Switzerland (23-26 September).

Steven Smith’s ride Galwaybay Echo, owned by June Burgess, has had a “minor setback”.

“After much discussion, we feel the best course of action is not to travel to compete,” said a statement from Smith Brothers Eventing. “All of us, especially Steven, are incredibly disappointed. However the welfare of ‘Thomas’ is our priority and at 13 years old he has many more big days ahead.”

Fred Scala has withdrawn his own and his father Emilio’s Everon Vivendi.

“The good news is that ‘Donald’ is in good shape,” said Fred. “He has picked up a small injury in our final preparations that luckily we found before travelling. His welfare is paramount and there will be plenty more big days for us both in the future. Thanks again for all your support! Donald will see you all again next spring.”

Both riders wished the Irish squad the best of luck at the European Eventing Championships.

Sam Watson with Ballybolger Talisman have been called up to join the squad, which will now consist of five combinations. Four riders will compete on the team and one as an individual.

Sam joins the small group of eventers who are competing at both the Tokyo Olympics and the Europeans in this unusual year. Other riders in this group include Germany’s double Olympic champion Michael Jung, Switzerland’s Robin Godel and Felix Vogg, and Dutch riders Merel Blom and Janneke Boonzaaijer.

European Eventing Championships: Irish team

The Irish squad now consists of…

Clare Abbott with Jewelent, owned by Catherine Abbott, Barbra Allen and Lisa Rosbothm
Cathal Daniels with LEB Lias Jewel, owned by Jo Breheny
Padraig McCarthy with Leonidas II, owned by Diane Brunsden, Peter Cattell and his rider, or Fallulah, owned by Amanda Boyle, Nicholas Boyle, Diane Brunsden, Peter Cattell and her rider (Leonidas has been named as Padraig’s ride on the event definite entries)
Joseph Murphy with Cesar V, owned by The Way Forward Syndicate
Sam Watson with Ballybolger Talisman, owned by his rider and his mother Julia

Riders reflect on Olympic eventing showjumping course for team medals

Becky Murray — Mon, 02 Aug 2021 12:01:24 +0000

The Olympic eventing showjumping course asked plenty of questions from horses and riders at the Tokyo Games – with spooky colourful fences and a tight time allowance, combinations were put to the ultimate test.

The course encouraged forward riding with a 79-second time allowance. A treble combination at fence five put accuracy to the test, while an influential double at fence nine (pictured), which had poles merging from red to yellow, needed positive riding for some combinations.

Ireland’s Sam Watson and Flamenco were one of the pairs to be caught out by the combinations, picking up faults at both.

“We don’t have the same vision as the horses. Whatever he was seeing, it wasn’t quite what I needed it to be,” said Sam, about fence nine.

While the first two fences on the Olympic eventing showjumping course for the team medals were quite straight forward and welcoming to the horses, the other influential obstacles included a big vertical at three, a water tray under a square oxer at four, a bridge wall at fence seven with no ground line, and a treble-bar spread at eight before the combination.

US rider Doug Payne, who picked up four jumping faults with Vandiver, said the course was “cleverly designed” and separated riders.

“You had to decide what’s best for your horse and it made you think all the way round,” he said.

“The triple bar could have been an inside six [strides to it]. I was planning seven but then it got a little shifty so I went a little steady for the eight and thought I had done it early enough that I could press him across it, but he still sat on the back rail a bit.”

New Zealand’s Jesse Campbell jumped clear but picked up 0.4 time-penalties with Diachello. He said the course rode “exactly” how he wanted it to.

“We’ve learnt a lot from going to Kentucky and jumping a really big track on a surface, and when walking some of the distances [today] I thought ‘oh that’s quite long’ but actually, we knew from Kentucky and we’ve been training with Shane Breen at Hickstead, that the distances are actually always going to be a little truer than you think,” he said.

Swedish rider Sara Algotsson Ostholt, who picked up 12 jumping-penalties and 0.8 time with Chicuelo, said the course was “a little challenging” in terms of rideability and that horses needed the ability to shorten and lengthen.

“The technical [side] was a little bit in-between distances and you had to choose,” she said.

‘He loves the game’: Sam Watson and bold buckskin ride an attacking round in Olympic cross-country

Becky Murray — Sun, 01 Aug 2021 00:05:31 +0000

Ireland’s Sam Watson rode a positive round in the Olympic eventing cross-country, but a frangible fence mid-course proved expensive.

Sam and the 11-year-old Flamenco owned by Vahe Bogossian, attacked the course boldly following their “disappointing” score in the dressage of 34.2. But though they proved a confident combination across country, Flamenco activated a frangible device at the oxer before the open corner at fence 14, the Lone Tree Moguls, picking up 11 penalties. The pair also had some time penalties, finishing on a score of 47.3.

Commenting on triggering the device, Sam said the safety devices are there to look after riders.

“I fully approve [of the frangible devices] not just because they do that, but because they make you ride precisely and accurately,” he said.

“It’s the one time I let adrenaline go – there’s the fence, inside line and then I got there just a fraction too early. I barely touched it. If your timing is off, if you rush a little bit, and if you don’t keep your head 100% relaxed, you make mistakes.”

But Sam Watson was delighted with the gelding and his performance in the Olympic eventing cross-country, saying “he loves the game”.

“There’s a couple of places, like the second water, where he took off out of my hands. He loves it. He kept his ears pricked the whole way forward. He just enjoys doing his job the whole way,” said Sam.

“He really wanted to let loose and he did. I’m very, very proud of him, and he’s got so much more to give,” he said, adding he would be privileged to have the ride in Paris 2024.

(Image credit: Peter Nixon)

Tales from Tokyo: ‘I’ve never let numbers hold me back’

(Image credit: Peter Nixon)

‘It’s intense, but horse friendly’: Oliver Townend and others’ first reactions to the Tokyo Olympics cross-country course

(Image credit: Peter Nixon)

‘I’m pleased with my horse but disappointed in the mark’: Sam Watson starts Irish challenge in Tokyo

(Image credit: Peter Nixon)

Tales from Tokyo: ‘I’ve never let numbers hold me back’

Polly Bryan — Sat, 31 Jul 2021 07:29:13 +0000

Irish event rider Sam Watson, currently competing at the Tokyo Olympics, combines his riding career with being the co-founder and chief strategist at EquiRatings – the performance analysis and data company for eventing. So when it comes to an event as huge as the Games, does his in-depth knowledge of the sport play to his advantage, or does he find his head swimming with distracting statistics?

“Sometimes I use it to help me; other times I park it,” he says. “I don’t need to know I’m 20th in the probability of who’s going to win this competition. Sometimes it’s good to believe that today could be the day you hit the top form.

“But although everyone hopes for a medal, you can put too much pressure on yourself. Everyone knows where they are subconsciously, and if you’re coming in here trying to get a personal best, of course it’s going to be disappointing getting a 34.3 when the horse is averaging 30 at the moment,” said Sam, referring to his own performance in the Olympic eventing dressage riding the attractive buckskin gelding Flamenco.

“But that’s championships, and I know [the judges] are probably looking for a higher standard than at home, so I don’t get worried about it and I stay focused on the job. A lot of people would come out of that test and feel downbeat, but I know if I finish [the competition] below 40 I’m going to put a potentially medal winning team score on the board,” said the Irish rider.

“Understanding the sport helps me and I don’t get nervous anymore because I know that mistakes happen in this game – it’s not like the 100m where you’re probably going to perform very close to how you’ve always been performing. This is a game of chance.

“But I have completed every long four-star and five-star that I have done in the past 12 years. Knowing that statistic gives me confidence to think to myself, ‘Sam, what you do in the heat of the moment is good. You are a good team rider, you get round, you get home.’ That’s where it’s good to have some evidence, otherwise you can get here and start questioning yourself.

“I’ve never let numbers hold me back. But I do let them sometimes prop me up if I’m ever doubting myself.”

‘It’s intense, but horse friendly’: Oliver Townend and others’ first reactions to the Tokyo Olympics cross-country course

Pippa Roome — Fri, 30 Jul 2021 03:38:18 +0000

Riders are in agreement that Derek di Grazia has done a great job as designer for the Tokyo Olympics cross-country course and predict that it will provide a suitable challenge for the competition.

