Equestrian: Tait wins in Kiwi clean-sweep at Burghley

BURGHLEY - Blyth Tait headed a clean sweep for New Zealand when he rode his Olympic and world champion, Ready Teddy, to win the Burghley Pedigree Horse Trials, defeating two other British-based Kiwis – Andrew Nicholson on Mr Smiffy and Daniel Jocelyn on Silence.

For the first time the competition featured two show-jumping rounds - introduced as a trial for a proposed new formula for the Olympic Games.

Some riders had been scathing about it beforehand (notably Nicholson who complained that they were being used as guinea pigs), but it worked rather better than expected, with most horses jumping better in the second round.

The first round decided the result of the unofficial team contest, which Britain won from New Zealand.

The Kiwis would, however, have won hands down had Tait been included with Ready Teddy, rather than his other horse, Eze.

The top 25 riders then carried their accumulated scores forward to the final round which settled the individual placings.

"It's not ideal to ask horses to jump twice after the cross-country, but it didn't effect Ready Teddy," Tait said.

He would have won under either formula, having moved ahead of Nicholson when Mr Smiffy (last year's Burghley winner) erred in the first round, which would normally have concluded the competition.

The dynamic little Ready Teddy had been one of 18 to jump clear within the optimum time over yesterday's cross-country.

"He was paying very little attention to me and I either had to go with him or get off," Tait said.

- INDEPENDENT