Carl Hester and Fame scored 76.38% in the grand prix special at the 2025 European Dressage Championships, in Crozet, France. Carl made a significant change to the horse’s tack by taking off his ear bonnet, but in the end the mark was pretty much bang on form.
Carl may have felt a little bit disappointed with the score, but it landed him in overall sixth, just behind Becky Moody. Lottie Fry took ninth with Glamourdale.
“I was happy with that – no mistakes, just another consistent test,” said Carl. “I didn’t expect to win a medal, but he felt better than yesterday so perhaps I expected it would be nearer 78%, but I’ve been doing this long enough [not to be disappointed]. I just wanted to do my bit for the team – and Fiona [Bigwood, Fame’s joint owner].”
Harmony and communication are the hallmarks of this combination, who are models of consistency. Fame was perhaps less expressive than in his previous day’s grand prix effort, which secured Britain’s team silver, but the pair were rewarded for their smooth accuracy and general impression, which drew nines. Nines too came for exquisite pirouettes, while their passage on a super final centre line rounded off this pleasing performance.
“He was a little bit chilled – he’s gone from being this electric, hot horse at the start of the season to a laid-back character,” Carl added. “He’s just so good and genuine – his pirouettes come round on a dinner plate and then he off he goes in the ones [tempi changes] straight as a die.”
Fame started his extended walk with a little spook – this is typically where he scores his lowest marks and it meant he was always on the back foot for that section. However, the damage was minimal and Fame picked up exactly where he left off into the piaffe.
Carl Hester “takes off Fame’s hat” at European Dressage Championships
Carl had wondered what effect taking the bonnet off would have on this sensitive stallion, explaining why he decided to remove it.
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“I did a little experiment and took his hat off because I thought it would be horrible for him in the rain if it got wet,” he said. “I had nothing to lose as the team’s done, but I thought he would either be sharp, because he is reactive, or he’d stay the same. And he was pretty much the same.
“He’s never let me down – he was amazing again.”
First to congratulate Carl after his test was Fiona Bigwood, and Carl talked about the joy of sharing this experience with a long-time friend.
“It’s so nice to do this for Fiona – we were on a team together in around 1997 at the European Championships; we’ve been friends a long time,” said Carl. “It’s lovely she trusted me to ride Fame. It’s a real friendship – she trusts me and I trust her. And she’s very honest about my riding! It’s so nice to share it with someone; I’m not on my own, I have someone to talk about it with.”
Carl Hester confirmed he will be using his Paris music for the grand prix freestyle at the European Dressage Championships on Sunday (31 August), which scored plus-85% at the Olympics.
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Martha is an experienced journalist who is mad-keen on horses and dogs. Her reporting CV includes the Paris Olympics, European championships, Aachen World Equestrian Festival and World Cup finals. After growing up with assorted liver and white springer spaniels, she enjoyed 14 years with two rescue dogs. Now, her constant companion 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.