“The course is a ‘four and a half star’ and is very intense – you’re always on the climb or the camber or in the water or in a combination,” said Oliver Townend, who will be the first rider out for the British team.

“But the questions are extremely fair and it’s very horse friendly. If you took each fence individually there wouldn’t be too many problems, but when you add the heat, the terrain, the Olympic pressure and then speed on top of that, it’s going to cause a lot of trouble and it’s going to be very difficult to get the time.”

Oliver has ridden tracks put together by Derek di Grazia several times at Kentucky Three-Day Event.

He added: “Derek is a horseman, which is a very nice start to being a course-designer. I think he’s a very special course-designer, a very talented man at the job.

“For me, this is a very different track to Kentucky, but it still has the feel that he wants the horses to see where they are going. There are no tricks, which you can get quite a lot in the modern day sport with people trying to catch horses. He doesn’t want to catch the horses out. He builds very see-able questions and lets speed and terrain do the job for him.”

US rider Doug Payne echoed Oliver’s thoughts, saying that horses have “a really good shot to try and assess what’s being asked” and that Derek has done an excellent job at making the course as flowing as possible in the tight space available.

He also pointed out that in a number of places, the time difference between routes is minimal, so it’s about trying to find a smooth flowing line for your horse.

Finally, talking about the time, Doug said: “The first and last minute are tough to make up any sort of time, but I think in the middle there’s a couple of spots where you’re going to have to go forward if you want to be close to the time.”

Tokyo Olympics cross-country course: ‘Perfect for this championship’

Alex Hua Tian, who will be followed by two less experienced riders in the Chinese team, commented: “I think it’s a cleverly designed, balanced course which is perfect for this championship. The time will be really tight, which will put a lot of pressure on the traditional nations.

“I think going quickly around that track, the course is intense enough that some superstars will make a mistake in the heat of the moment. But there are enough long ways round that are not actually too time consuming, and not too tiring, for the greener nations like us to take and have a safe strategy for the team cross-country plan.”

Irish rider Sam Watson said: “I think it’s clever – you walk it and you go, that’s a very fair course, but you’ve got to remember what the format is. The team that makes the least mistakes wins medals here, and he’s given us plenty of opportunity to make mistakes.

“There are not many one-stride distances at all and very few two-stride distances, so not many fences where you can just jump in and then momentum takes you through. You’ve got to jump in and either hold your line or attack the line. You’ve got to make choices, so when you’re doing that over a lot of combinations, you could find people sometimes make the wrong decision and get into trouble.

(Image credit: creditUnknown)

Sam picked out fence 14abcd, the Lone Tree Moguls (above), as an example of somewhere on the Tokyo Olympics cross-country course where riders will need to know plan A and plan B, saying: “The oxer is a big fence and you could go on quite an attacking five strides or a little bit quieter on six. You just don’t know how they’re going to jump that big oxer, if they’re going to land a little bit steep. Derek has given us decisions everywhere.”

Sam also mentioned fence 23abcd, the Mount Fuji Water (pictured, top): “The last water’s got plenty jumping in it as well. You want to have a lot of horse left underneath you.”

Vittoria Panizzon, first out for the Italian team, mentioned that the warm-up is in quite a different area to the start.

She said: “The warm-up is down the bottom of the hill and then you go right up the top of the hill to set off so the horses won’t have seen what’s going on, what environment they’re in. It’s going be a bit of a surprise, I think, when you suddenly set off and you even set off uphill so all they can see when you get up there is the start.

“It perhaps wouldn’t be the biggest course many people have done, but the situation will make it far more challenging than it could look at first. As well as the warm-up, it’s very hard to get your bearings because it’s so twisty. I think the horses need have a lot of trust in the rider, because they’re not always going to be sure where they’re going, what’s happening.”

‘I’m pleased with my horse but disappointed in the mark’: Sam Watson starts Irish challenge in Tokyo

Gemma Redrup — Fri, 30 Jul 2021 01:33:54 +0000

Sam Watson got Ireland out of the starting blocks in the Olympic eventing dressage phase at the Tokyo Games today (30 July).

Riding Flamenco, an 11-year-old owned by Vahe Bogossian, Sam scored 34.2, which puts them into 11th place at this early stage of the competition.

“I was actually pleased with him – I’m disappointed with the mark because it can be better, but I think I maybe we went too safe and conservative,” Sam said after his test. “We probably were not bold enough but his flat work has always been on a bit of an edge and sometimes I’ve had to manage him, relax him and get him more soft and supple and I think we had a really good foundation and basics there today, but we made a couple of mistakes, and you can’t miss a flying change in the Olympic Games, so that’s annoying and that’s on me. I was actually happy with the horse but disappointed with the mark and I can always do better.”

Meanwhile, Jonelle Price got the New Zealand team off to a good start in the Olympic eventing dressage riding Grovine De Reve. The 13-year-old, owned by Therese Miller and who was formerly ridden by Jonelle’s fellow countryman, Dan Jocelyn, scored a creditable 30.7. This mark is enough to put them into eighth place at this point in the competition.

“I’m happy as he’s isn’t the fanciest horse in this phase and really, for him to be scoring any better than the score we got, the test needs to be 120% of a clear round, and it wasn’t,” Jonelle explained afterwards. “It was blooming close to a clear round but every single tiny small detail has to be perfect and there was just one or two little things, which kept us a bit shy of perfect.

“He got a little scrabbled in the first step of the rein-back and then I think one of the changes was a good change but he perhaps lost a little rhythm on the diagonal line – he doesn’t have a lot of high marks and so we need to be very, very consistent across the board. It only takes a couple of sixes to pull the score down.”

Meet the buckskin heading to Tokyo: ‘We never knew where his ceiling would be’

Pippa Roome — Sat, 03 Jul 2021 15:24:31 +0000

When you think of an Olympic eventer, what do you think of? A regal bay? An elegant grey, perhaps? A buckskin probably isn’t the first thing to come to most people’s minds, but the unusually coloured Tullabeg Flamenco will be heading out to the Tokyo Games, having been selected for the Irish team with Sam Watson.

Flamenco was bred by Nicholas Cousins and shares his colour with his sire, Nicholas’s Tullabeg Fusion. Sam rides “Danny” for owner Vahe Bogossian, whose son David first asked him to have a go with the horse.

“David ran an event in Ireland and I went and thanked them after their first event and said they’d done a great job,” he remembers. “That probably led to him picking up the phone to me a couple of years later. Initially, we never knew where is ceiling was going to be.”

As a first aim, Sam targeted the seven-year-old World Championships, where the horse finished just one second over the time.

“Then we decided to try the Blenheim Horse Trials eight- and nine-year-old championships and see how he handled short format four-star,” says Sam. “He was getting fitter and stronger and handling it well.”

When Tullabeg Flamenco finished on his dressage score at both his CCI4*-Ls, finishing seventh at Tattersalls and 10th at Boekelo in 2018, Sam knew he probably had a championship horse.

He says: “Like a lot of old-fashioned horses, Danny’s 99% heart and brains and just puts everything into all his training sessions and all his competitions. He’s a great warrior like that. He’s impressive looking, can do a pretty nice test and has a big gallop. People expect him to be pony height and he’s not – he’s 17hh.”

Sam says Danny was unlucky in 2019 when he was in line for a podium place in the Event Rider Masters at Chatsworth and lost it when his rider “messed up line” and then it was a similar story at the European Championships in Luhmühlen.

“So many people had problems at the bird in the water – I tried to be clever and turn later and I just couldn’t do it. It was completely my mistake – I circled, he never ran out – and he was exceptional around there,” he says.

The pair have had three top six places at four-star short since then, including a second at Ballindenisk when they finished on their 26.9 dressage.

“If I can do that same level of test again, it’s all there,” says Sam. ”He’s got a championships under his belt and a five-star [12th at Luhmühlen 2019] so all the bits of the puzzler are there. We’ve just got to put it all together on a big stage, which is hopefully Tokyo.”

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Sam says Danny has a big fan club.

He says: “It’s his personality as well as his colour – he does smile at everybody and you can go up and talk to him. He has a lovely temperament. Nine times out of 10 anyone in the family could ride him, except maybe the first event of the year when he can be a bit fresh. There are days he knows he’s an athlete and he’s got to perform – but you want that as well.”

