Riders are reminded to check – and double-check – their tack after a raft of competitors were eliminated for having their horses’ bits on incorrectly at the Winter Dressage Championships. By Saturday (22 April) evening, seven competitors at Hartpury for the NAF Five Star Winter Dressage Championships and Petplan Equine Area Festival finals had been eliminated.
With just over a week to go till the action kicks off at Badminton Horse Trials, presented by Mars Equestrian, we bring you a sneaky preview of the obstacles horses and riders will be tackling on cross-country day (7 May). Horse & Hound sent 2019 Badminton winner Piggy March on a mission to Gloucestershire to review Eric Winter’s track. You can read her thoughts on every fence in this week’s magazine (dated 27 April).
British Olympic rider Gemma Stevens had a good weekend at Horseheath. Gemma won three BE100 sections at Horseheath on her dressage marks – taking one on a finishing score of 9.8.
Gemma won section G on Chris Stone’s Chilli Morning IV, a clone of Chilli Morning, on 23, and section I on Mr Stone and Chris and Clare Mathias’s Chilli’s Jester, a son of Chilli Morning, on 27.3. She also won section H on Cooley Park Muze, jumping double clear to finish on an incredible 9.8 dressage score at his second ever event.
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.
Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now
Horse & Hound Newsletter
Never miss out on the latest happenings in the equestrian world
Eleanor is an experienced journalist who spent over eight years working for local and national newspapers before joining H&H as news editor in March 2016. Passionate about equine welfare and exposing the truth, Eleanor has reported on all aspects of the industry, from Brexit to anti-bullying campaigns, and from dressage rules to mules. Her sport of choice is showjumping, in which she competes her own horses, and she also enjoys reporting at local jumping shows through to international championships.
