Big Star is on the road to WEG

Fans of Olympic gold medal-winning showjumper Big Star could be in for a treat if visiting Royal Windsor Horse Show next week (14-18 May).

Nick Skelton’s 11-year-old has been largely sidelined since sustaining a suspensory injury last August. But his entry at Windsor signals his first steps back on the road to the FEI Alltech World Equestrian Games (WEG).

The injury curtailed a fantastic campaign last summer, when the pair had notched a hat-trick of big wins — the CSIO Rome grand prix, CHIO Aachen grand prix and the FEI Nations Cup in Dublin. Since then he has been limited to a few minor classes in the US.

“I took Big Star to Florida for the winter to recuperate and jumped some small classes,” said Nick. “I’m hopefully trying to get him ready for WEG.”

Nick is aiming to take Big Star to the Hamburg Global Champions Tour at the end of the month and feels Windsor would be “good preparation”.

“I will only bring him if he is 100% fit,” he said. “I’m looking forward to getting back in action with him — the past 9 months have been a bit quiet.”

10 nations have entered for the international showjumping — including the £53,000 CSI3* Kings Cup (17 May) and the £35,000 CSI3* Alltech Grand Prix for the Kingdom of Bahrain Trophy (18 May) — including 7 of the top-10 UK riders.

In addition, fans have a chance to watch dressage world number 1 Charlotte Dujardin in the CDI3* FEI dressage evening performances on 15 and 16 May.

For more information visit: www.rwhs.co.uk

Martha Terry

H&H features editor

Martha is an experienced journalist who is mad-keen on dogs of all shapes and sizes. After growing up with assorted liver and white springer spaniels, she enjoyed 14 years with two rescue dogs, one a street dog from Gambia who was abandoned at three weeks old. Now, her constant companion, whether by her feet at her desk or walking cross-country courses, is Fidget, an extremely energetic and habitually muddy black and white springer. Martha has written on topics as diverse as a top horse’s clone to the best GPS trackers for dogs, as well as equestrian and rural matters for Country Life, The Field, The Times, The Spectator and The Telegraph alongside Horse & Hound.