Horse & Hound magazine, out every Thursday, is packed with all the latest news and reports, as well as interviews, specials, nostalgia, vet and training advice. Find out more about getting the magazine delivered to your door every week.

Irish Olympic eventing squad named for Tokyo

Lucy Elder — Tue, 22 Jun 2021 14:40:05 +0000

The list of nominated entries for the Olympic eventing team due to represent Ireland at the Tokyo Olympics, plus the alternate horse and rider and reserve combination, have been announced.

The list of five, which comprises of the three nominated combinations for the team, an alternate and a reserve, was put forward by Horse Sport Ireland’s eventing high performance director Sally Corscadden.

The full list of nominated horse and rider combinations for the Irish Olympic eventing squad is as follows:

Cathal Daniels, with Margaret Kinsella’s 14-year-old mare Rioghan Rua (breeder: Margaret Kinsella)
Sarah Ennis, with Breda Kennedy’s 12-year-old with gelding Horseware Woodcourt Garrison (breeder: Patrick J Kearns)
Sam Watson, with Vahe Bogossian’s 11-year-old gelding Tullabeg Flamenco (breeder: Nicholas Cousins)
Alternate combination – Austin O’Connor, with his own and the Salty Syndicate’s 11-year-old gelding Colorado Blue (breeder: Mellon Stud)
Reserve combination– Joseph Murphy, with the Way Forward Syndicate’s Cesar V (breeder: Elke & Robert Vietor)

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The names have been submitted to be considered for selection by the Olympic Federation of Ireland and the official selection of horses and riders for Tokyo will be made by this “in the coming days”.

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‘I’d ride Master Craftsman at Burghley…’: top riders select their fantasy eventing competition set-ups H&H Plus

Pippa Roome — Fri, 12 Mar 2021 09:00:27 +0000

Take six top riders and ask what their fantasy competition would be – their horse, the venue, their team-mates and who joins them on the podium. Pippa Roome delves into the world of imaginary eventing

William Fox-Pitt, winner of 14 five-stars and 20 world, Olympic and European medals

“I’m limited in what horses I can ride because of my height, but I remember admiring a horse called Mins Lincoln with Lucinda Green. He was fourth at Bramham 1988 but never made it to the top – I don’t think he stayed sound.

“So the horse I’d like to ride would be Master Craftsman. Ginny Elliot taught him to do everything well and he had a very athletic demeanour; he could really gallop, jump and move. He was a gear up on the likes of Priceless and Night Cap – they were beautifully trained, but he started off a much smarter individual.

“People often choose horses like Murphy Himself, but I like horses that chip in and are clever. I’d have gone green riding the super-bold Murphy!

“I’d like to ride Master Craftsman at Burghley – he was European champion there in 1989. At Badminton you might not have noticed what a special horse he was, whereas on that terrain, he’d have shown his class. Mike Tucker designed Burghley in 1997 and 2001 and I’d like to ride round one of his courses.

“My fantasy team is a big one – you need some reserves, horses always go lame! I’m lucky enough to have ridden on teams with the likes of Ian Stark and Ginny. And of course I had great years with Leslie Law – we shared many a room at my early Olympics – and Jeanette Brakewell. Amazing cross-country riding from Jeanette and later Nicola Wilson paved the way for all of us.

“If I must narrow it down, I have to be allowed a team of five, like the old Olympic format. So I’ll go for Pippa Funnell on Primmore’s Pride, Tina Cook on Miners Frolic, Zara Phillips on Toytown and Piggy March on Brookfield Inocent.

“The podium would all be British. We’d win team gold then, but from a personal point of view I’d have Pippa and Piggy behind me because I’d need to prove to myself I could actually beat them when they put in good performances, not because they’d fallen off or their horse had gone lame. They’d perform well – but not well enough!”

Sam Watson, world team silver medallist and co-founder of data analytics company EquiRatings

“Galan De Sauvagère was my first crush and so remains first choice as my ride. He was a record-breaking double European champion with Nicolas Touzaint and his finishing scores translate to sub-20s these days. But more importantly, he was just a beautiful and striking athlete.

“I’d like to ride round Fontainebleau, where I did my first senior championship in 2009. Pierre Michelet would make it tricky, the course is twisty and feels fast to ride, plus you have the French crowds for some wild atmosphere. The galloping tracks don’t play to my strengths so I prefer what others might describe as feeling like they’re in a tumble dryer.

“For my team, I’d bring the 2018 Irish World Equestrian Games team – Padraig McCarthy, Cathal Daniels and Sarah Ennis. I’m not just choosing them because of that one result – they’re all superb mentally and skilful, but we have a lot of fun behind the scenes, too.

“The podium is easy. Germany and Great Britain both underperform because it’s not serious enough. The USA get themselves in a complete state of confusion as they’ve misinterpreted the ‘fantasy’ bit. It’s a championship, so France could go either way, but fortunately for us they were more London than Rio and crashed spectacularly. The Aussies were leading going into showjumping but collectively kicked a lot showjumps and dropped to bronze.

“Mark Todd helps the Prices to a silver medal; Jonelle got very emotional in the press conference – it’s fantasy, we know that would never actually happen! We win, obviously.

“Toddy gets individual silver – he made the effort to come back after I forced him into his second retirement when beating him at Camphire! Ballaghmor Class takes bronze. A top-class horse and this dispels any nonsense about Oliver Townend not being a championship rider.”

(Image credit: creditUnknown)

Pippa Funnell, Rolex Grand Slam winner

“I’d like to ride Michael Jung’s La Biosthetique-Sam FBW because he looks so well trained. I’d love to sit on him and say, ‘Gosh, isn’t this easy’ – but it probably wouldn’t be! I wouldn’t want the pressure, really.

“I’d ride him at any Olympic Games or Badminton or Burghley. I’m not fussy. I’d ride him round a BE100 just to be able to sit on him!

“I’d like to have Michael as a team-mate but he can’t ride Sam. Maybe he could ride one of mine? If he makes them go like Sam, I’m not bothered which one he rides.

“I’d also pick my old mates Tina Cook and William Fox-Pitt. William could ride Primmore’s Pride or Supreme Rock – I always said when he had Tamarillo, ‘Why am I riding the big ones and you’re riding the little ones?’ Let’s put Tina on something that’s won loads… Priceless. We’d put the world to rights.

“I’d have Michael and Mark Todd behind me on the podium. It would be nice to beat the only two double Olympic individual gold medallists since World War II. And I’ll be on Sam, so he’ll then have won three individual Olympic golds if we make it an Olympics.”

Ian Stark, three-time Badminton winner and 1991 European champion

“I always wanted to ride Cornishman V – he just had such star quality. And the fact he won European and world individual golds with Mary Low [née Gordon-Watson] and Olympic team gold with Richard Meade proves he could cope with different riders.

“I won Bramham four times, so I’ll say a World Championships there. Frank Weldon can be course-designer – he was a confident, arrogant gentleman who I took to and my hero in more ways than just as a designer.

“I would have The Queen on my team, riding her home-bred Columbus, who won Badminton with Mark Phillips. She’s such an incredible horsewoman, knowledgeable in every aspect of horses, and I think she’d probably be very competitive.

“I’d also have three-time Badminton winner Sheila Willcox. When I was about 18, I applied for a job with Sheila advertised in H&H and I didn’t get it. Sheila was probably a control freak, in the same way many of us competing at top level are, and had strong opinions – I might not have got on with her as an employee, but she was an exceptional competitor. I’d put her on Karen Dixon’s Get Smart.

“Then we’d have another gentleman to even it up: Richard Meade. Richard and I were both in the running for Los Angeles in 1984 and we were having a drink before a fundraising ball when ‘Tiddles’ [Richard’s wife] said to Richard, ‘If Ian’s a rising star, that makes you the setting sun.’ ºRichard was not terribly amused and when his son Harry got on his first team, I wrote to Tiddles and I said, ‘I’m the setting sun and Harry’s the rising star.’

“I’d love to put Richard on Lorna Clarke’s coloured horse Popadom, who won Burghley. He’d have to ride in a different way but he was brilliant on other people’s horses.

