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Burgham International Horse Trials

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NEWTON AND DA VINCI MASTER BURGHAM

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Willa Newton scored her first Burgham International Horse Trials win on the final day of the five-day Northumbrian eventing extravaganza, taking section E of the NIS Group Ltd and Encon Technical Solutions CCI2*-S on Da Vinci.

The Leicestershire-based rider added nothing to her leading dressage mark of 24.8 on six-year-old Da Vinci, whom she bought as a four-year-old in Germany from Dirk Schrade.

“He’s been lovely all the way through and I’m very excited about him,” said Willa. “He’s got the most incredible brain. He’s been so professional about everything I’ve ever done with him – you come out and it’s like he’s been there before. I had to go pretty fast across country [to win], and he was brilliant.

“The courses here are fantastic, and it is such good experience for the young horses to come and jump in a main arena like this. They will have learnt so much throughout the whole weekend.” 

Willa would love to take Da Vinci to Le Lion d’Angers for the World Six-Year-old Championships in October, via the British Eventing National Young Horse Championships at Cornbury House Horse Trials in September.

She had a comfortable margin of victory of 6.8 penalties over second-placed Finn Healy and Kilbunny Catch Me, with local rider Laura Fenwick in third on a new ride, Drumrankin Idha.

Ireland’s Danielle McCormack led from start to finish in the Jack-Thomas Watson Horses-sponsored CCI2*-S section F on another six-year-old, Anna Sims-Hilditch’s mare Hildare Trust Me. She completed on her dressage score of 28.3, just 0.2 of a penalty ahead of Jago Jackson on Johnny Hornby’s Barrington Highlight K.

“We bought her as a just-broken four-year-old in Belgium through Jeremy Scott, who finds most of our horses for us,” said Danielle. “She’s proving to be very exciting. She’s quite a character – she knows she’s quite special, but she has a great brain and is super-brave. She’s quite big so has taken a bit of time, but with the help of my trainers, Andrew Fletcher, Holly Woodhead, Jeremy Scott and Robin Dumas, we’ve produced her slowly over the past two years.”

Danielle, 26, has been based at Hildare Stud in Wiltshire for three years now.

Jago Jackson’s second place in this class meant that he won the final trial for the British team for the Junior European Championships in Poland next month.

“It feels absolutely amazing to be in this position – the horse has been perfect from start to finish here,” said Jago, 17. “I can’t thank Johnny Hornby enough for the opportunity to ride this wonderful horse. I am hoping we get a call from selectors on Monday and that it is a positive one! I’d like to make a career out of eventing, so this would be a great stepping stone.

“I’ve loved all three of the international events in Northumberland this summer [Belsay in May, Alnwick Ford in June and now Burgham] – they have all been beautifully run on perfect ground.”

Lucy Standish, also hopeful of a spot on the British junior team, took third place on Mr Cookie Time and sixth on Global H. Just 3.5 penalties separated the top nine finishers in this typically competitive class.

Burgham, situated in beautiful, tranquil Northumbrian countryside not far from the A1 between Morpeth and Alnwick, is one of the UK’s most popular equestrian events and attracted a vast number of entries in its eventing classes this year – nearly 950, including many of the world’s top riders.

Event Director Craig Anderson said: “We’ve had a fantastic week of sport at Burgham this year. The standard of competition was exceptional across all classes, and it’s been a real privilege to welcome so many top riders, world-class horses and up-and-coming stars, and supportive owners. We’re so grateful to our landowners, our volunteers, sponsors, and the wider eventing community; without them and a huge team effort, none of this would be possible. 

“The weather held up well and the ground conditions were some of the best we’ve ever had, thanks to the extremely hard work of our team. We’re proud to offer a platform where horses and riders can truly shine, and we love the fact that riders and owners continually demonstrate their appreciation of that. We’re already looking ahead to next year.”

The provisional dates for Burgham International Horse Trials 2026 are 23-26 July

Visit www.burghaminternationalhorsetrials.co.uk to find out more.

All the cross-country from Burgham can be watched on demand on ClipMyHorse.tv – visit www.clipmyhorse.tv/en_GB/.

IMAGES © 1st Class Images

27/07/2025 0 comment
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EventingNews

HALO TAKES THE CROWN AT BURGHAM

written by Editor

Piggy March boosted her chances of British team selection for the European Championships with a convincing victory on Jayne McGivern’s Halo in the Project Pony-sponsored CCI4*-S section C at Burgham International Horse Trials (24-27 July).

