Burnham Market Horse Trials: CCI4*-L final results

Find out how the final day of action panned out in the CCI4*-L at Burnham Market – and why the runner-up’s preparation was so unusual…

Izzy Taylor achieved the enviable feat of adding nothing to her leading dressage score of 23.2 and winning the only long-format four-star event in Britain in 2020, Barefoot Retreats Burnham Market’s CCI4*-L, on Monkeying Around.

She put in an almost faultless showjumping round on her own and Mark Sartori’s nine-year-old, just giving the final part of the treble combination a little rattle.

“He jumped fabulously,” said Izzy with a smile. “He felt very confident, and it was nice to be sat on such a good jumper. He’s one that you can ride positively, as opposed to feeling as though you need to protect them.”

Italy’s Vittoria Panizzon and Chequers Play The Game rose from fifth after dressage to take second place, also finishing on their dressage score of 26.9. The 17-year-old, owned by Patricia and Amy Lambert, Flora Hurrell and Peter and Jan Price, has only once before showjumped clear at a CCI4*-L – when he and Vittoria won Tattersalls in 2017. This was his first run since Oasby in March, and only his second since finishing ninth in the CCI5* at Luhmühlen in 2018.

“This was a carefully thought-out plan and he is the only horse I would trust to do this with,” said Vittoria. “It has been a huge team effort to get him here; it was a bit of a gamble and I’m completely delighted it has all paid off.”

Sarah Bullimore finished third with the “15.2hh-ish” Corouet, whom she and her husband Brett bred and whom they own in conjunction with the Kew Jumping Syndicate. The nine-year-old chestnut, by Balou Du Rouet and out of Sarah’s CCI5* mare Lilly Corinne, jumped as though he was on springs and added nothing to his dressage score of 27.2.

Nicola Wilson and Bulana completed on their dressage mark of 27.6 for fourth, but she dropped to 10th on JL Dublin, second going into showjumping, with a rail down and 0.4 of a time-fault.

Tom Jackson took fifth place on the 13-year-old Billy Congo mare Billy Cuckoo, whom he described as “a little pocket rocket”, and were another pair not to mar their dressage of 28.4 with any further penalties.

Yasmin Ingham, winner of the eight- and nine-year-old CCI4*-S on Banzai Du Loir, topped off a great weekend with sixth and eighth places in this class on Sandman 7 and Rehy DJ, both of whom jumped impressive showjumping clears. Sandwiched in between those two horses was Ros Canter and Pencos Crown Jewel, seventh and also clear.

In total there were 28 showjumping clears within the time from 59 starters in this phase, and a further 10 left the fences up but had a couple of time-faults. Twenty horses finished on their dressage scores.

More reports from Burnham Market…