“The Queen would finish second – it would be the only time I’d be ahead of the Queen. Richard and Sheila would be on equal scores for third, with time the decider between Get Smart the thoroughbred, and Popadom the coloured horse. You work it out!”

Tom McEwen, world gold medallist and winner of Pau five-star in 2019

“I absolutely love Tina Cook’s current championship horse, Billy The Red. He’s light on his feet and well balanced and Tina produces all her horses incredibly.

“I’d love to have a go on him round Burghley. I haven’t had that many chances to ride there and he has so much scope and balance that he’d eat it up. The last Burghley in 2019 was quite chaotic on cross-country day but I’d happily ride him there any year.

“For my team, I’d like the group of riders we had at Mark Todd’s property, Badgerstown, one year, though I’d put them on their top horses of all time – Mark Todd on Charisma, Ludwig Svennerstål on Shamwari 4 and Clarke Johnstone on Balmoral Sensation. We probably wouldn’t win anything but we’d have a lot of fun.

“I’d have Lucinda Green and Andrew Nicholson behind me on the podium, two phenomenal riders. We went on holidays with Lucinda and her children Lissa and Freddie as kids, so although I don’t remember Lucinda riding, she’s such an idol she always made an impression on me. I remember watching Andrew year after year, being so close to winning Badminton and then finally winning in 2017. To beat Andrew is always impressive.”

Ginny Elliot, winner of eight British five-stars and three-time European champion

“I would like to ride Michael Jung’s La Biosthetique-Sam FBW because he reminds me so much of Priceless. He has the same attitude, height, basic shape, even similar movement. I’d like to go back to my first Olympics in Los Angeles in 1984 – it was so daunting and there was huge expectation. But perhaps the pressure was a bit too great, so I’ll pick Burghley in 1989, where Mark Phillips built the most incredible course for the European Championships. It kept us all kicking madly and furiously.

“I’ve appreciated and enjoyed everyone I’ve been lucky enough to be on a team with and I don’t want to fall out with anyone by leaving them out!

“I’ll take Ian Stark on Glenburnie, because he makes me laugh a lot, he’s gutsy and so reliable. Lorna Clarke – on Myross, her 1986 world individual bronze medallist – also makes me laugh and she’s very down to earth and practical. Lucinda Green always rides amazingly across country and she’d partner Regal Realm.

“If I was picking a team from today’s competitors I’d choose Ros Canter on Allstar B, Piggy March on Vanir Kamira and either Tom McEwen on Toledo De Kerser or Oliver Townend on Ballaghmor Class.

“I’d like Malcolm Wallace as our chef d’équipe and Hugh Thomas as the organiser!

“Germany would come second because their dressage is so strong and France third. Lorna and Lucinda would join me on the individual podium. I’d like Ian up there but there isn’t room for him… he can be fourth! It’s a difficult decision, but us chicks have to stick together.”

Also published in H&H 11 March 2021

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How using numbers could improve eventing safety H&H Plus

Lucy Elder — Fri, 29 Jan 2021 22:35:56 +0000

The 2021 FEI online eventing risk management seminar covered a wide variety of topics including use of statistics to improve safety. H&H finds out more

EVENTING is closer than ever to boiling down risk to quantifiable numbers, to help riders understand the likelihood of jumping clear and shoulder the responsibility of their choices.

Equestrian data analysts EquiRatings presented the horse form index (HFI) at the 2021 FEI online eventing risk management seminar (23 January).

The HFI is a move away from isolated good results and looks at the overall quality of a horse’s performance, in an enhanced way to the EquiRatings quality index.

“We want to be able to say ‘what is the overall quality of this horse’s performance looking like?’” said founder and director Sam Watson, adding that the aim is for this to be a tool to give clear information about how a horse is performing, to help people make better decisions.

“The MERs [minimum eligibility requirements] and qualifications are sometimes misinterpreted by people as thinking ‘oh, well now I’m ready to move up”. As a governing body we are trying to say ‘look, we have a minimum level but we want you guys to be making the decision as to whether you need to do twice or three times as many [events] — you have to make that decision yourselves’.

“That will hopefully put more responsibility on the riders, to manage that quality of performance, that’s been our objective really since we started and this is a refined version that we think is going to be much more user-friendly going forward.”

Sam added that the index will use rolling results data, so one bad day will not matter as it is about the balance.

“It’s important this goes alongside a qualification system as until a horse is performing poorly more than it is performing well, this number doesn’t really come into play for recommending whether they should be at a level or not,” he said. “The qualification system needs to be there so we now know you have enough experience and alongside that we have a number that says ‘are you comfortable?’ did it take you 10 attempts to get MERs or just two?”

The aim is to present the information in a way that allows people to see how they measure against the statistics. For example, if their results with a horse mean they are more likely to jump clear or have a fall at a certain level of event, and where they sit on that scale.

Fellow EquiRatings founder and director Diarmuid Byrne said: “Every year and every country we’ve been to, one of the critical areas we’ve talked about is rider and owner responsibility as it’s such a critical part of risk management.

“Because it is so intangible it’s difficult to progress, to know what it means, so how do we create something that gives the responsibility to all the riders and some of the owners?

“You’re not trying to make detailed predictions, we’re absolutely not going to be able to produce a list of horses at a competition and say ‘these people will fall’, it doesn’t work like that.

“What we can do is say ‘there have been other riders who have had similar outcomes to you, and this is how they’ve performed at this level of the sport’. That is what we hope will make rider responsibility real. So if they do consider making that step up perhaps without the experience, that’s the first time we can really say: ‘that’s on you’.”

The presentation indicated there is scope for the HFI to be incorporated into the FEI rules from 2023, which may restrict certain horses with MERs but who, statistics show, are at higher risk of falls, from competing at certain events.

FEI risk management steering group chairman Geoff Sinclair stressed that no decisions have been made on that yet.

EquiRatings also looked into the validity period of MERs for horses and found there is little difference between the risk statistics of those who have had an FEI MER within 90 days and 18 months. But after that, the risk increases.

“If we’ve not seen a horse at an FEI competition, or they’ve not got an MER in FEI competition in the last 18 months and they are going to four- or five-star competitions, that’s when we start to see a significant jump [into higher fall rates],” said Sam.

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Pippa Roome — Fri, 01 Jan 2021 11:11:33 +0000

EquiRatings figures show that dressage scores reached a record this year in international eventing. H&H spoke to riders and number-crunchers to find out what this means...

DRESSAGE scores in eventing are improving, but extra time to focus on flatwork during lockdown did not cause an outsize drop in 2020.

Data analytics company EquiRatings reports the average international eventing dressage score has fallen from 38.6 in 2008 to 34.6 – a new record – in 2020. But the decrease for 2020 is “on trend” with previous years, according to EquiRatings co-founder Diarmuid Byrne.

Scores are falling at all levels and across the range of ability. This means competitors are still split by a similar spread of penalties, so the dressage has not become more influential in individual events.

But EquiRatings co-founder and world team silver medallist Sam Watson told H&H the figures raise questions about eventing’s direction, particularly when coupled with fewer horses making the time across country at five-star level.

“There is great benefit available by improving your dressage, but you can’t do better than go clear inside the time in the other phases,” explained Sam, pondering whether the ratio of influence of the phases is correct.

“Progression and evolution of skills is natural – we’ve seen that in many sports. The question is how we achieve it in showjumping and cross-country.”

Sam believes faster cross-country speeds at lower levels might help ensure horses who will excel at five-star are also rewarded through the grades.

“If only the dressage improves, there are unintended consequences,” he said. “For example, horse types have changed and the modern event horse struggles with undulating, testing courses such as Burghley. We could end up dulling down eventing’s unique selling point.”

(Image credit: creditUnknown)

Chinese Olympic rider Alex Hua Tian (pictured) questioned whether riders’ abilities in the showjumping and cross-country have also improved while courses have gradually increased in technicality.

“I think the current balance of phases is right for the type of horse that we are currently producing – the best judge is the quality of sport and the recent five-stars have been incredible,” he told H&H.

Alex believes faster cross-country at the lower levels should be explored, but with caution: “Sam is right that we should be producing horses that can excel at the higher levels in terms of endurance, but at lower levels the sport has to cater for juniors and one-horse amateurs – do we want to encourage riders who may be riding one cross-country round a month to go faster?”

