Top para dressage rider Natasha Baker and her husband Marc Jaconelli welcomed their second child on Tuesday (24 June). Oliver Enzo Jaconelli is a little brother to the couple’s eldest son, Joshua, two. “Our hearts have doubled in size,” said Natasha. “You’ve completed our family in the most beautiful way. Your big brother can’t wait to show you the ropes.”
Mark Phillips shares his thoughts on cross-country courses at Bramham and Luhmühlen, and decisions around eventing at the LA28 Olympics, in his exclusive H&H column this week. Mark writes about the timeline of events leading up to the appointment of Alec Lochore as course-designer and Mike Etherington-Smith as course-advisor for LA28. “For the sake of the sport, I hope Alec and Mike can come up with a great course. Alec certainly has a challenge on his hands as he now has to deliver on his feasibility study, probably on the most difficult site ever for an Olympic cross-country course,” he says.
Household Cavalry horses and soldiers have enjoyed a day at the beach, cooling off in the sea after a busy start to the summer. “On such a warm day it wasn’t long before all the horses and riders were in the waves,” an Army spokesperson said. “A special moment was when Vida, the grey horse whom the regiment has worked all year to rehabilitate after suffering serious injury when he bolted in London in April 2024, overcame his fear of the water and went for a swim.”
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Lucy is an experienced news journalist, reporter and presenter. Since joining the Horse & Hound team in 2015, Lucy has reported from major global sporting events including the Tokyo Paralympic Games and multiple European Championships, as well as Badminton, Burghley and London, to name a few. She has covered current affairs and sports news across the full spectrum of equestrian disciplines and racing, as well as human and equine welfare, industry news and court cases.