Piggy’s finishing score of 19.8 with the 12-year-old Holsteiner stallion is a Burgham CCI4*-S record; the pair added nothing to their dressage mark in the subsequent jumping phases, floating easily round David Evans’ cross-country track within the time allowed.

“He’s been amazing – he really has felt on top form, and I’m genuinely really excited about this weekend; I put pressure on myself because I know what a great little horse he is,” said Piggy, who has won medals at World and European Championships for her country. “I want to put him in a position to try for championships – I know that Britain is an incredibly strong nation and there are lots of brilliant horses and riders coming up and I am not in the early days of my career, but I am still very competitive and would love to try to do it still. 

“Halo was put on the planet for those sorts of classes [championships] and I wanted him to come here and do a solid performance and look like the sort of horse I know he is. I wanted to make this happen and happen very well. He was very polished, very consistent and it made for a very happy day. He’s a wonderful little horse.”

Piggy and Halo clearly relish eventing in Northumberland: they won the inaugural CCI4*-S at Belsay in May.

Wills Oakden and Keep It Cooley repeated their 2024 second place in this highly competitive class, completing on their dressage score of 25.3. Their next target will be the new event at Scone Palace in Perthshire in August. Third, just 0.6 of a penalty behind Wills, were Tom Jackson and Hawkeye.

Oliver Townend and Cooley Rosalent, the 2024 winners, led after showjumping but cruised round the cross-country for four time-penalties and fifth place, behind Clarke Johnstone and Sparky Lad in fourth.

Tom McEwen and his 2024 Paris Olympics team gold medallist JL Dublin took the second CCI4*-S section, which this time was sponsored by local company Holme Dodsworth Metals. Tom and the Deirdre Johnston, Jo and James Lambert-owned Diarado 14-year-old were faultless in the showjumping and cross-country, completing on their dressage mark of 23.4.

Tom said: “‘Dubs’ has been fantastic. He came out very fresh for all three phases; he flew round the cross-country, and it was so nice to have such a well-built track that was really flowing to ride with a few different striding patterns. As a ‘prep run’ for the autumn – hopefully the European Championships, if we are selected – it has been perfect.”

It was Tom’s second international victory at Burgham 2025 – he had already won WL Straughan & Son Ltd CCI3*-S section A on Brookfield Danny De Muze.

Izzy Taylor and SBH Big Wall were second in CCI4*-S section D behind Tom on their dressage mark of 24.4, with Sarah Bullimore and the homebred Corimiro third on 26.2. World champion Yasmin Ingham (Gypsie Du Loir) and Laura Collett (Count Onyx) were fourth and fifth.

On Sunday, the final day of Burgham 2025, the focus turns to the two CCI2*-S classes. Willa Newton and Da Vinci are in the lead in the NIS Group Ltd and Encon Technical Solutions-sponsored section E with a dressage score of 24.8, ahead of Ros Canter (Club Class, 27.5). In the Jack-Thomas Watson CCI2*-S section F, Danielle McCormack is in pole position aboard Hildare Trust Me on 28.3, giving her a slim margin over Jago Jackson and Barrington Highlight K on 28.5. Jago, 17, is also the only rider still with a chance of winning prize-money in the Northumberland Challenge, which unites the three Northumbrian events of Belsay, Alnwick Ford and Burgham. He is in fifth place in CCI2*-S section E on Cooley Top Boy, on whom he won the CCI2*-S at Alnwick Ford in June, having already finished third in that class at Belsay in May. Jago must finish third or better at Burgham on Cooley Top Boy to take home a potential total of £8,000.

Sunday at Burgham not only offers top-class sport, but also great fun for families, friends and children. There is a fun dog shows, have-a-go dog agility, hobby horses for children to “ride”, and a Thoroughbred and Ex-Racehorse Show on Sunday, alongside grassroots eventing classes.

Burgham also features an excellent range of tradestands and lots of delicious, locally-produced food and drink and public bars. It is situated in beautiful, tranquil Northumbrian countryside not far from the A1 between Morpeth and Alnwick. 

Visit www.burghaminternationalhorsetrials.co.uk to find out more and to buy tickets.

All the cross-country from Burgham is being shown live on ClipMyHorse.tv – visit www.clipmyhorse.tv/en_GB/ to watch.

26/07/2025 0 comment
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EventingNews

PIGGY MARCHES TO THE FRONT AT BURGHAM

written by Editor

Piggy March has soared to the top of the leaderboard in CCI4*-S section C, sponsored by Project Pony, at Burgham International Horse Trials (24-27 July).