Five-star eventing dressage judge Sue Baxter said the benefits of having extra time to work on correct basics in 2020 should be seen in 2021.

“Developing topline strength, increased flexibility and balance should improve agility in all phases, making for safer cross-country rounds,” she told H&H. “The four-penalty dressage improvement from 2008 to 2020 only equates to one showjumping rail.

“When the dressage leader jumps double clear it doesn’t make it a dressage competition, they deserve to win.

“At the higher levels, more mistakes in the jumping phases create more changes to the leaderboard. At lower levels, increasing the cross-country speed for immature horses and amateur riders who are learning doesn’t make sense on safety or welfare grounds.”

Top stallion put down aged 32: ‘He was part of the family’

Pippa Roome — Sat, 24 Oct 2020 15:04:05 +0000

Top stallion Puissance was put down on Saturday 10 October, aged 32.

The son of Imperius was the sire of many good event horses including Horseware Ardagh Highlight, a world team silver medallist in 2018 under Sam Watson, two more of Sam’s championship horses in Horseware Lukeswell and Horseware Bushman, and Francis Whittington’s successful five-star campaigner Sir Percival III.

“We’ve been keeping a close eye on him and keeping him as healthy as we could. But when the vets came they said things were starting to shut down on him and he was starting to suffer, so to be fair to the horse, his time was up,” said Michael Hutchinson, who stood the stallion at Ballyquirke Stud, Co Kilkenny, and knew him for 28 years.

“He was part of the family and you grow fond of a horse – you wouldn’t have them around that long unless you were fond of them. Your heart stops for a second every time you go to the stables – he’d been there so long you expect him to be there. But that’s the way life is and it was remarkable to be the age he was, without any health problems for as long as we’d had him, 28 years. He was very sound.

“He was a good old servant to me all his life, both as a jumper and through the horses he bred.”

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Puissance competed as a showjumper at national grand prix level with Michael, retiring to stud at the age of 12.

His frozen semen is still available to breeders and Michael also stands Puissance’s son, Imperial Tiger, who is a full brother to Horseware Ardagh Highlight and Horseware Lukeswell, as well as several other successful event horses and showjumpers.

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How racing and eventing training techniques can benefit each other H&H Plus

Catherine Austen — Mon, 01 Jun 2020 08:00:53 +0000

Each equestrian sport can benefit from the specialist expertise of another. Catherine Austen investigates the advantages of interaction between eventing and racing

If you placed racing and eventing in a Venn diagram, there would be some obvious shared characteristics: adrenaline, physical risk, equine athleticism. But the sports, despite descending from a shared heritage, are often poles apart – and that distance is increasing. Sam Watson, the Irish international event rider and co-founder of data company EquiRatings, thinks they would both benefit from learning from the other.

He is in a position to judge; not only does his work with EquiRatings mean that he looks at equestrianism, in all its forms, in an analytical way, but he is also a big racing fan and has worked with horses – and riders – at some of the biggest yards in Ireland.

“Look at the improvement in performance in human athletics in the past few decades, and then at horse race times, which have stayed fairly static,” Sam says.

“Some people believe that racehorses have evolved as far as they can; I don’t think so. Human athletics has placed significant emphasis on strength and conditioning – racing hasn’t, really, and that’s where I think improvement in that sport could come from.”

Something racing does brilliantly, he says, is getting horses fit, maintaining that fitness and managing performance, using stress and rest – knowing when to push and when to back off – and eventing could learn a lot from the way trainers do that.

“But what equestrian sports do really well is making horses strong and symmetrical, which gives them straightness, which makes them powerful and effective. Every day I watch races in which horses are hanging in a finish; if they were straighter through their bodies, they wouldn’t do that. I don’t think a lot of racehorses are as strong and supple as they could be.”

The intrinsic difference is that eventers train their horses from the saddle, and trainers (usually) from the ground. They have many more horses in their charge, and employ staff to exercise and work them. No one is saying that staff within the racing industry can’t ride – many of them are outstanding horsemen – but the skills generally required are different to those developed by people who event.

From 2015 to 2017 Sam coached the multiple champion National Hunt trainer Willie Mullins’ staff in flatwork.

“I was terrified the first time I turned up at Closutton [Willie’s yard in Co Carlow],” remembers Sam. “It was Willie’s idea, spurred on by his wife Jackie, who used to be an event rider. There were 40 horses cantering round a big sand arena. I asked which of them were going to be doing flatwork. He said all of them! Imagine teaching 40 people on 40 horses. Your communication has to be very clear and direct.

“We did 45-minute sessions, and I needed to keep it simple and target what matters – symmetry. Most horses will lean out through one shoulder or another, which is what makes them stronger on one rein than the other. If you can train people to be aware of that, it’s a good start.”

He praises the quality of rider Willie employs, particularly those who ride his top horses.

“It’s very notable – they are skilled horsemen,” Sam says. “And to give Willie credit, he really champions them.”

Sam worked on the riders’ seats and balance, making sure they weren’t sitting as though they were in a chair and making the horse beneath them hollow.

“And they know how to keep a horse on the bridle and connected in canter, so it was about getting them to do it in walk and trot as well,” he adds.

Riding skills

Ben Pauling trains National Hunt horses in the Cotswolds and grew up doing Pony Club, eventing and hunting.

“I’m a stickler for making sure horses are ridden properly,” he says. “Every day, our horses go into the outdoor school and are walked and then trotted on either rein to check soundness and to see how they are moving. Some horses in racing aren’t the best movers – that’s much more important in eventing than it is in racing – but I want to see that they are moving as well as they can. Ours never slop along with their heads on the floor. The second a horse of ours isn’t moving well, we’d want to find out why.”

He emphasises the difference in the generally required riding skills, though.

“Judgement of pace and the ability to hold very strong horses are important in racing – a lot of people who work in eventing wouldn’t be able to do that – but my riders, good as they are, would struggle to keep a horse in what is considered a correct outline,” he says.

He did bring in eventer Charlotte Agnew a few years ago to work with his staff on flatwork.

“For some of the older staff, she may as well have been talking Japanese,” he admits. “They didn’t get it. Now we have younger people who want to improve – they are very able to ride, but aren’t educated in that manner.

“The racing schools do an amazing job to turn out good staff in nine weeks, but there isn’t time to teach them the horsemanship skills you learn from Pony Clubbing and hunting, riding from your leg to your hand.

“That’s down to us [as trainers], I suppose, but time is a major factor, and it’s probably a dream, not reality.”

He believes strongly in the benefits of flatwork, however, and he and jockey Nico de Boinville, considered an outstanding and educated horseman, do polework and gridwork with the horses every Monday morning.

“And I’ve been sending horses to [local eventers] Lucy Jackson and Laura Collett a lot this season to get them to use themselves better,” he says.

He gives the example of a horse called The Macon Lugnatic, who won his bumper at Newbury in January 2019.

“He schooled beautifully over hurdles at home, but in his first race over them in December he kept diving right and got very low at them. We got his back looked at, but it turned out to be a problem in his shoulder. Lucy did a huge amount of flatwork with him and got him supple and straight, and he has since won both of his races over hurdles very nicely,” says Ben.

“But you can’t ignore the fact that plenty of trainers do none of that, and their horses jump brilliantly and win a lot of races.”

Sam often has racehorses sent to him for schooling.

“Often I get a horse which has run and shown a lot of potential, but possibly didn’t see out its race for a physical reason,” he says. “And I’ve had some very nice unraced ones.”

He is discreet about names, but he has worked with some very famous horses.

“Of the top 10 equine athletes I have worked with, eight have been racehorses and two have been event horses,” he says. “Sizing John came to us, for example, the summer after his Cheltenham Gold Cup win for Jessie Harrington. A friend from the UK saw me riding him in the school and thought I had a new secret eventing weapon – he’s gorgeous, a beautiful mover and has a great attitude. He really wanted to please.”

The newer generation

What about the other side of the coin? “I do think a lot of eventers, particularly the newer generation, don’t work horses enough early enough in their careers,” Sam says. “I’m not saying we need to run our two-year-olds flat-out over a mile, but a lot of sport horses aren’t broken in until they are four. Yes, usually their bodies are pristine, but we also need them to be real athletes, and ‘stress’ shouldn’t be seen as a bad word.”

