The sixteenth time was the charm.
New Zealand’s Caroline Powell won the MARS Badminton Horse Trials’ Whitbread Trophy on Greenacres Special Cavalier after 15 previous outings in the event.
Caroline Powell of New Zealand with Badminton’s Whitbread trophy. (MARS Badminton Horse Trials Photo)
“I wasn’t ready for that,” said Caroline, 51.
“I thought third place would be great, but to win – wow. It’s awesome and it means so much – I’m not in my youth and just to get a horse to this stage is difficult enough, but to win – I can’t believe it.”
There was a huge shakeup in the standings during Sunday’s show jumping phase on the track designed by Kelvin Bywater at the seventy-fifth anniversary of the British fixture. Another New Zealander, Tim Price, dropped from first after cross-country to eighth with five knockdowns on Vitali, who is not known for his show jumping prowess. (To read about cross-country day, go to the second feature on this website or click here.)
Even more remarkable was the slide of Great Britain’s William Fox-Pitt, who went from a close second with Grafennacht following a brilliant cross-country trip, to an unlucky thirteenth after six knockdowns.
“I should have pulled the plug yesterday,” he said, referring to his wonderful cross-country ride, “but I have lived with a few moments in my career and it will all be fine tomorrow. I’m 55, I’m in one piece and I’ve been lucky.”
The mainstay of so many British teams, William had suggested that this could be his final Badminton, He confirmed it after his ride, noting the time has come, though he thinks he will still compete at a lower level.
As for Grafennacht, William said she will continue with a younger rider.
Caroline, seventh after dressage and sixth after cross-country, was among only three who achieved double-clear in the show jumping. She pulled it off on her 11-year-old Irish sporthorse mare (Cavalier Royale X Touchdown).
Caroline finished with a score of 43.2 penalties, ahead of Ireland’s Lucy Latta on RCA Patron Saint (45.2). Without just one of her two knockdowns, Lucy would have been the winner on a big day for the Irish.
But it already was special. Lucy is the highest-placed Irish rider at Badminton since Eddie Boylan won in 1965.
“I made a total rider error at the third fence, but my horse was phenomenal this week and I feel there’s loads more to come for him,” Lucy commented.
Caroline Powell and Greenacres Special Cavalier on their way to Badminton victory. (Photo MARS Badminton Horse Trials)
An even bigger leap was made by third-place Alexander Bragg of Great Britain. He came up from fifty-first after dressage with Quindiva, moving to tenth following cross-country and elevated himself to the podium with one of the double-clear show jumping rounds. His total was the same as Lucy’s, but the tie was broken by her lower cross-country score.
Caroline, who retired her other mount, Aldo, on cross-country, came up with her victorious mare from forty-sixth place in dressage. But as they say, it’s not a dressage competition.
Vastly experienced, Caroline, a former point-to-pointer, first came to Britain as a groom for three-time Badminton winner Ian Stark. She won team bronze at the 2010 World Equestrian Games, and was on her country’s 2008 Olympic team.
She finished thirtieth at Badminton last year on “Cav,” and sixth in the 2023 Maryland 5-star (where Ian designed the cross-country route) less than five months later. The Badminton trip was to get the mare used to crowds and atmosphere, in case she is picked for her nation’s Olympic team in Paris this summer.
Caroline and Cav going cross-country. (MARS Badminton Horse Trials Photo).
“Cav has had her tricky moments,” said Caroline, “but to be here, winning Badminton, is a dream come true.”
The top U.S. rider was UK-based Grace Taylor, who wound up eighteenth with 62.6 penalties, having moved up to nineteenth from her thirty-first place after dressage with a cross-country trip free of jumping faults.
But two knockdowns in the show jumping enabled her to rise only one place in the final tally. If she had been free of show jumping errors, she would have been just outside the top 10 in eleventh place.
Grace is the daughter of Ann Hardaway Sutton, who rode for the U.S. in the Seoul Olympics. Her father is Nigel Taylor, who like Ann, was a veteran of Badminton and Burghley, and is a British eventing selector, course designer and coach.
Three knockdowns and time penalties put another U.S. rider, Tiana Coudray on Cancaras Girl in the twenty-fifth spot. They had been sixth after dressage. Cosby Green and Copper Beach collected 28 jumping faults and 1.6 time penalties to place thirty-first.
Boyd Martin, who accumulated 60 jumping penalties on cross-country for a run-out and then crossing his own track on the way to the alternate route, was thirty-fourth with Tsetserleg in the field of 37 who finished the event. It was Boyd’s first Badminton completion, and like Tim Price, he has now completed every 5-star in the world.
He wound up on 122.6 penalties after dropping two rails in show jumping. Hopes had been high after he placed fourth in dressage with the horse he calls Thomas.
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