Equestrian: Top effort from NZ rookie

Rookie Donna Smith turned on an inspiring performance to be the leading New Zealand eventer after the first day of dressage at the World Equestrian Games in Aachen, Germany today.

Making her international debut, Smith and her horse Call Me Clifton defied atrocious conditions to finish the day in third place of the first 40 riders to complete the discipline today.

The remaining 39 in the eventing field will ride their dressage tests tomorrow.

It was a positive note for the New Zealanders to end the day on after Alex de Luca Oliveira on Clifton Checkers and Heelan Tompkins and Glengarrick also had impressive starts to the three-day event.

British-based Caroline Powell had a disappointing start for the New Zealanders when Lenamore became unsettled after being the first combination into the arena.

Tompkins finished the day in eighth place, de Luca Oliveira in 23rd and Powell in 30th.

De Luca Oliveira and Smith are competing in the individual competition and Powell and Tompkins form two of the team combination along with Andrew Nicholson and Joe Meyer who will ride tomorrow.

Smith, 26, who has been based in the United States for five years, struck the worst weather of any of the competitor's today when light rain began falling just as she entered the arena and then turned into a deluge for the duration of her test.

"I realised it was raining, then that it was actually pouring but there's nothing you can really do about it and I just had to do the best I could," Smith said.

"He's still a young horse, he's getting stronger but he's a very classy horse.

"I've been watching all the competitors going about their work over the last couple of days, people that I grew up reading about in books and admiring so it's a bit daunting to think I'm now competing against them."

Team manager Blyth Tait was well satisfied with the day's efforts.

"Caroline wasn't overly pleased with herself but it was still a good solid performance and she will be well in the hunt," Tait said.

"Heelan and Donna have both ridden blinders and Alex produced probably the best test I've seen him do. So I'm pleased, it's been a good day."

Glengarrick, the elder statesman of the field at 20, showed no signs of the problems which caused a few anxious moments at the final pre-event inspection the previous day.

"He did a really good test," Tompkins said.

"He went out there and did what he always has done for the last 20 years and did a really good test but I expected that.

"To be honest I wasn't worried at all yesterday because he was as sound as a pound and he trotted up how he always trots up.

"He's done 10 years of eventing and in about 99 per cent of his trot-ups he's been put on hold or trotted up twice, I just felt he was being lazy."

German Andreas Dibowski leads the competition on 40.90 points, followed by Australian Megan Jones on 44.10 and Smith on 45.40. Tompkins finished on 49.80, de Luca Oliveira on 61.30 and Powell on 66.30.

- NZPA