If people saw Sam’s three- and four-year-olds, he says they would probably think he was pre-training point-to-pointers, not starting event horses.

“I want them to go forwards,” he says. “Heart and lung and aerobic fitness is important at this time; strengthening comes later and keeps developing all the way through a horse’s life.”

Load needs to be considered when riding very young horses – after all, the people who break in Flat yearlings and who ride two-year-olds are very light – but he thinks that simple work at an early stage helps condition their bodies and lay the foundations for fitness.

It doesn’t even need a rider in the saddle.

Sam says: “Loose-jumping horses as three-year-olds can be great, but not necessarily the type you see at sales, where they make a high, big shape over a big oxer. I like little fences and bits of gradient, where they get their footwork and coordination sorted out – think of kids playing football – and it is good for their lungs to have a bit of a blow.

“Longevity in a horse’s career is a great part of eventing and I am not advocating that we ‘use’ our horses early so there is less in the tank later on, but by doing a little bit more, earlier, they will be sounder for longer and it will be easier to get them properly fit. Take Andrew Nicholson – a high proportion of his horses make it to five-star, and people need to look at why that is.

“You can do so much in eventing without having a horse that fit, and I think that’s the case for a lot of people who don’t do long-format three-day eventing. Be careful with that – don’t leave it too late to get a horse to have a proper blow and to extend his stride.”

Perhaps, in this time of a forced break from both very busy sports, a few participants may have the time – and the inclination – to study what the sports around them excel at and use those traits to their advantage.

Henrietta Knight’s view…

As a former top-level event rider and British eventing team selector, as well as a highly successful National Hunt trainer, Henrietta Knight is very well placed to compare eventing and racing.

She says: “I have always taught young racehorses to carry themselves properly and to go in a balanced way. Topline is very important; all the power comes from behind and they need muscle on either side of their spines.

“Trainer Aidan O’Brien does a tremendous amount of work in the early part of the year using bungees and running reins to make his [Flat] horses use themselves and develop topline.

“But there’s no point making it too complicated. If a horse is comfortable and going in a nice outline, you’re halfway there. Racehorses don’t need to be able to canter a 10m circle.

“So many event horses aren’t fit enough now, and I’ve seen some terrible riding and unfit riders. In both sports riders lack balance; in eventing they never ride without stirrups and rely on their hands, while in the racing world they perch on top and bump about.

“In terms of times of races not having improved, I think that is probably down to poorer, overraced surfaces on racecourses, but I think the standard of competition now is as high as it has ever been.”

Ref Horse & Hound; 28 May 2020

Meet the beautiful stallion whose brother is a silver medallist — and their woolly, adorable veteran sire

Pippa Roome — Thu, 14 Mar 2019 12:24:46 +0000

Deep in Co Kilkenny, Michael Hutchinson runs a small stud which houses a veteran powerhouse of Irish eventing breeding.

The grand old man of Ballyquirke Stud is Puissance, the 31-year-old son of the thoroughbred Imperius. His progeny include Sam Watson’s first championship mount Horseware Bushman, Michael Ryan’s perennial top-level campaigner Old Road and Francis Whittington’s successful Sir Percival.

Alongside him, his son also stands at the stud. Imperial Tiger is a full brother to the world team silver medallist Horseware Ardagh Highlight — ridden by Sam Watson — and several other successful eventers.

H&H visited Puissance and Imperial Tiger at home…

Michael Hutchinson Tues 15 January 2019Puissance and Michael HutchinsonPhoto.carolinenorris.iefor Horse and Hound (Image credit: www.carolinenorris.ie)

Sporting a winter coat to be proud of, Puissance loves to go out in the field each day — and to show off his moves.

Michael Hutchinson Tues 15 January 2019Puissance and Michael HutchinsonPhoto.carolinenorris.iefor Horse and Hound (Image credit: www.carolinenorris.ie)

Michael believes getting out in open space every day is key to a stallion’s mental wellbeing.

Michael Hutchinson Tues 15 January 2019Imperial TigerPhoto.carolinenorris.iefor Horse and Hound (Image credit: www.carolinenorris.ie)

Imperial Tiger enjoys a romp round the field.

Michael Hutchinson Tues 15 January 2019Imperial Tiger with Eva and Michael HutchinsonPhoto.carolinenorris.iefor Horse and Hound (Image credit: www.carolinenorris.ie)

Michael and his wife Eva with Imperial Tiger.

Michael Hutchinson Tues 15 January 2019Imperial Tiger and Michael HutchinsonPhoto.carolinenorris.iefor Horse and Hound (Image credit: www.carolinenorris.ie)

Michael shows off Imperial Tiger in all his glory. The horse showjumped with Michael’s son, Michael “Tjossti” Hutchinson, in Belgium before retiring to stand at stud.

Michael Hutchinson Tues 15 January 2019Imperial TigerPhoto.carolinenorris.iefor Horse and Hound (Image credit: www.carolinenorris.ie)

Imperial Tiger’s full siblings include not only world silver medallist Horseware Ardagh Highlight, but also Horseware Lukeswell (12th at the 2015 European Championships with Sam Watson), grade A showjumpers Lee Ann and Little Ellie and international event horses GFG Rambo Man, Harthill Percy and Chanterelle II. They are all out of a Kings Servant mare called Gentle Servant and by Puissance.

Pictures by carolinenorris.ie

Don’t miss our full feature on Puissance and Imperial Tiger in this week’s Horse & Hound magazine (dated 14 March), the first part of our 2019 sport horse special. The issue also features a visit to Helgstrand Dressage, information on the most influential sires in sport horse breeding today and an essential guide to how British breeding will be affected by Brexit.

The medal-winning event horse with a spooky connection to his rider’s family

Pippa Roome — Thu, 22 Nov 2018 08:25:57 +0000

Irish event rider Sam Watson describes his progression with Horseware Ardagh Highlight, with whom he won a team silver medal at the World Equestrian Games in September, as “definitely one of the most interesting journeys I’ve had with a horse”.

Sam had always known that Horseware Lukeswell — who went on to be his 2015 European Championships ride — and his three-year older brother GFG Rambo Man, a three-star horse with Austin O’Connor after starting his career with Sam, had another brother, one year older than Lukeswell. All three were bred by Teresa Walsh and are by Puissance out of the Kings Servant mare Gentle Servant.

“Ardagh Highlight had sort of been the missing horse from that family — we knew there was a horse that age that had been bred at some point but we didn’t know where he was,” explains Sam. “Initially, I just got a phone call from someone who’d spotted him entered for a sale at Goresbridge and as I wasn’t going to make the sale, I rang the owner and asked about him.

“I ended up buying him over the phone, without being able to sit on him or see him in the flesh, which wouldn’t be characteristic how I normally do things, so that terrified [my wife] Sparkles a little bit.”

But it was when the horse arrived on Sam’s yard, at that time in Britain although he is now based in Ireland, that things really took a strange turn.

Sam explains: “He turned up with ‘Ben’ on his passport — which is the same name as Sparks’ brother who had died about a year earlier, so that was quite spooky — but the really spooky thing is that he’s got the same birthday as her brother too. They were both born on the same day in February, which was really weird.”

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Sam says that Ben was “a talented horse from the word go”, who reminded him a lot of Horseware Bushman, his first four-star and championship horse — another by Puissance.

“He shares his desire to do his job and his enthusiasm for cross-country,” says Sam. “That’s Ben’s real passion — to gallop and keep ears pricked and look for the next fence.”

In his first season eventing, as a nine-year-old, Ben progressed quickly from BE100 level in March to a CIC2* in July, winning three novices on the way. In August, Sam sold Ben to Belinda Keir, whose teenage daughter Annie competed him up to one-star level for a couple of seasons.

Sam continues: “That’s what we’ve got to do to make a living and I was really happy he’d gone to the Keirs. Annie loved him cross-country, but I think he was probably a bit spooky in the dressage and showjumping. Even I still struggle to keep him straight, as we all saw at WEG — I gave one of uprights in the showjumping a rub with my right foot.”

Since returning to Sam, Ben has made a meteoric rise through the levels, moving up from two-star level in 2016 to winning Ballindenisk CIC3* in September 2017 and on to sixth place at Luhmühlen CCI4* this June. The pair then finished 14th on their dressage score at WEG.

