Claire Deuten and Lord Flashheart win the Open Intermediate at Catton Park Horse Trials 2023
An Eventful Life filmed all competitors on cross country at
Catton Park Horse Trials 2023 - order or view videos here
We predicted a win for Tom McEwen at the new Catton Park Horse Trials last weekend but, as it turned out, it was two wins not one and not in the class we expected!
While his Team GBR friends Laura Collett, Kitty King and Yasmin Ingham were busy reaching the podium at Luhmuhlen CCI5*, Tom was busy at the other end of the eventing scale with some ‘babies’ who may very well end up at a 5* one day.
On Saturday at Catton Park, Tom won the Novice Section A and C on board the six-year-old Quintus and the seven-year-old Cecelia Cobra.
Cecelia Cobra is owned by James and Jo Lambert, owners of JL Dublin who we tipped to win the Open Intermediate here, but he was withdrawn and the win in this section on Saturday went to Claire Deuten riding Lord Flashheart.
Lord Flashheart is by the dressage stallion Bjorsells Briar and anyone who remembers Jan Brink’s distinctive liver chestnut Olympic ride may well see the resemblance in this lovely looking horse of Claire’s (a lady who has a penchant for flashy looking horses!)
They started well, despite a ‘minor meltdown due to swans flying over the lake at Catton Hall’, with a score of 30.2 in the dressage although it was Holly Woodhead riding Caunton Well Connected that was the star of this phase on 27.7. But Claire then jumped clear in the show jumping and added just six time penalties on Stuart Buntine’s new cross country course to take the win on 36.2 ahead of Holly in second place (40.5) and Eleanor Hope riding Limestone Romeo, the fastest combination on cross country, in third (42.7)
Jemima Howden riding ALS Russian Rolex
It was a good day for Claire who also won the Novice Masters class riding Diamond Woods while Jemima Howden also the did the double, winning the Open Novice Section D riding Monbeg Whisper and the Open Intermediate U21 on ALS Russian Rolex.
Michael Owen riding McCarthy Mor (above) and Lizzie Baugh on Shannondale Courage (below)
Andrew James took the Novice Section B riding Desert Dancer, following up on their win at Little Downham (1) earlier this month for the seven-year-old gelding sired by one of Oliver Townend’s favourite stallions, Ramiro B
Lizzie Baugh has had a very good season so far and she added to it at Catton Park, winning the Intermediate Section F on board Shannondale Courage, who has moved up since winning the Open Novice at Lincolnshire at the start of the season. Lizzie had a busy event but a successful one with five more top-6 placings across the two days while Michael Owen took the Intermediate Section G
We'll be back with more from the Sunday BE90 and 100 sections soon!
