Badminton Beckons for Top Kiwi Eventers

Badminton Beckons for Top Kiwi Eventers

Olympians, former champs and in-form stars make for a very strong New Zealand representation at this week’s Mitsubishi Motors Badminton Horse Trials.

Jock Paget, Sir Mark Todd, Andrew Nicholson, Caroline Powell, Lucy Jackson and the high-rising Tim and Jonelle Price are all on the card for the prestigious CCI4* event which gets under way on Wednesday (May 6), and runs through to Sunday.

The Prices probably spear-head the attack – Jonelle is currently ranked number three in the world and is the top-ranked female rider, while Tim will be riding a high after his second place finish at the recent Rolex Kentucky CCI 4* Three Day Event, and sits in sixth spot.

Thirty-four-year-old Jonelle has 12-year-old Classic Moet (owned by Trisha Rickards) entered at Badminton, the best placed of the Kiwis at the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games in France last year.

She is also entered aboard her 13-year-old Irish sport horse The Deputy (owned by Lucy Sangster, Tim and Jan Morice and Selwood.com), who has twice placed at the Land Rover Burghley Horse Trials and also completed at Kentucky.

“If things go my way then certainly either or both will be in the mix,” says Jonelle.

Despite her high ranking, any pressure she feels doesn’t come from the outside – rather from herself.

“Before I would have been hoping for top 20, but now I want top five! Badminton was my first-ever 4* so I guess there is something about that.”

Her 17th placing way back then was good enough to see her named as reserve for the Athens Olympics.

“It is that experience that brought me to England . . . so it is kind of special.”

Her 36-year-old husband, who last year at Badminton won the William Miflin Memorial Trophy for the rider with no cross country penalties and closest to the optimum time, brings Ringwood Sky Boy (owned by Selwood.com).

“I think he has a chance of a significant placing if we can put together three good phases,” says Tim. “He is feeling stronger as each six months go by. He keeps getting better. Some take a little longer to put together the three phases to get a good result.”
He is confident that consistency will mean a top 10 finish – at least.
“Obviously I would like to aim for better. I think we should have three good phases.”
Thirty-one-year-old Paget will be looking for solid performances from his two – Clifton Promise (owned by Frances Stead) and Clifton Lush (owned by Lucy Allison and Frances Stead).

Seventeen-year-old Clifton Promise won Badminton in 2013 – the first combination to win on début at Badminton since Todd in 1980 – and last year were second to Nicholson at Burghley.

Clifton Lush won the 2013 British Open Championships at Gatcombe and has competed at Luhmuhlen and Burghley.

Todd, who was the oldest rider to win Badminton when he nailed his fourth victory in 2011, has 20 completions to his credit. This year he has Leonidas II (owned by Diane Brunsden and Peter Cattell), who placed 14th last year, and Oloa (owned by Diane Brunsden, Peter Cattell and Pip McCarroll) entered.

Powell, a former Burghley winner, notched her best-ever effort at Badminton back in 2008 when she and the mighty Lenamore finished fourth. This year the 42-year-old will be starting Onwards and Upwards (owned by Cameron and Mary Crawford and Powell), who was unfortunately withdrawn after the dressage last year.

Nicholson, ranked eighth in the world, holds the record for the most Badminton completions with 33, but will be hoping to bag the one title that has eluded him so far with Nereo (owned by Libby Sellar), who was ninth at the World Champs last year and picked up an individual bronze in 2010, or his own Calico Joe.

The 53-year-old athlete has won Burghley five times, and can lay claim to 4* titles at Luhmuhlen, Pau and Kentucky as well.
Paget, Jonelle Price, Todd, Nicholson and Powell were all members of New Zealand’s bronze medal-winning team at the 2012 London Olympics.
Lucy Jackson has had three previous starts at Badminton, and again lines up Willy Do (owned by Gillian Greenlees and Jackson), on whom she finished 11th last year.

Also entered is 50-year-old Craig Nicolai, who is on début with his own Just Ironic, a 17-year-old New Zealand-bred gelding by Ironclad who was bought as a two-year-old by Nicolai from breeder Virginia Caro. The two are no strangers to top competition, having had their first international start in 2006 and twice completed the Land Rover Burghley Horse Trials.

It’s an incredibly strong field at Badminton this year, including nine previous winners and riders from 12 nations.

The always challenging cross country, designed by Italian Giuseppe Della Chiesa, will run in reverse this year.

The first horse inspection is on Wednesday (May 6), followed by two days of dressage, the cross country and finally the showjumping on Sunday(May 10).
For more information, head to http://www.badminton-horse.co.uk/ .

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