Cornbury House Horse Trials will stage a new Advanced class for riders under the age of 25 at this year’s event (9-13 September) in preparation for hosting the FEI Under-25 World Eventing Championships in September 2027.
The Advanced cross-country track will be designed by Dutch Olympic event rider Andrew Heffernan, who is also responsible for courses such as Bramham and Burgham.
The addition of this new course means there will be exciting changes to all of Cornbury’s cross-country tracks for 2026, which will, with the exception of the Advanced, continue to be designed by David Evans. There is a new location for the start and finish area and cross-country warm-up and additional ground in Cornbury’s beautiful park and woods will be used, giving the courses a very different direction and feel.
Andrew said: “I’m delighted to be given this opportunity; Cornbury is a really lovely event that’s become particularly popular with owners and riders in the six years since its inception. David Evans has done a great job with the cross-country tracks, and I’m thoroughly looking forward to working with him and being able to use Cornbury’s park and woods to pose some new challenges for competitors.”
Event founder and president David Howden said: “Hosting the FEI Under-25 World Championships in 2027 is a really exciting development for Cornbury House Horse Trials. Right from the start our focus has been on nurturing and promoting young talent – athletes and horses – and we host both the Young Rider and Junior classes for under-21 riders, as well as the British Eventing Young Horse Championships. The new FEI Under-25 World Championships are just what the sport needed to help develop and encourage these talented young riders.
“The new Advanced class this year allows us to test the new course and the new layout in advance of running our first CCI4*-S at the World Championships in 2027, and we are delighted to welcome Andrew Heffernan to the Cornbury team.
“In line with our ongoing commitment to investing in ground management across the event site, we have done a lot of remedial work to the ground following last year’s adverse weather conditions. We have reconfigured the site, especially in terms of lorry parking, and are consulting with turf management experts STRI to help us optimise going conditions for horses and riders.
“We want to keep evolving Cornbury for the horses, riders and visitors and are constantly making small changes to improve the experience for everyone.”
For 2026 the number of class sections will be reduced, lowering the number of horses competing by approximately 200. This will help to promote good ground conditions across all areas of the site.
There will also be a spectacular new dressage arena for the under-25s on the West Terrace lawn of Cornbury House.
Visitors can expect local, sustainably produced food and drink from our own Cornbury House Farm and neighbouring producers, a new artisan food tent, premium hospitality with the return of the Endless Lunch by Mirabeau, and the Cornbury Shopping Village to support the superb competition. New for 2026 will be the creation of a new equine stage hosting a series of Q&As about the sport over the weekend of 12-13 September 2026.
Pre-sale tickets for Cornbury House Horse Trials 2026 will be available on Thursday, 30 April 2026. Sign up today by visiting www.cornburyhousehorsetrials.co.uk for more information.
IMAGES © CHHT/Peter Nixon
Elizabeth Barratt, winner of the under-21 CCI3*-S at Cornbury House Horse Trials in 2025.
Cross-country course-builder Adrian Ditcham, new Advanced under-25 cross-country course-designer Andrew Heffernan and Cornbury House estate manager Mark Juniper.
