Reigning Champions Head Badminton Entries 

The current European Three Day Event Champion, Tina Cook, World Champion Zara Phillips and last year’s winner, Oliver Townend are amongst the entries for the Mitsubishi Motors Badminton Horse Trials, which run at the Duke of Beaufort’s park from 30^th April to 3^rd May.  Tina will be bringing Miners Frolic, who triumphed at Fontainebleau last summer, for his first attempt at the world famous competition, while Oliver has among his four handed entry, Carousel Quest, which won Burghley last year.  Zara is coming with Glenbuck, sixteenth in 2008.

Almost 150 entries were submitted to the ultimate equestrian challenge, of which the starting figure of 85 have been accepted. The remainder are on a waiting list in order of qualifying points. A strong British entry includes two other previous Mitsubishi Motors Trophy winners, William Fox-Pitt, whose choices include Macchiato and Idalgo, and Mary King with three possible rides. British team members Sharon Hunt and Tankers Town and Daisy Berkeley (nee Dick) with Spring Along are also on the list.

With the sport of Three Day Eventing becoming ever more international, fifteen countries have possible representatives, including for the first time Alex Hua Tian from China, (via Eton),  Aistis Vitkauskas from Lithuania, Portugal’s Duarte Seabra, South Africa’s Alexander Peternell and, some way down the waiting list, Brazil’s Carlos Paro. More familiar nations to Badminton’s 120,000 cross country day crowd include Australia, France, Belgium, Ireland, Italy, New Zealand, Germany and the USA.

To accentuate the international element of the sport, last year’s winner Oliver Townend will be in the USA the week before Badminton attempting to win one of Badminton’s associate sponsors, Rolex’s, title event, and the £230,000 Rolex Grand Slam, for winning Badminton, Burghley and Kentucky in a row.  It’s only been done once before, when Britain’s Pippa Funnell, pulled off the feat at Burghley in 2003.

The HSBC FEI Classics (the series for the world’s top rated ‘4 star’ events) runs this year for the third time. William Fox-Pitt and Oliver Townend were the first two winners and this accumulator prize will again be a major target for the leading riders, who will also have selection for the World Equestrian Games to be held in Kentucky in September high on their wish list.

The thrilling cross country day at Badminton is being run this year on SUNDAY 2^nd May, with the final show jumping phase on Mayday Bank Holiday Monday.