Piggy posted an exceptional dressage mark of 19.8 aboard Jayne McGivern’s lovely grey stallion Halo to overtake Oliver Townend and Cooley Rosalent, who go into Saturday’s showjumping and cross-country in second place on 23.9. Izzy Taylor and Barrington Alice are third on 24.5.

Piggy said: “Halo was spot on – fabulous in his body and brain. He’s really come on; he’s beginning to feel more established, stronger, with more consistency and strength to his body and his work. He’s always felt very special and I’m delighted he is starting to get the marks that correspond to what he feels like.”

CCI4*-S showjumping starts at 8am tomorrow morning at the Northumbrian event, with cross-country commencing at 9am. The cross-country can be watched live on ClipMyHorse.tv.

Piggy added: “The cross-country looks very inviting with some good questions. This is Halo’s first run since the CCI5* at Luhmühlen; he feels fit and well and I am looking forward to tomorrow.”

There was no change to Thursday’s top three in Holme Dodsworth Metals CCI4*-S section D. Caroline Powell is in first place with a score of 23.3 aboard Nicholas and Fiona Lambert’s 10-year-old Legally Grey. Caroline has half a penalty in hand over Paris 2024 Olympic team gold medallists Tom McEwen and JL Dublin. Izzy Taylor is also third in this section, this time on SBH Big Wall with 24.4.

Double Olympic team gold medallist Tom McEwen proved he has another exciting young horse on his hands after winning WL Straughan & Son Ltd CCI3*-S section A on Brookfield Danny De Muze. The seven-year-old, who is owned by Alison Swinburn and John and Chloe Perry, added just 0.8 of a cross-country time-fault to his leading dressage score of 20.8 to stay ahead of Sweden’s Therese Viklund and Sella (22.9). New Zealander Jesse Campbell finished third on his Tokyo Olympics ride Diachello, also with a finishing score of 22.9.

Tom said: “He’s been amazing, to be honest. Piggy [March, from whom Tom has inherited the ride] has done a fantastic job producing him, as only she could do. He’s only done one intermediate and then this [three-star], which I thought was quite a strong track. I know the courses here all jump beautifully, but it was probably the punchiest one I’ve seen, so I was really pleased with him.

“He’s perfect – a really placid character at home who puts everything into it when he comes out at a competition. He did a stunning test here, handled the showjumping well and was very cool across country.”

Elizabeth Barratt, 19, headed up AW Jenkinson CCI3*-S section B on Barratt Eventing’s Big Boss Melo. The pair completed on their second-placed dressage score of 26.5 to win the class, which also acted as the final selection trial for the British team for the European Young Rider Championships in Poland in August. They are the reigning Young Rider National Champions, having won at Bicton in June.

Elizabeth said: “He’s been amazing all week. I was sp pleased with his test, because he can get quite tense and stressy, but he was really with me and I couldn’t have asked for much more from him. He jumped like his always does – amazingly. He has his own unique technique, but he tries so hard and gets the job done. We were held at the start of the cross-country, which hasn’t happened to me with him before, so that was a new experience, but it didn’t seem to bother him at all.


Fourteen-year-old Big Boss Melo was bought by the Barratts from France a year ago.

“It took us a bit of time to adjust to each other – he had been ridden by a man over there – and he is big, strong and bold-moving, but we seem to have gelled quite now,” said Elizabeth, who is very much hoping for a first British team appearance next month. 

Jemima Howden – also on the young rider squad short-list – took the runner-up spot on her father David’s Van Kaunitz on her dressage mark of 28.1, while yet another highly competitive under-21, Finn Healy, was third on Greannanstown Monbeg Joe. In fact, the next five placings in this section were all filled by British young rider team hopefuls – Isabelle Cook (Mexican Law, fourth), Josh Levett (This Ones On You, fifth and Huberthus AC, eighth), Anya Strilkowski (K, sixth) and Elizabeth Barratt, (Ride For Thais Chaman Dumontceau, seventh).

Saturday and Sunday at Burgham not only offer top-class sport, but also great fun for families, friends and children. There is a fun dog show on both days, have-a-go dog agility, and hobby horses for children to “ride”, unaffiliated showjumping on Saturday and a Thoroughbred and Ex-Racehorse Show on Sunday, alongside grassroots eventing classes.

Burgham also features an excellent range of tradestands and lots of delicious, locally-produced food and drink and public bars. It is situated in beautiful, tranquil Northumbrian countryside not far from the A1 between Morpeth and Alnwick. 

