Badminton heroes on parade

Wednesday 7th - 11th May 2025

Badminton heroes on parade

Seventy-five years of history come together this weekend as past Badminton winners will attend a special breakfast and photocall in the main arena at 10am on Saturday morning.

Jane Holderness-Roddam (nee Bullen) is the longest-standing winner — she triumphed back in 1968 on Our Nobby when working as a student nurse – followed by Richard Walker, who holds the record as the youngest ever winner, aged 18, in 1969 on Pasha.

Also present will be record six-time winner Lucinda Green, four-time winners Mark Phillips and Mark Todd, plus triple winners Ginny Elliot, Ian Stark and Pippa Funnell, who has the distinction of competing this year, 22 years after her first victory, on Supreme Rock in 2002.

Our Nobby’s cross-country bit, dual winner Richard Meade’s stopwatch and the saddle Lucinda Green used during her debut in 1972 are among the memorabilia on display in the Badminton Horse Trials Museum this weekend.

Other former winners in action this weekend are William Fox-Pitt, Jonelle Price, Laura Collett and the defending champion and world number two Ros Canter, who is the top-rated rider in this year’s competition, according to data analysts EquiRatings.

Seven of the world’s top 10 ranked event riders will be competing at Badminton — Ros Canter, Boyd Martin (USA), Tom McEwen, Harry Meade, who has three rides entered, Tim Price (NZL), Wills Oakden and Laura Collett — and many more besides with strong chances of making history as the winner of the 75th-anniversary Badminton Horse Trials and receiving the MARS Trophy from HM The Queen on Sunday afternoon.

The action starts at 4.30pm this afternoon (Wednesday, May 8) with the First Horse Inspection in front of Badminton House. The Ground Jury comprises Sandy Phillips as President — a former runner-up at Badminton — plus Jane Hamlin from the USA and Christian Steiner from Austria.

Photo: Jane Holderness-Roddam riding 1978 winner Warrior