Jock Paget takes out the 2013 Mitsubishi Motors Badminton Horse Trials
What a finish! It quite literally all came down to the very last fence of the day. Michael Jung had just a few time penalties up his sleeve and as he made his way around the course, he looked set to take out the title. However it was not meant to be and as he jumped the last, the slightest touch from Sam saw the front pole fall in what seemed like slow motion.
A gasp from the crowd, a pause and then manic cheering followed as everyone realised that the young Jonathan (Jock) Paget had taken out the 2013 Mitsubishi Motors Badminton Horse Trials.
Michael Jung and Sam take second place
Jock and Clifton Promise were the 13th combination to jump around the challenging track clear and under time. Their round was brilliant. Amongst all the hype of the Rolex Grand Slam and the supposed domination of Jung, they kept their calm and jumped fantastically. Ironically, the 29 year old Kiwi spent the winter training with Jung and it seems the German may have helped him a little too much!
“I came here knowing that I had two great horses and that I could win, I didn’t think I would win but I knew I could,” Jock said.
“He’s like two horses in one,” Jock says. “I’ve never had a horse like him.”
The Kiwi may have been a Badminton debutant but he is no stranger to the top level of competition and he drew on his previous experience.
“The last couple of 4* stars I’ve made little mistakes which have cost me the win.” Watching Jock ride around Badminton this week, it is hard to believe that he has only been riding for just over ten years.
“I just started riding because I enjoyed it, then the more I did, the more I wanted to do,” he said. “Badminton was one of those events that I watched on video and thought, you know it would be cool to be there one day but it was a very distant dream.”
Michael Jung came to Badminton to win but it was not meant to be. He did everything right. A fabulous test, a clear cross country round and it wasn’t until the very last fence that it all came undone.
“I don’t know what happened,” Michael said. “But he jumped really well on the course. He jumped with a lot of power, I had good line to the last fence, I had good rhythm but the pole goes down.”
Will we see Michael back here next year? “Maybe,” he says. “I’m not sure but we will see.” We could see him back in the UK soon though to contest some more of the bigger events. “I would like to come to Burghley.”
Michael Jung interview after show jumping
“It would have been nice to win it but we haven’t and we tried very hard,” Andrew says
The rivalry between Andrew Nicholson and William Fox-Pitt is legendary and with them both battling for the Rolex Grand Slam this week, it was at an all time high. Nicholson sat in fourth place after the cross country just behind Fox-Pitt, meaning he needed a clear round and the people in front of him had to drop rails if he was to take out the title. As he flew through the finish flags with all fences intact he threw his hands in the air and urged the crowd to roar. He wanted to make damn sure that William knew he had gone clear and the pressure was on.
“Nereo warmed up very well, he felt really fresh and supple,” Andrew said. “I was pretty focused on what I had to do; Nereo is a very, very good jumper.”
The Kiwi has enjoyed the coverage that the Grand Slam has brought to the sport, particularly the fuss it is causing back in New Zealand. Evidently equestrian is receiving more attention in the news than the rugby at the moment, much to the delight of the Kiwi reporters in the media centre (and of course our very own Libby Law)!
Meanwhile William accepted his loss of the Rolex Grand Slam with typical grace and is looking forward to a bit of peace and quiet!
Interview with William Fox-Pitt
Highest placed Aussies: Chris Burton and Leilani finish in 10th place
The Australians had a mixed day in the show jumping ring. All performed admirably but unfortunately none could secure a clear round. Chris Burton and Holstein Park Leilani had a lovely round, unfortunately knocking one down. They finished on a score of 49.4 and in tenth place.
On his second horse Paulank Brockagh, Sam knocked the first and then finished the round beautifully with a few time penalties. All in all, a great effort for the horse's first attempt at this level.
Paul Tapner wears his characteristic look of determination
Paul Tapner and Kilronan were looking great but sadly had the seventh fence down although they still finished in the top third of the field. Murray Lamperd was also tripped up by Kelvin Bywater’s challenging track, with four rails. They still finished their first Badminton with a smile on their face.
Badminton debutants Murray Lamperd and Under the Clocks
It has been a fantastically hectic five days here at Badminton! The quality of the field is undoubtedly the best in Badminton history and it has made for some incredible viewing.
It was expected that history would be made coming into this event and it certainly has been. It may not have been the result that everyone was predicting but Jock Paget has become the second person in history to have won Badminton on their first attempt, the first being fellow Kiwi Sir Mark Todd who won his debut on Southern Comfort II in 1980. And that has to be one of the greatest things about this sport, you truly never know what to expect.
Click here for full final results