Visit www.burghaminternationalhorsetrials.co.uk to find out more and to buy tickets.

All the cross-country from Burgham is being shown live on ClipMyHorse.tv – visit www.clipmyhorse.tv/en_GB/ to watch.

IMAGES © 1st Class Images

25/07/2025 0 comment
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EventingNews

TOWNEND TEES UP ANOTHER BIG BURGHAM WIN

written by Editor

Oliver Townend has won Burgham International Horse Trials’ feature class – the CCI4*-S – an impressive seven times since 2016, and he has given himself the best possible chance of adding to that tally by leading the dressage after day one at the Northumbrian event.

Riding his 2024 Burgham winner, Paul and Diana Ridgeon’s Cooley Rosalent, the former world number one scored 23.9 in Project Pony-sponsored CCI4*-S section C. This gives him a narrow margin of 0.6 of a penalty over Izzy Taylor and Barrington Alice. Scotland’s Wills Oakden is in third with 25.3 on Keep It Cooley.

Cooley Rosalent, the 2024 Kentucky CCI5* champion, finished runner-up at Badminton this spring, and Burgham is only her second run back after her post-five-star break.

Oliver said: “‘Rosie’ feels fantastic. She feels a lot stronger again than she has felt previously; she’s developing all the time and I felt that some of her work was as good as it has ever been. She’s still slightly fresh, but more than anything this is a very important preparation run for a big event in the autumn.”

Oliver also triumphed in AW Jenkinson intermediate section J on a new ride, HK Horses’ Thunder Bird Z.

“I’ve only had him a very short time, but he’s won both of his first two runs with me within 10 days, and he’s very good fun to ride. He’s a beautiful horse who has been well-produced by Richard Howley and Morgan Kent of HK Horses,” said Oliver.

New Zealand’s Caroline Powell is in pole position in Holme Dodsworth Metals CCI4*-S section D with a dressage mark of 23.3 aboard Nicholas and Fiona Lambert’s 10-year-old Legally Grey.

Caroline said: “He was bought for Fiona Lambert’s ‘big birthday’ as a three-year-old and he’s the most stunning horse. Everyone has been very patient, and it’s lovely to show people now what he can do. There’s a lot more to come from him, which is very exciting.” 

Caroline has half a penalty in hand over Paris 2024 Olympic team gold medallists Tom McEwen and JL Dublin. Izzy Taylor and SBH Big Wall are third on 24.4.

Tom McEwen tops section A of the CCI3*-S, sponsored by WL Straughan & Son Ltd, after dressage on Alison Swinburn and John and Chloe Perry’s Brookfield Danny De Muze. The pair pulled off a score of 20.7, giving them a clear lead of 2.2 penalties over Sweden’s Therese Viklund and Sella. 

In the Houghton Country CCI3*-S section B, Bubby Upton is in the lead with a mark of 24.9 on Magic Roundabout IV, owned by her mother Rachel and the Zebedee Syndicate. Sitting in both second and third is Elizabeth Barratt on Big Boss Melo (26.5) and Ride For Thais Chaman Dumontceau (28). Elizabeth therefore is in prime position in the final trial for selection for the British team for the European Young Rider Championships next month.

Other winners today at Burgham included Lizzie Baugh, who took the Cussins Homes Open Intermediate on En Taro Des Vernier, and Clarke Johnstone, successful in Project Pony Intermediate section J1 on Ceralda. Novice section winners were Sean Henderson, Clarke Johnstone and Indie Vaughan-Jones.

Burgham continues on Friday (25 July) with showjumping and cross-country for the CCI3*-S sections and dressage for the CCI4*-S and CCI2*-S classes. On Saturday CCI4*-S showjumping and cross-country take centre stage.

Saturday and Sunday at Burgham not only offer top-class sport, but also great fun for families, friends and children. There is a fun dog show on both days, and hobby horses for children to “ride”. There’s unaffiliated showjumping on Saturday and a Thoroughbred and Ex-Racehorse Show on Sunday, alongside grassroots eventing classes.

Burgham also features great tradestands and lots of delicious, locally-produced food and drink and public bars. It is situated in beautiful, tranquil Northumbrian countryside not far from the A1 between Morpeth and Alnwick. If you’re looking for a family day out that’s really affordable this summer, you can’t do better than Burgham International Horse Trials (24-27 July) – visit www.burghaminternationalhorsetrials.co.uk to find out more and to buy tickets.

IMAGE © 1st Class Images

24/07/2025 0 comment
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