Hey EN, a quick note:
On Saturday, July 18, two statements from British Eventing were posted informing us that two serious incidents had taken place at competitions — one at Swalcliffe in Oxfordshire and one at Penrith in Cumbria. Both events were abandoned for the remainder of the weekend, and live scores were removed from the scoring platform out of respect for those affected. The full statement released by British Eventing can be found here.
Following other losses in our sport, EN has undertaken the following protocol:
These incidents represent incredibly dark days within our sport. We understand that the news cycle is cruel, particularly in cases like this. To help keep the cycle from perpetuating in the light of such loss, EN will continue to publish stories and news on an as-needed/timely basis, but we will refrain from sharing these updates on our social media platforms for the next few days. We feel as powerless as anyone in these situations and feel that the least we can do is not move on lightly. We will also not speculate on the circumstances of the incidents, nor will we allow this to take place in the comments sections.
We also know that there’s a World Championship (two of them — one this weekend at Millstreet for U25 riders and one next month at Aachen for Seniors) right at our doorstep. We’ll be covering these events to honor our commitment to our sponsors as well as to continue to provide coverage of the sport’s key competitions. However, we hope you’ll understand that we don’t feel it appropriate to approach these with our usual happy hype. Our content will be quality, but out of respect to all of those we have lost, we hope to offer this as a time of reflection.
Our thoughts are with all of those affected by these losses and we work for a safe sport in everything we do. We thank you for your understanding.
Anyone affected is encouraged to seek support through the British Eventing Support Trust Helpline, which is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, on 07780 008877.
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There’s a slightly sombre mood in the air this morning at the final horse inspection for the FEI World Championship for Under-25s. That heaviness comes in the wake of a shock withdrawal: that of overnight leaders Alice Casburn and her remarkable eighteen-year-old homebred Topspin, who climbed from 16th place to first when delivering the fastest round of the day yesterday with just 2.8 time penalties.
David Sheerin, chef d’equipe of the British team, shared a statement on social media that reads: “Alice and Topspin produced a world class cross country performance, and Topspin completed the course in excellent style. Alice knows her horse better than anyone, and when she felt he was not quite 100% this morning, she made the right decision. That is the mark of true horsemanship. At this level, welfare will always come first, and the whole team fully supported the decision not to present. We are incredibly proud of both Alice and Topspin and everything they achieved this week.”
Alice’s is not the only withdrawal from the competition, nor indeed from the top ten: Ireland’s pathfinder Jenny Kuehnle, tenth overnight with Sammy Davis Junior, also opted not to present this morning. French pathfinders Faustin Forreau and Danaos de Grece, 23rd after cross-country, also withdrew overnight.
Cerys Macaulay and Kananaskis. Photo by Hannah Cole Photography.
There was one hold in the course of proceedings: British team member Cerys Macaulay suffered a tense few minutes with the eighteen-year-old Kananaskis, seventh after cross-country, but was ultimately passed and will showjump in a bid for both individual and team medals.
That leaves just thirty horses and riders left in the mix as we look ahead to the showjumping finale, which will begin at 13.00 local time (8.00 a.m. EST). Nineteen-year-old Irishman Tom Nestor and Cooley Diamond Dancer now hold the provisional lead on a two-phase score of 37.1, just 2.9 penalties ahead of second-placed Calvin Böckmann and Altair de la Cense of Germany. Great Britain’s Jasmine Underwood and Indian Girl G sit third, also within a rail of the lead. Australia’s Lamoza Velisha and Call Me Cooley and the USA’s Olivia Dutton and Jewelent both step into the top ten.
Great Britain retains first place in the team standings, though now by less than a rail in hand over Germany, who step into silver position following Jenny Kuehnle’s departure from the competition, which pushes Ireland down to bronze – but by just one penalty. France sits fourth and the US fifth – but the podium looks certain to be the current top three in some order, as there’s more than forty penalties between Ireland and France, and more than a hundred between France and the USA.
We’ll be back soon with the full story of the finale of this inaugural championship, but in the meantime, we also just want to take a moment to raise a glass to Topspin – a horse who still lives in the stable he was born in and who, with his young rider, has been to ten five-stars and finished in the top ten in five of them. If there’s ever been a more consummate under-25 horse, and one who’s bridged the gap more comprehensively between Young Riders and senior competition, we have yet to meet it.
Go Eventing.
The revised top ten going into showjumping.
FEI Under-25 World Championships at Millstreet, presented by Connolly’s Red Mills: Website | Live Stream | Entries & Scoring | EN’s Coverage