“The last two years have just been incredible,” says Sam. “I decided that rather than trying to get Ben perfect at one-star level when I got him back, I was really happy stepping him up the grades because his cross-country is so good. And I would just keep training him to try and get his dressage and showjumping as good as we can get it. So he made that really quick rise up the levels and it’s paid off. He delivered his best jumping performance on that final day at WEG and that’s when we needed it so it all came together.”

Read more about how Sam has improved Ben’s showjumping performance and how he combines fatherhood, top-level competition and running a business in this week’s Horse & Hound magazine (issue dated 22 November).

Riders react to WEG cross-country course: ‘A real championship question; it’ll ride tough’

Pippa Roome — Thu, 13 Sep 2018 20:16:57 +0000

Riders have given their first reactions to Mark Phillips’ cross-country course at the World Equestrian Games (WEG).

The track includes a long uphill pull in the final two minutes, which will be a big ask for horses.

British pathfinder Gemma Tattersall said: “I’m very glad to be sat on a thoroughbred with the hill at the end, especially in this heat. Dimensionally it’s not huge, but I need to make sure Arctic Soul is looking where he’s going. There are lots of options and tricky combinations.”

US rider Boyd Martin said: “It’s a twisty, technical track at the beginning and you’ve got to leave a bit in the tank for the last two minutes. A lot will come down to heart and desire and my guy [Tserterleg] is a real trier.”

Gemma’s team-mate Piggy French added: “We are riding with team pressure, which is different to normal. The course needs respecting and there are plenty of places you can have sillies [a silly mistake].”

Australia’s Chris Burton echoed her, saying: “It’s a real championship question and I think it’s perfect. The team environment puts on so much pressure and I think it’ll ride tough. I’m on a green horse, so I’m as nervous as can be.”

Sam Watson, Ireland’s trailblazer, said that riders need to concentrate: “You can tell the difference between a three-star [as here] and four-star championship track and lots of people will be kicking themselves with hindsight. It’s a clever course with lots of combinations.”

Riders are agreed that the conditions and ground will be a major factor. While Hurricane Florence is not expected in this area of North Carolina until after cross-country day, the going is currently on the soft side after some heavy downpours.

“It’s anybody’s guess how the ground will ride and as we’ve seen, it can change within an hour. Hopefully there will be no more downpours, hopefully it will dry out a bit, hopefully it’s not too hot — there’s a lot of hoping going on,” said Mark Todd.

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Horse & Hound has two journalists and a photographer in Tryon for WEG. Keep up to date with all the news on horseandhound.co.uk and in the magazine issues dated 20 and 27 September.

Irish eventing squad named for WEG — ‘Jonty Evans is in our thoughts’

Pippa Roome — Tue, 10 Jul 2018 10:01:15 +0000

The Irish eventing squad for the World Equestrian Games (WEG) in Tryon, USA, in September has been named:

Padraig McCarthy with Mr Chunky, owned by Christopher and Sarita Perkins, Huw Lloyd and Padraig’s wife Lucy Wiegersma
Aoife Clark with Fernhill Adventure, owned by Richard Last and his rider
Cathal Daniels with Rioghan Rua, owned by Margaret Kinsella
Sarah Ennis with Horseware Stellor Rebound, owned by Horseware Products Ltd, Niki Potterton and Orla Ennis
Sam Watson and Horseware Ardagh Highlight, owned by Belinda Keir

Five reserves have also been named in the following order:

First: Tim Bourke with Luckaun Quality

Second: Patricia Ryan with Dunrath Eclipse

Third: Joseph Murphy with Sportsfield Othello

Fourth: Ciaran Glynn with November Night

Fifth: Clare Abbott with Euro Prince

All combinations are required to maintain their current form and soundness to remain on the squad for the championships.

Team manager Sally Corscadden said: “It is very exciting to be travelling with a squad that has achieved competitive individual performances at four-star and championship level. Our job is to progress this into a competitive team result and a qualification for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. Our eventing squads have consistently produced top class results at a broad range of three and four-star internationals this spring, including a podium finish in the Nations Cup at Houghton Hall, and three riders finishing in the top 10 at four-star level.

“It has been the most successful start to the year for Team Ireland on the competition front, however the thoughts and prayers of all the team remain with Jonty Evans following his fall. He is always in our thoughts and we will definitely be ‘wearing green for Jonty’.”

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Sally added: “We would like to thank our coaches, the squad members, their owners and supporters for all their hard work behind the scenes. We would also like to thank everyone who supported us at our fundraising demo nights and race and also all our Team Ireland Equestrian sponsors. It is a huge benefit to be able to send the team with the proper training, support and preparations in place to help them to perform to the best of their ability and make Ireland proud.”

For all the latest news analysis, competition reports, interviews, features and much more, don’t miss Horse & Hound magazine, on sale every Thursday.

‘Traffic light’ system to improve eventing safety

Lucy Elder — Tue, 01 Mar 2016 07:25:07 +0000

A colour-coded rating system for eventers is being rolled out in Ireland in a bid to improve horse and rider safety.

Eventing Ireland (EI) is working with eventing analytics company EquiRatings to use data to help prevent cross-country falls.

EquiRatings, set up by Irish four-star rider Sam Watson (pictured, top) and lawyer Diarmuid Byrne, has created a form-tracking system that has analysed more than 150,000 results.

This system is called the EquiRatings Quality Index (ERQI). Statistics show a link between a low ERQI and the likelihood of combinations incurring penalties, elimination and falls across country.

Mr Watson told H&H he thinks the system is going to be a “big step forward”.

“The two things at the top of our agenda are to increase the safety of horses and riders, and the overall welfare of horses. We have to be proactive.”

He added that other national federations have made enquiries about the system.

Tadhg Ryan / Bit-Media (Image credit: Tadhg Ryan / Bit-Media)

Each horse/rider combination is given a ranking of green, amber or red and the idea is to promote a responsible attitude towards campaigning an event horse.

Green means the pair can compete at the level at which they want to enter. Amber means there are “significant warning signs” in the combination’s cross-country form and EI “strongly advises” that they compete at a lower level until performance improves.

A red rating — typically just one cross-country clear in the past five to 10 attempts — gives EI the power to stop a combination entering that class.

Combinations at the lowest level (EI90) on a red rating must be assessed by an approved trainer.

The ranking will be visible to the organisation and the rider, but not the public.

The average rider fall rate in EI is 1.5%, but red zone riders have a fall rate almost three times higher at 4.3%.

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Downgrading — where a pair must move down a level following two eliminations for falls in the showjumping or refusals and/or falls across country — is already in place under EI rules.

EI chairman Georgia Stubington said: “Eventing is a risk sport and we will never eliminate all risk, but this is a huge step forward into today’s digital world.”

Ref: H&H 25 February, 2016

Nick Turner: mission accomplished [H&H VIP]

Horse & Hound — Fri, 05 Sep 2014 11:00:18 +0000

The goal all the way (at the World Equestrian Games – WEG) was Olympic qualification and I’m delighted. Every little thing didn’t go to plan, but the riders rose above it. They knew that whatever happened, they needed to deliver.

The riders all set out across country with massive determination and I’m immensely proud of them, even [individual] Clare Abbott who didn’t finish.

There was a moment of unrest when Sam had his showjumping stop, but he gritted his teeth and showed professionalism to get home.

I had a great team behind me — the grooms and owners, dressage trainer Terry Boon, showjumping trainer Ian Fearon, vet Hugh Suffern and farrier Nigel Perrott, who makes sure everyone’s got what they need.

This means we can plan for our up-and-coming horses and riders for the next two years, knowing we don’t have to chase FEI points or push young horses before they’re ready.

Not just a royal baby… eventers become parents too

Amy Mathieson — Wed, 24 Jul 2013 14:25:35 +0000

While the world goes royal baby crazy awaiting the name of the new arrival, horsey couples are also celebrating new arrivals

Kate and William are not the only new parents — July has been a busy month for event riders too.

Sam Watson and his wife Hannah welcomed their son Archie Thomas Watson into the world on 19 July at 10.17pm. He weighed 8lbs.

