Following an outstanding cross-country round, Laura Collet and London 52 added nothing to their dressage score of 20.3 to hold onto their lead in the Longines CCI5*-L. Kitty King and Vendredi Biats are currently in runner-up position on 26.8, closely followed by Yasmin Ingham with Rehy DJ on 27.5.
Twelve competitors managed to steer round Mike Etherington-Smith’s influential cross-country course clear within the time.
The podium positions are still held by British riders. Laura Collett and London 52 were an absolute joy to watch and the rider was overjoyed after her round: “That horse is absolutely sensational! I’m so lucky to ride him. He’s a dream to ride in the dressage arena and today he goes around the course like a demon. He’s just phenomenal. He’s so tall and has got a massive stride, but he rides like a pony because he’s so adjustable. A lot of us slightly underestimated parts of the course. You had to be on your A-game at every single fence. The main thing now is to keep him happy and rested. Obviously, Kitty’s horse is an amazing jumper and tomorrow’s another day. Hopefully he comes out and jumps like I know he can to add another five-star title to his résumé, but he owes me nothing. He’s done so much for my career and I’m just super proud of how he went today.”
Kitty King was also full of praise for her horse after a brilliant cross-country round: “We built our rhythm and our speed. It went by so quickly and he was foot-perfect and super straight everywhere. It is such a relief how well he went. I was starting to doubt myself but I know that he’s a five-star horse.”
Yasmin Ingham’s round was a cross-country masterclass: “I couldn’t be happier with Piglet. He was absolutely incredible and helped me out a few times. He dug deep and moved up on all his minutes. I knew the first water was going to be a bit long because he tends to pop in, but I just shook the reins and he took off like a total pro. I’m very proud of him.”
How to watch: Horse & Country+ are live streaming both competitions with German and English commentary https://horseandcountry.tv
For start- and result lists: www.luhmuehlen.de
Images: TGL/Annette Dölger
