"It's Really Attacking": Riders React to the Blenheim European Championships Cross-Country Course

Never let it be said that we at EN won’t hold our hands up when we issue a retraction: early this week, we printed a preview of this week’s Agria FEI European Eventing Championships in which I, lead reporter Tilly Berendt, happily proclaimed that this year’s track looks “smaller and less intensive” than previous Blenheims.

Okay, okay, for clarity, perhaps we’re not issuing a retraction here, but perhaps a bit more context, and a promise that I, Tilly Berendt, lead reporter on this championship, will stop saying in casual conversation that “some of this looks like an OI”.

Because yes, there are parts of the course where the fences don’t loom large. And there are areas that feel oddly simpler, like, for example, that stalwart coffin complex that doesn’t have a final element this year.

But throughout the week, as we’ve seen the course with its final dressings and spoken to riders who’ve walked it a damn sight more carefully than we have, it’s becoming clear that there are sneaky challenges hidden here that might make this much more of a cross-country competition than we’d initially expected.

This is, after all, Captain Mark Phillips’ swansong before he steps away from course design and into consultant roles, and it’s also his Blenheim debut, so he was always going to have a bit of a crack at it. The biggest crack of all, it would appear, is at the clock – everybody we’ve spoken to has marvelled at how tight the time is, and how tricky it’ll be to catch, so even if each of these fences and combinations is straightforward enough on their own, it’ll be that chasing of the clock that’ll mean silly runouts happen near the end of the course to people and horses who you wouldn’t expect to have them. Think of it like the Aachen effect, wherein the leader is prone to running out just before they come into the main arena and the finish, because they hear the beeping of their watch and lose themselves for a moment.

The terrain, too, will play a part. Blenheim certainly doesn’t have hills like Bramham or Burghley – in effect, its two very flat segments of course connected by a steep interchange, but that hilly middle bit can’t be underestimated. If a horse tires more than anticipated after travelling over it, there’s enough spots in the latter stages of the course where they could find an open door to travel through rather than popping what’s in front of them.

But look, enough from us – we’ve backtracked enough here. Let’s hear more about the challenge to come from the riders who’ll be tackling it — and you can follow along with this great guided course walk from CrossCountry App, featuring insights from the Captain himself on the course.

Michael Jung – Germany (1^st on 18.3 with fischerChipmunk FRH)

“It’s a very nice cross-country; a nice hilly place. It’s a beautifully built course with a lot of options for every rider. I think the first water is always a step into the cross-country, and the first combination in the arena [10ABC] is a good preparation for 11ABC. I think that’s a tough line. The second water has a long gallop through and out over an angled brush [19], which is a tough line. The middle part of the course is very intense, and I think we lose a lot of time in that middle part – but if the horse is fit we can make up time in the beginning and in the end.”

Laura Collett – Great Britain (2^nd on 20.6 with London 52)

“There’s no let-up, really. The first few fences really lull you into thinking it’s straightforward, and then you’re faced with question after question after question. I think you’re going to have to be on your A-game from start to finish and the horses are going to have to be reactive, because some of the questions are quite twisty and they’re not going to understand what we’re asking them until the last second.”

Tom McEwen – Great Britain (3^rd on 26.2 with JL Dublin)

“It’s a flowing course. The distances are big — as in, they’re all quite positive. But with the Captain’s courses, if you can get into his flow and his state of mind, it can really come into a really positive way of going. The ground is perfect. But it’s a consecutive effect of so many combinations and little bits everywhere. I think he’s built a really, really interesting course, and hopefully people on the outside will see it for how good a job he’s done.”

“It was wheeled 10:01, officially, but I would say it feels more like a 10:15 course. So I definitely think time will be a factor. Obviously, two things that are positive is the ground is going to be very good for horses, and also his distances are very positive. So there’ll be a few rounds that I definitely think will make it look as easy as horses should be able to make it look, and then there’ll obviously be some people that will be finding the time a bit harder.”

“I genuinely think you’ll find problems the whole way around, which probably sounds like a bit of a get-out card. The combination by the palace [11ABC, 12, and 13] is big and technical, and the waters are decent, but even the little things like the skinny coming out of the dip [23AB] – it’s meant to be a run and jump fence, but it’s not a run and jump fence. You’ve got to keep your wits about you.”

Lara de Liedekerke-Meier – Belgium (5^th on 27.7 with Hooney d’Arville)

“We’ll have to wear brave pants on – it’s really attacking. I had a chat with Captain Mark Phillips yesterday, and he said ‘are you surprised?’ And I said ‘no, I’m not!’ I think he’s really asked for forward riding, but it’s very clear for the horses. So I think if we can trust our horses and the homework we did at home it should be fine, but like always in sport, we need a bit of luck. Hopefully I won’t need too much!”

Malin Hansen-Hotopp – Germany (6^th on 27.8 with Carlitos Quidditch K)

“In the first moment I think it’s tough enough, but it’s not too high or technical. Then there are some things where the jumps are angled, and they’re really tough, I think. You have to have the horses very forward, and if you want to be fast at a Europeans and you have these angles, then you need to be on a good line. That, for me, is the tricky part of the course.”

Jérôme Robiné – Germany (15^th on 30.4 with Black Ice)

“It’ll be tough, and the time will be tough. I think it’s quite technical. You cannot go a long route, otherwise you won’t catch the time. So it will be interesting, and I think it will change a bit the scores. Every course suits him; he’s quite an honest horse, probably the most honest horse I’ve ever ridden or will ever ride. He’s quite amazing on cross country, and hopefully he’s a bit faster than last year.”

Alexis Goury – France (19^th on 31.9 with Je’Vall)

“We went to Bramham to prepare for this event, because the ground is similar. It’s really intense, and I think there’s not a lot of space to gallop – it’s a lot of fences, and not too long of a cross. I think it’s intense and difficult; not big, but very technical. I think the time will not be easy.”

Aoife Clarke – Ireland (33^rd on 34.7 with Full Monty de la Cense)

“He’s an amazing cross-country horse, and he’s fast, so it should suit him. It’s definitely a decent track, like, it’s a championship track. Everyone keeps saying ‘you need to know your horse well at these combinations’, and I’m going, ‘god, I’ve had three runs at four-star on him!’ It’s the sort of track where you might not be on the perfect stride – you might be on your line, but they have to be quick-footed to react.”

Padraig McCarthy – Ireland (36^th on 35.2 with Pomp N Circumstance)

“I think it’s a pretty serious track, to be honest. I think it’s an easy enough start, but then it’s very typical Mark Phillips: he puts you on one line and you have to accept a lot of angle and there’s no deviation from it, so I think we’re going to see plenty of mistakes. But it’s a championship, so I think it’s going to be good sport.”

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