Oliver Townend Poised for a Hat Trick at the Land Rover Kentucky Three-Day Event presented by MARS Equestrian™
Tim Price (NZL) and Xavier Faer at the Land Rover Kentucky Three-Day Event presented by MARS Equestrian held in Lexington, KY.
Boyd Martin and On Cue Second, Highest Placed Americans
Lexington, Kentucky – April 24, 2021 – The leaderboard looks very different after an exciting day of cross-country at The Land Rover Kentucky Three-Day Event presented by MARS Equestrian™ (LRK3DE) at the Kentucky Horse Park.
Oliver Townend (GBR) turned in two clear rounds Saturday and sits first overnight with Ballaghmor Class and eighth with Cooley Master Class. Both horses lost a shoe on course, and persistent rain made the footing slick.
“For me this was the toughest cross-country course for a long, long time at the Five Star level. It’s right up there with the very toughest in the world,” Townend said. “Both horses had a tough enough time out there. I’m still very emotional about how amazing they both are. They’ve both literally given me their heart and soul today.”
By the time Townend left the startbox with Ballaghmor Class, it had been raining heavily for some time. The horse lost a shoe at fence seven, so Townend said he tried to protect his mount around the slippery turns. Still, they crossed the finish only two seconds over the optimum time to take the lead on 27.3.
“He’s an unbelievable cross-country machine. With a shoe he could have been ten or 12 seconds inside the time without any sweat,” Townend said of the Irish gelding owned by Karyn Shutter, Angela Hislop, and Val Ryan. “I’d love to be stylish and ride the round I’d like to ride, but it wasn’t meant to be this time. It was rough and tumble and start and stop and just trying to keep him on his feet.”
Townend praised Ballaghmor Class’s “tenacity, ability, strength, and complete robustness to do the performance he did” in difficult conditions.
Likewise, Townend had to work to bring Angela Hislop’s Cooley Master Class home clear with 6.4 time penalties.
“Cooley Master Class didn’t have a smooth trip at all, but every time I gave him a squeeze he stuck his head down and did what he could,” Townend said.
“He lost a back shoe early on and slipped and slid. He wasn’t full of confidence and he wasn’t jumping particularly high, but at the same time he did what good horses do and dug deep and I was very happy with him.”
Townend is now in a position to take a third consecutive win in the CCI5*-L, but with the top eight all within a rail of first place, there is no margin for error in the final phase.
“We’ll celebrate what they’ve given me today and tomorrow’s another day,” Townend said.
Boyd Martin (USA) is the highest placed American, sitting in second place after cross-country and leading the Land Rover/USEF Five Star-L National Championship presented by MARS Equestrian™. He and On Cue, a French mare owned by Martin and Christine, Thomas, and Tommie Turner, made it through the finish flags clear with just 0.8 time penalties to add. They head to show jumping hot on Townend’s heels with a score of 27.8.
“She’s a lovely horse. She’s got an awesome gallop and she’s a good jumper. This year she’s given me a great feel in the preparation events,” Martin said.
“Riding this event for over a decade, I would say this was one of the harder cross-country courses that I have seen designed here. I watched a couple of early horses and it seemed like you had to start fast and stay as quick, nifty, and direct as you can.”
Unfortunately, Martin fell off Long Island T and Tsetserleg TSF, both of which were placed in the top 11 after dressage. Martin said he is stiff and sore but has been checked out by the doctor and is good to go. The horses, he reported, are also okay.
“If you want to win, you’ve got to have a crack at it,” Martin said. “I’d rather fail trying to win it than just tippy-toeing around. That’s the sport and there’s no shame in going for it.”
Tim Price (NZL) and Xavier Faer round out the top three after cross-country. He posted one of only three double-clear rounds in the CCI5*-L for a two-phase score of 28.2. Price is also sitting in ninth with Bango, having added only 1.2 time penalties and moving up from 24th.
