Eighty-five horses were presented at the first horse inspection of the MARS Badminton Horse Trials, trotting up in front of the Ground Jury: Xavier Le Sauce (President, FRA), Nick Burton (GBR) and Robert Stevenson (USA).
Four horses were sent to the holding box. Ben Hobday withdrew SHADOW MAN (GBR) and did not re-present. Luc Château with VIENS DU MONT (FRA) and Georgia Bartlett with SPANO DE NAZCA (GBR) re-presented, but were not accepted. Grace Taylor and GAMECHANGER (USA) were accepted on re-presentation.
The Hiho Silver Best Dressed Awards at Badminton 2025 went to Ryuzo Kitajima and Ros Canter – and it wasn’t just about fashion, but sentiment too.
Ros wore a long, floaty pink skirt paired with a beaded denim jacket she bought while on holiday with her late friend and coach, Caroline Moore. A beautiful tribute to someone who helped shape her journey.
Ryuzo Kitajima presents Feroza Nieuwmoed in the first horse inspection for the MARS Badminton Horse Trials CCI5* © Pam Cunningham/Irish Eventing Times
Japanese rider Ryuzo Kitajima was awarded the Hiho Silver Best Dressed Male Rider prize. He stood out by wearing a traditional Hakama, a formal Japanese garment, while presenting his Tokyo Olympic mount, Feroza Nieuwmoed
All Irish combinations were accepted, so ready for the two days of dressage ahead.
If you want to keep up with all the action from this year’s badminton, the competition will be live-streamed in its entirety via ClipMyHorse.TV, with a subscription package priced at £21.99.
