Wet ground, fast rounds and mixed fortunes: all about Badminton’s cross-country day

Ros Canter tops the Badminton Horse Trials cross-country results after an action packed day, at the event presented by Mars Equestrian.

• Find out what Ros said after her round on Lordships Graffalo

Watch top riders reflect on Badminton cross-country day

Ireland’s Austin O’Connor put in the fastest round of the day to speed up the leaderboard on Colorado Blue, moving up from equal 34th after dressage to second overnight

Badminton final scores

• What did Austin say about his speedy performance?

Oliver Townend had a mixed day, failing to finish on his first horse Swallow Springs, but moving Ballaghmor Class into third towards the end of the day.

• Oliver’s thoughts on his second round, with the double five-star winner Ballaghmor Class

British team riders Tom McEwen and Kitty King had back-to-back start times, but fared very differently over the track.

• What happened to Tom and Kitty?

Gemma Stevens holds sixth with Jalapeno, although she admitted she was a little scared before her round.

• Read about Jalapeno’s fitness routine – and Gemma’s

They say form is temporary, but class is permanent – and William Fox-Pitt proved that today. He sits 12th overnight on Grafennacht.

• What persuaded William to start today when he was thinking of withdrawing?

Riders across the field agreed that the ground conditions were testing, with 28 combinations failing to finish.

• Find out what the cross-country pathfinder and other top names had to say about the way the course rode

James Rushbrooke and Milchem Eclipse were among the big climbers on the Badminton Horse Trials cross-country results, rocketing 40 places up the leaderboard with their clear jumping round.

• Watch James Rushbrooke talk about his partnership with Milchem Eclipse

How to watch Badminton Horse Trials

If you are interested in watching Badminton Horse Trials live from the comfort of your home, wherever you are in the world, you will need to subscribe to Badminton TV. To sign up, visit watch.badminton-horse.tv – click the “Sign Up” link in the top right corner of your screen, then follow the instructions. An annual subscription to Badminton TV costs £19.99 and gives you 365 days of access to all of the content in the Badminton TV library, the ability to watch the action live, and the option to replay all of this year’s action later.

You might also be interested in:

‘A horse like him should be celebrated’: Ros Canter rides textbook cross-country clear to maintain Badminton lead

Irish rider speeds into the lead with fastest Badminton cross-country clear so far, while title contender withdraws

‘He was unreal’: Tom McEwen keeps Badminton dream alive, but leading contender falls early on course

Oliver Townend pulled up by ground jury early on Badminton cross-country day, but pathfinder proves course is jumpable

Subscribe to Horse & Hound magazine today – and enjoy unlimited website access all year round

Keep up to date with all of the breaking news, behind the scenes insight and the best of the action throughout Badminton Horse Trials with no limit on how much you can read from as little as £1 per week with a Horse & Hound unlimited website subscription. Sign up now. Plus enjoy our full 22-page magazine report on Badminton, including in-depth analysis and exclusive comments from Nick Burton and Mark Phillips, in Horse & Hound magazine (on sale 11 May).

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