“I leaned on the advantage of having seen quite a few [rounds] before Xavier Faer. You could see a lot of horses coming home quite well and recovering well so I thought there was an opportunity to go for a bit more at the beginning of the course to try and get up on the time and then just maintain it home. That’s what I set out to achieve,” Price said.
Price describes Xavier Faer, owned by himself, Trisha Rickards, and Nigella Hall, as a good “rhythm horse” who can sometimes lose focus and momentum.
“Today he set out like he was really on his job,” Price said. “It was a good, smooth round. He’s a big striding horse and can do a lot of different things with his scope and strength. I think that’s what gives us the ability to go inside the time.”
Time penalties proved to be the deciding factor in the Five Star. Dressage leader Marilyn Little jumped clear with RF Scandalous but added 28.4 time faults to move well down the leaderboard. Tamie Smith and Mai Baum, who were second after dressage, activated a frangible pin on course for 11 penalties in addition to 6.0 time penalties.
Tamie Smith and EnVogue Lead Lexington CCI4*-S
Following the conclusion of the Five Star, the Lexington CCI4*-S took to Derek di Grazia’s course, which by now was saturated from the rain. Out of 40 horses, 15 were eliminated on course and 14 finished without jumping penalties. No one finished under the optimum time.
Dressage leader Tamie Smith had the final ride of the day with Ruth Bley’s EnVogue. They jumped clear with 9.6 time penalties and will go to show jumping with a two-phase score of 35.
“It rode very tough and big,” Smith said. “EnVogue was the star. It was a blast and so fun to zip around on her. She just came out like a beast and was so quick on her feet. It was really fun.”
EnVogue was originally entered in the Five Star but Smith moved her to the Four Star for more experience at the level.
“You can never second guess your gut,” Smith said. “The slow way is always the fast way.”
Visit the Virtual Experience Webpage to find all the information you need for the 2021 LRK3DE.
About The Land Rover Kentucky Three-Day Event Presented by MARS Equestrian™
Known as “The Best Weekend All Year,” the Land Rover Kentucky Three-Day Event Presented by MARS Equestrian™ (LRK3DE) hosts one of only seven annual Five Star three-day events in the world and is serving as a U.S. selection trial for this summer’s Tokyo Olympic Games. As the United States’ premier three-day event, LRK3DE serves as the Land Rover/USEF CCI-5*-L Eventing National Championship Presented by MARS Equestrian™ for U.S. athletes.
A new partnership between EEI and the Kentucky Horse Park Foundation combined with the support of US Equestrian (USEF), longstanding sponsors Land Rover, MARS Equestrian™ and Rolex and many other valued event sponsors, plus the collective efforts of the many individuals who donated, ensured that the nation’s premier equestrian event will be held with its traditional CCI5*-L in the afternoons and a new CCI4*-S in the mornings. Although the event is being held without spectators, it can be seen live online on the USEF Network, free of charge with a USEF Fan Membership, which is available at no cost using the code LRK3DE21.
The Land Rover Kentucky Three-Day Event Presented by MARS Equestrian™ is indebted to all of its sponsors for their support, without which the event could not be possible.
About Equestrian Events, Inc.
Equestrian Events, Inc. (EEI) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit charitable Kentucky corporation that was established initially to produce the World Three-Day Event Championships at the Kentucky Horse Park in 1978. Following the success of those championships, EEI established an annual event that evolved into the world-renowned Kentucky Three-Day Event which draws more than 80,000 spectators to the Kentucky Horse Park each year. EEI also produces other events and supports several local and equine charities. EEI has donated more than $725,000 to various charities since 2011. Further information about EEI and the Land Rover Kentucky Three-Day Event is available at www.kentuckythreedayevent.com.
About the Kentucky Horse Park Foundation
Since its inception in 1985, the Kentucky Horse Park Foundation has provided over $25 million worth of improvements, helping make the Kentucky Horse Park the leading equestrian facility of its kind in the world. The Kentucky Horse Park Foundation is a non-profit 501(c)3 organization dedicated to enhancing, expanding, and improving the Kentucky Horse Park. Further information is available at www.khpfoundation.org.
