MARS EQUESTRIAN™ announces their partnership with Defender Burghley Horse Trials (5-8 September 2024) as the Official Veterinary and Official Pet Nutrition Partner.
Mars Equestrian rider Mars Equestrian rider Lauren Nicholson at Defender Burghley is free to use, but please credit DBHT/Peter Nixon. at Defender Burghley Photo: DBHT/Peter Nixon.
This new relationship strengthens even further the existing bonds between the world’s premier CCI5* events, as MARS EQUESTRIAN is title sponsor of both Badminton Horse Trials in the UK and Maryland 5* in the USA and presenting sponsor of the US’s Defender Kentucky Three-Day Event.
“We are excited to return to Burghley Horse Trials and extend our commitment to the sport,” said William Clements, President of Mars Equestrian. “At Burghley, we will have the opportunity to share our iconic brands that help create a better world for horses, pets, and the people who love them,”
The MARS EQUESTRIAN sponsorship at Defender Burghley Horse Trials is only the latest illustration of Mars’ multi-generational impact on equestrian sports and the equine industry as a whole. Going back to the 1930s, the founders of Mars, Incorporated, Frank and Ethel V. Mars, established a renowned Thoroughbred breeding and racing stable in the United States. They named the property Milky Way Farm, in honour of their best-selling candy bar, and followed up by naming their new SNICKERS® Bar after one of the family’s beloved horses. A decade later, their long-shot Gallahadion carried the Mars silks into the winner’s circle at the 1940 Kentucky Derby. Today, the Mars family and business alike share a passion for horses and equestrian sports.
Martyn Johnson, Event Director of Defender Burghley Horse Trials, said: “We are delighted to welcome MARS EQUESTRIAN to Burghley. MARS EQUESTRIAN is synonymous with equestrian sport and eventing. As ‘Official Veterinary Partner’, MARS EQUESTRIAN will support an upgrading of the veterinary care and facilities we can offer our equestrian athletes, which is of the utmost importance at Burghley.”
There are 19 vets, two equine nurses and four veterinary support staff on-site during Burghley, all helping to ensure the best possible standard of care to horses at the event. MARS brands ANTECH, Sound and scil will be providing onsite diagnostic and imaging support for the veterinary teams.
MARS EQUESTRIAN will also be providing a range of benefits for dogs at the event, including a new dedicated dog friendly area within the Members’ Lawn complex and chances to interact with Mars brands such as PEDIGREE® and James Wellbeloved™.
To find out more about Defender Burghley, including how to purchase tickets, visit www.burghley-horse.co.uk.
