Former World and European champion Lucinda Green, one of the world’s most successful event riders, explains the challenge of the Fidelity Blenhiem Palace International Horse Trials.

Eventing, also called horse trials, is the ultimate test of the overall ability of horse and rider, involving three phases of dressage, cross-country and show jumping in an equestrian version of the triathlon.

Event riders were once branded ‘jacks of all trades and masters of none’. However, now, the standard of international eventing requires the top riders to master all three phases.

The most important attributes for a top class event horse are soundness, temperament, ability and quality. If a horse is sound and has a good temperament they can learn and develop talent.

Equestrian sports are among the few in which men and women compete on equal terms.

This is largely due to the importance of the partnership between horse and rider, which plays a much greater part than the size or strength of the rider.

Not even the strongest man can force a horse to do something he does not want to do, and so success in eventing depends on the horse trusting his rider and enjoying his job.

Dressage

Dressage is the first phase of both competitions being held at the Fidelity Blenheim Palace International Horse Trials in which each horse and rider combination completes a series of pre-set movements at walk, trot and canter in front of a panel of judges.

When watching a dressage test the judges do not want to be on the edge of their seats but they do not want to be in danger of nodding off either.

The challenge for the riders is to keep the horse’s natural energy and enthusiasm under control and produce a performance that is relaxed but buoyant in which the horse is calm and obedient but shows off his paces.

At times the variation between the judges’ marks can create confusion among spectators — and even the riders. It has to be accepted that judges have different opinions as it is completely down to subjective view.

Cross-Country

The cross-country is the most exciting phase and one that attracts the most spectators. Competitors tackle a course of solid, natural fences that must be completed within a set time, putting a premium on speed, endurance, courage and jumping ability.

I run regular cross-country riding clinics, sponsored by Petplan Equine, and the main point that I try to tell all my pupils is that a horse that thinks for himself and, in equal measure, listens to his rider is going to be a safe cross-country horse.

It takes several years to train a horse to the standard required to compete at Blenheim. During this time the horse needs to be given time to learn his job and gain trust and confidence in his ability.

The feature of the cross-country course at Blenheim is the spectacular fences that are built around the River Glyme that runs through the parkland.

Horses have an instinctive fear of water and ditches that often requires a great deal of training to overcome.

Obstacles that require a horse to jump into water are a great test of the horse’s trust in its rider, while fences that have several jumping points close together, and test the rider’s control and the horse’s balance and agility.

While the riders will walk the cross country course as many as three or four times prior to riding, the horse has to rely on his rider to give him time to assess what is in front of him and understand in a split second what he has to do.

Show Jumping

The show jumping is the final phase in this top level competition, and presents an even greater challenge when it follows the four mile cross-country phase on the previous day.

Show jumping requires a very different jumping technique to cross country —rather like an athlete in the decathlon that has to adapt to the long jump and the high hurdles.

Unlike cross-country obstacles that are solid, show jumps can be knocked down and a rounder trajectory is required from the horse to clear them successfully.

Very careful horses that excel in the show jumping are often not brave enough for the cross-country phase and some of the boldest and bravest horses across country fail to treat show jumps with enough respect so this can be a difficult phase for even the most talented horses.

The brilliant New Zealand horse Charisma, who won two Olympic gold medals with Mark Todd, was always nerve-wracking to watch in the show jumping phase and his great rider used to joke that his diminutive partner show jumped using the ‘Braille method’— feeling his way over them.

Riders jump in reverse order of merit when the show jumping is the third phase, adding to the tension. One small mistake can make the difference between triumph and heartbreak.

Watch the British Team in action

Blenheim always attracts leading riders from around the world and among the top riders in action this year will be the six who will represent GB in the eventing competition at the World Equestrian Games in Kentucky in September.

They will be putting their top horses through their paces with dressage on Friday afternoon and show jumping on Sunday morning, providing a wonderful opportunity to see the British team as they prepare to take on the best in the world.

Further information on the Petplan Equine Lucinda Green Cross-Country the Safe Way Clinics can be found by visiting the website: www.petplanequine.co.uk/events