“WE HAVE A SON!!! So proud of my beautiful wife,” he tweeted, along with this picture of Archie (top).

And Francis Whittington and his wife Samantha had a daughter yesterday (Tuesday 23 July). She weighed 8lb4oz and has been named Amber.

(Image credit: creditUnknown)

Francis also tweeted this picture of their new arrival, who is their second child. They also have a son called Max.

Sam Watson’s Horseware Bushman nets 1000 Eventing Ireland points

Pippa Roome — Mon, 18 Mar 2013 11:52:18 +0000

Twitter congratulations poured in over the weekend as Sam Watson revealed that an intermediate win at Monart on Saturday makes his top ride Horseware Bushman the first horse to reach 1,000 points under the Eventing Ireland system.

The Watson family’s home-bred Bushman has been fourth at the young rider European Championships, completed two senior European Championships, two Badmintons (13th on his debut in 2010), one Burghley, the World Equestrian Games in Kentucky and has been reserve for the Irish team for the past two Olympics.

“He feels in the best shape of his life at 14 years old and all signs suggest that his best is yet to come!” said Sam. “His immediate goal is Badminton this spring.”

This success follows an inauspicious start to Bushman’s career, though, when Sam’s older sister Rozzie fell off the horse as a four-year-old in the warm-up at their first show and concussed herself — an incident which opened the door for Sam to take over.

Sam, 27, has based himself in Britain for the eventing season over the past few years, but this spring is competing from his parents John and Julia’s yard in Co Carlow, Ireland. His wife, Hannah “Sparkles” Bailey, is expecting their first child.

The Eventing Ireland system assigns points to a horse for wins and placings both in Ireland and elsewhere, including at national classes in Britain.

This is slightly different to the British Eventing (BE) points system, which only accounts for national events in Britain (held under BE rules), as well as international events (under FEI rules) all around the world.

Bushman has 912 points under the British system. Lenamore — whose retirement was announced in H&H last week — holds the BE record on 2321 points.

Horseware Bushman’s Eventing Ireland record

Horseware Bushman’s British Eventing record

Eleven Irish eventing pairs shortlisted for London Olympics

Horse & Hound — Fri, 08 Jun 2012 15:53:33 +0000

Following impressive performances from the Irish Olympic eventing candidates at Tattersalls last weekend, Ireland’s high performance manager Ginny Elliot has named a shortlist of 10 riders and 11 horses for the London Olympics this summer.

The shortlisted combinations are:

Aoife Clark/Master Crusoe
Capt Geoff Curran/Shanaclough Crecora and The Jump Jet
Jayne Doherty/Ravenstar
Sarah Ennis/Sugar Brown Babe
Mark Kyle/Coolio
Joseph Murphy/Electric Cruise
Elizabeth Power/September Bliss
Michael Ryan/Ballylynch Adventure
Camilla Speirs/Portersize Just A Jiff (pictured)
Sam Watson/Horseware Bushman

Ireland is assured of a team of three riders at the Games, but this could increase to four or five on 17 June, depending on whether other countries who secured places have sufficient eligible combinations to take up the spots.

Ginny will choose her final team on 2 July following Barbury Castle.

She said that the decision to reduce the list to 10 riders had been difficult after the riders’ strong performances at Tattersalls, where Camilla Speirs secured her place in the shortlist with a win and several other combinations showed good form.

“The reality is that all of the riders performed very well at the weekend, under real pressure, as they knew places were on the line,” she said

“The combinations I have named have all done very well and the final selection looks like it will cause me several sleepless nights, but it is brilliant to have real choices.

“Now that we have a team the key issue will be to select the appropriate mix of combinations to maximise our chances of winning a medal at the Games.

“Obviously the number of places we end up with will be influential in devising this strategy and it will be crucial to get at least one more place and it would be great to get a full five.”

Full report of Tattersalls in H&H this week (7 June).

What you didn’t know about… Horseware Bushman

Horse & Hound — Thu, 07 Jun 2012 17:39:28 +0000

Irish event rider Sam Watson tells H&H about the home-bred eventer who loves wet going.

Fact file

Age: 13

Name: Horseware Bushman

Stable name: George

Height: 16.2hh

Breeders: John & Julia Watson

Owners: yes please!

Rider: Sam Watson

Top results: 3rd Barbury CIC*** 2009, 13th Badminton CCI**** 2010, 1st Hopetoun CIC*** 2011

(Image credit: creditUnknown)

Four things you didn’t know…

1 Although a smashing-looking foal, Bushman didn’t look much as a youngster and the Watsons failed to get even £5,000 for him at the end of his six-year-old season.

2 He has crossed the Irish Sea more than 20 times.

3 Bushman is consistent: he has picked up 5.2 time-penalties at all three major championships – Fontainebleau, the World Games and Luhm ¼hlen.

4 He didn’t win an event in the UK until 2011, when he won three in a row – Tweseldown open intermediate, Aston-le-Walls advanced and the CIC*** at Hopetoun.

To read the full interview with Sam Watson about Horseware Bushman see the 7 June issue of H&H

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“Back then, I would definitely have said, ‘Oh, I have to be an Olympian, I have to make it to an Olympics. You know, that’s what it’s all about.’”

“So actually, Tokyo was just all about producing horses through to top level and that’s what I enjoy doing now. I would view myself more as a trainer than an athlete.”

The Olympics was also interesting for Sam Watson because he works in high performance through the data analytics company he co-founded, EquiRatings.

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“There are very few moments on the course when you can just relax, because with the terrain whether you’re going uphill or downhill, it’s always work,” said Sam. “But come on, we’re at a World Championship – we need to work for 10 minutes.”

Sam was thorough in his analysis of his round and the track riders are facing today on the eventing World Championships cross-country course.

Sam was full of praise for Giuseppe’s track.

Germany’s Christoph Wahler (pictured), however, felt differently about the course. Riding Carjatan S, he also jumped clear, incurring 9.6 time-faults.

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“We have a great reserve ready to travel, Felicity Ward and Regal Bounty who have been really consistent this year in their performances. This is an exciting opportunity for them to be part of the World Championships squad.”

The full Irish eventing World Championship squad is:

Susie Berry with 10-year-old gelding Monbeg By DesignOwner: Helen CatonBreeder: Fiona MolloyBreeding: by Pacino, out of Eskerhills Lexis (by Puissance)Groom: Crisy Salmon

Austin O’Connor with 13-year-old gelding Colorado BlueOwners: rider and The Salty SyndicateBreeder: Mellon StudBreeding: by Jaguar Mail, out of Rock Me Baby (by Rock Kind)Groom: Francesca Denning

Felicity Ward with 11-year-old gelding Regal BountyOwner: James O’CallaghanBreeder: Miriam De FeuBreeding: by Orestus VDL, out of Edge Of Reason (by Senang Hati)

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Michael Ryan with 11-year-old gelding Chinook EclipseOwners: Carol and Tom HenryBreeder: Michael LynchBreeding: by Chinook Eclipse out of Mats Lady

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Making eventing safer: new tool to help riders assess their form accurately

“It is about getting people to look at their performance objectively,” said Sam.

“In the language we are using, we would like this to become something that people start thinking about – not just saying, ‘Am I qualified’ but ‘What’s my level of form?’”

He added that it will give some people a new objective, which is to improve their rating at the level they are at.

It does not replace minimum eligibility requirements (MERs), but is a way of helping riders understand how prepared they are. The HFI will also be available for officials at competitions, through the FEI entry system, and national federations will be able to view HFI ratings when entering horses.

Development of the HFI, which builds on EquiRatings’ extensive research and previous form indexes, was initially presented at the 2021 FEI eventing risk management forum. The completed index was revealed at this year’s forum and it is readily available for any rider to use on the FEI website.

Sam said he has been using the HFI himself, for a horse he is thinking of taking to Badminton.

He said getting the wording right has been really important, as that is what turns stats and data into language people can understand, which is what ultimately makes the tool useful.

“When someone is on the fence about making a decision, as they often are [on whether] this horse is ready for the next level or not, they now have an objective tool to help them make the decision,” said Sam.

“We have talked in the past about trainers and it can be a difficult conversation when you’re being employed by an athlete to give that advice.

“They could nearly use this rating as a benchmark to help them have those difficult conversations.”