Britain’s Tom Crisp was shocked and delighted to score a personal best at five-star to go into third place after the first session of today’s Defender Burghley Horse Trials dressage (5 September) on Dassett Rock Star.
“I knew we could do it, and I’ve been working hard at home with Sune Hansen at Spring Hill dressage,” said Tom, who scored 34.9 at Badminton Horse Trials in the spring with this horse. “He’s helped me a lot just to be a bit more confident and really go for it. We’re very rarely at this end of the leaderboard after dressage. It feels a bit strange, but I could get used to it.”
Tom explained that he has changed his mental approach to riding in the first phase.
“If you make a mistake, you make a mistake, but I think you’re better setting off thinking you can go for it and make a mistake, rather than just be a bit too careful, which is probably what I’ve been guilty of for a few years. This horse is very capable of doing a good test today and it came together, so we’re really, really chuffed.”
Tom said that Dassett Rock Star, who is contesting his second five-star, having finished 51st at Badminton, was giving him “a good feeling” in the warm-up prior to their test today.
“The mistake sometimes then is that you can just do too much, and I didn’t want to make him tired, because he’s still a bit big and weak in places.
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“He was with me the whole way, kept his head in the game, nailed all of his changes, and it’s so easy just to miss one of them, so we’ll take it this time.”
Commenting on the marked improvement on their Badminton dressage score, Tom said: “I was a bit careful, and he missed a couple of changes. He wasn’t far off, but I went for it a bit more today and it’s a case of having the confidence to do that. Performing a test like that is going to help with both mine and the horse’s confidence on the flat, for sure.”
Katie Magee impresses on Burghley Horse Trials dressage debut
Newly crowned British open champions Katie Magee and Treworra also put in a pleasing performance in the Burghley Horse Trials dressage this morning. They scored 29.3, with no real mistakes, to slot into sixth.
“It felt amazing. It’s a very special arena to ride into, and the crowd gives it that extra bit of atmosphere in there,” she said.
Speaking of the added pressure of riding here as British open champion and also off the back of finishing 11th on her Badminton debut with Treworra (Will) in the spring, Burghley first-timer Katie said that she is “trying to forget about it”.
“It’s a bit of a different feeling, but at the end of the day, it’s me and Will against the course tomorrow, and that’s all that matters and I hope I can do him justice,” she said.
“I wouldn’t want to be on anything else. I said to my husband, Kieran, I wouldn’t want to come here if I didn’t have that close partnership and an amazing horse – he ticks all the boxes.”
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Former web features editor, point-to-point editor and digital racing editor
Gemma is an experienced journalist, who was a member of H&H staff from 2014 to September 2025. She is passionate about all equestrian sports, including racing and point-to-pointing. She has enjoyed riding out for top trainers Nicky Henderson and Charlie Appleby and took part in a charity Flat race at Epsom in August 2018. Gemma’s has reported from numerous five-star events around Britain and Europe, as well as European championships.
