Brits, Brits everywhere at the top of the leaderboard in both the 4-star Short and 5-star three-day events at the Kentucky Horse Park, where the dressage phase wrapped up on Friday.
In the Defender 5-star, a lovely, fluid test from Tom McEwen and JL Dublin was marked at 24.6 penalties, overtaking another British rider, World Champion Yasmin Ingham with Banzai du Loir, who led on 26 penalties after the first day of competition. That made the British contingent 1-2 in the featured division.
Tom McEwen and JL Dublin. (Photo © 2024 by Nancy Jaffer)
There is a tie at the top of the Cosequin Lexington 4-star between the USA’s Liz Halliday on Miks Master C, who was third in the Kentucky 5-star last year, and U.S.-based British rider Lucienne Bellissimo on DYRI (yes, she’s the wife of Mark Bellissimo, a Wellington, Fla., developer who is used to making headlines of his own). Both women were marked at 26 penalties.
But the Brit one might expect to be at the head of the 5-star rankings instead stands equal eighth. That’s three-time Kentucky winner and world number one Oliver Townend with the promising Cooley Rosalent, who started out with a mistake—going from the halt into the canter instead of the trot—which didn’t endear her to the judges, one would guess. Oliver is tied with 22-year-old German soldier Calvin Bockmann on The Phantom of the Opera with 31.4 penalties.
Analyzing his test, Oliver said, “I thought the exceptional bits were very good, and the mistakes were the mistakes.
“I felt the good bits weren’t rewarded really and the mistakes were whacked obviously, which is correct. But when you sit there and watch it and see late changes being awarded 7’s and 7.5’s, I think something needs to happen.” Then he hastily added, “That isn’t any sort of description to do with my test.”
He noted the fans (15,127 came to the park today) “were very noisy when we went in and then it went very quiet and then someone dropped a tin or something in (during) the walk, It did feel like things were unfolding against us. At the same time,” he said of his nine-year-old mare, “she’ll come on from that experience and it’s definitely not going to be a dressage competition.”
Oliver Townend tips his hat to the pony clubber managing the entrance to the arena. (Photo © 2024 by Nancy Jaffer)
As he always does, Tom gave credit for much of “Dubs’” training to the 13-year-old gelding’s former rider, Nicola Wilson, who was badly injured in a fall and passed the ride on to him. Tom inherited the horse and added his own touches to what is a formidable package.
“For sure it’s all down to Nicola; she’s done all the work for me,” he said. “I’m really lucky and fortunate to have a 5-star horse after all the hard work and training has been put in, and I get to play and tinker around with the movements to get the scores. But it takes hours of work no one ever sees so you can perform on a stage like this.”
He was second at Kentucky last year to Tamie Smith and Mai Baum, who became the first American winners since 2008. Mai Baum was going to compete in the 4-star at Kentucky in preparation for the Olympic selection process, but he was injured and remained in California. Tamie said he’s getting better and she will assess him after she heads home next week.
In the 4-star, Lucienne said she was “absolutely thrilled” with her horse, who she characterized as “one of those geldings who is a little bit introverted. Every time I go up the center line, he just loses a little bit of his confidence. And today was the first time he really started to let me in. He finished in a confident fashion, so that was fantastic.”
Lucienne, who also stands thirty-first with Tremanton, said, “I very much hope to be back here for the 5 star next year with the same two horses.”
A problem with his final lead change brought down the score for Miks Master C, known as Mickey, but Elisabeth said he “remembers the 5-star, and he is keen and ready to go, but he’s so professional now and a horse with so much power. He was a bit excitable today, so I just tried to keep him calm in the warmup.”
In the 5-star, Elisabeth and Cooley Nutcracker share the status of being the highest-placed American so far with Lauren Nicholson and the veteran Vermiculus. They each are third on 30.6 penalties.
While the Irish sporthorse Cooley Nutcracker is only 10 years old, Vermiculus, a fiery Anglo-Arab, has been there, done that at age 17. He first competed in the Kentucky 5-star as a 10-year-old.
When Lauren heard her score, she said, “I was shocked at where we were,” but noted some of the brilliant horses left the door open when they had a few not-so-brilliant moments.
The fact that Vermiculus did so well after a layoff last year made me wonder if Lauren, an Olympic veteran, is considering trying for the Paris Games this summer.
Lauren Nicholson and Vermiculus. (Photo © 2024 by Nancy Jaffer)
“I’ve thought about the Olympics every day of my life since I was six years old,” she revealed, adding she’d be lying if she said it didn’t cross her mind daily.
“There’s a point in your career when you are obsessed to get there, and then there’s a point in your career where you only want to go there if you’re going to be competitive. Making sure all the boxes are ticked and…I’m being as competitive as possible in preparing myself and my horse. I’m not interested in going just to get the accolade. I want to go to win medals for the U.S.”
But at the moment, we’re thinking more about Saturday’s cross-country than Paris
Toward that end, the clever folks at Equiratings are offering insight about the 5-star and who might win. Here’s what they point out:
This is one of the strongest Kentucky 5* fields since 2015, since it includes the current World Champion and a European Champion, as well as the world number one..
- Oliver Townend is making his hundredth five-star start. His first was in 2004 at Burghley. (30 x Burghley, 23 x Badminton, 17 x Luhmühlen, 10 x Kentucky 3 Day, 10 x Pau, 3 x Maryland, 3 x World Championships, 2 x Bicton, 1 x Olympics). A seven-time 5-star winner is partnered with last year’s Blenheim young horse winner, Cooley Rosalent.
- Since 2010, there have been seven British winners at Kentucky
- 25 Kentucky titles have been claimed (1998 to 2023) by riders from five different nations. The score from the two most prolific nations is currently Great Britain 8 – USA 7
- The reigning World Champions Yasmin Ingham and Banzai du Loir won CHIO Aachen in 2023. They have placed top 5 in 13 of their last 18 CCI4* runs. Prediction center gives Yasmin and Banzai a 25 percent win chance and 49 percent chance of a podium finish
- Tom McEwen entered this competition off the back of winning Kronenburg 4-star Short in March. Prediction center rates him with a 31 percnt chance of a win and 52 percent chance of podium finish at Kentucky
- Boyd Martin and On Cue – A two time 5* winning rider partnered with his Maryland 5* winning horse
- Every winner since 2010 has come from the top 5 after Dressage
- Seven out of the winners since 2010 have finished on their Dressage score
- Every Kentucky 5-star winner since 2010 has been in the top five after the first phase
- 11 of the last 13 cross-country leaders have gone on to win
- Quantum Leap (Doug Payne) – going for 4 from 4 perfect jumping clears
- Looking at statistics – only nine of the 43 starters will jump clear
- 11 of the last 13 cross country winners have gone on to win on Sunday
For the 4-star results click here
For the 5-star results, click here