New Zealand has enjoyed success at the Kentucky CCI5* over the years, most recently with both Tim and Jonelle Price on the podium in second and third places in 2021, but there will be some new Kiwi faces at the Defender Kentucky Three Day Event presented by Mars Equestrian in April 2024.
2022 World Championship team bronze medallist Monica Spencer is making the USA her home, with her family having already left New Zealand in recent days (listen to our interview with Monica about moving to the USA here). She will be contesting the Kentucky 5* with her top horse Artist, who competed at Maryland CCI5* last year, while her younger horses Marvel, Aviator and will join fellow eventer Matthew Grayling’s horse Trudeau on a flight to the USA in the next few days.
Athens 2004 New Zealand team member and 2001 Adelaide CCI5* winner, Matthew Grayling is also heading to Kentucky to give the CCI5* a crack with his top horse Trudeau, owned by Winks Foley. Matthew and Trudeau have proved themselves to be one of the best combinations in New Zealand in recent years, with three consecutive three-day national titles and two one day titles to their name.
It has been a while between Olympics for the 60-year-old dairy farmer who will base with Boyd Martin in the lead up to Kentucky and then re-assess the lead-up to Paris 2024 following the event.
“Paris is at the back of my mind. We’d be a longshot but you’ve just got to do what you can and hopefully do it reasonably well” Matthew told ESNZ “It really comes down to on the day. To make a Games team at this age would be pretty special and quite an honour to say you had a career that long and still competing at top level.”
“The 60-year-old dairy farmer trying to take on the big boys again. It is a neat story isn’t it?” It certainly is and we’ll be following closely, with our on-the-ground coverage from Kentucky by Samantha Clark in April.
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