Flawless Nicholson maintains lead
Kiwi eventer Andrew Nicholson held all the cards heading into the showjumping phase at the Badminton Horse Trials in England this morning.
Nicholson delivered another faultless performance to maintain the lead at the only major four-star event he is yet to win.
Nicholson and his top horse, Nereo, went clear and one second inside the time at Badminton Park in Gloucestershire, ensuring they remain on their dressage score, 37.8 penalties with two of the three phases complete.
A clear showjumping round today would see the 53-year-old, who holds the record for completions at Badminton with 33, add the most prestigious four-star title to his impressive career CV.
Since the 2012 Olympics, Nicholson has won Burghley three times and also been victorious at Kentucky in the United States, Luhmuhlen in Germany and Pau in France, but victory at Badminton has been elusive, as it has been for more than three decades.
However, the former world No 1 cannot afford a slip-up with longtime rival William Fox-Pitt (Chilli Morning) ready to pounce.
He is 1.2 points behind in second place on 39.0, while fellow Brit Oliver Townend is 1.8 points behind. Also within one bumped showjumping rail (which costs four points) are fourth-placed German Ingrid Klimke (Horseware Hale Bob), who is 2.4 points behind, and Kiwi Jock Paget (Clifton Lush), the 2013 champion, who is 3 points behind Nicholson in fifth place.
Nicholson was full of praise for Spanish-bred gelding Nereo who continues to serve him well.
‘‘It was superb. I made a conscious effort to make sure I jumped every single fence this year,’’ said Nicholson, who fell off Nereo in the cross-country last year when they were well placed to challenge for the title.
The top five were among 13 combinations to go clear and inside the time, out of the field of 82 starters.
There are three further Kiwi combinations in the top 10, with Nicholson and Calico Joe, who also went clear in the crosscountry, climbing from 12th to seventh, while Mark Todd and Leonidas II rose from 15th to ninth, and Paget and Clifton Promise are 10th, dropping from sixth place in the dressage after collecting 6.4 time penalties in the crosscountry. Two Kiwis – Caroline Powell and Craig Nicolai – were eliminated on the cross-country after falls.
The winner will also certainly come from the top five as there are too many good combinations in that bracket for at least one of them not to go clear in the showjumping. Nereo is a good showjumper and Nicholson saw no reason why that would not continue today.
He was going to head home and try to relax. ‘‘I’m going to . . . do all the normal things – then I will come back tomorrow and focus on trying to jump a clear round.’’