Thousands flock to Badminton Horse Trials’ (By Oliver, 12, Jill Dando News @ Worle)

By Oliver, 12, Jill Dando News (reporting at the scene)

Thousands of horse enthusiasts flocked to the Badminton Horse Trials Cross Country Day! 

As it is the most popular day of the famed trials, all of the tickets had sold out! Among the queueing for hours and the swamp-like ground, all of the people we spoke to enjoyed the experience! 

The day kicked off with the Shetland Grand Nationals, although we were not able to take a picture of this due to the traffic. Then, the cross country began. A spectator said,’’This is such an opportunity to promote a less popular sport, and I am looking forward to watching the amazing event happen.’

The winner of this event was Rosalind Canter with Lordships Graffalo, becoming the fifth rider in history – and the third British woman, following in the distinguished footsteps of Lucinda Green and Ginny Eliot – to win both Badminton and the world championships, which she did in 2018.

Oliver Townend was second on Karen Shuter, Angela Hislop and Val Ryan’s Ballaghmore Class, a 16-year-old horse with an extraordinary record of his own: he has never finished lower than fifth in a five-star event, winning two of them, Burghley and Kentucky, plus an Olympic gold medal in Tokyo. “He’s unreal,” said Oliver. “He’s had too many second places – blame the jockey – but it’s a huge relief that he’s had yet another good result.”

As well as the amazing trials, there were stalls full of equestrian gear, books, carvings and dog toys, as the event was dog friendly.

For the younger audience, there was a Pony Mag section in a large marquee, where readers could get signatures from influencing young riders such as Meg Elphick, Esme Higgs, and Harlow Luna White.

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