Oliver Townend, nine times a CCI5* winner, showed that he might have another future superstar on his hands when winning the British Eventing Young Horse Championship for five-year-olds at Cornbury House Horse Trials (9-12 September) with Sarah Robertson’s Very Cooley.
The 84–runner class, supported by The Howden Way, was tightly contested, and Oliver shared a dressage mark of 25.2 with Kitty King (Park All The Hype). The pair stayed level after clear showjumping round, and both produced faultless performances around David Evans’ cross-country track. In the end, Oliver finished two seconds closer to the optimum time than Kitty to secure victory.
Very Cooley is closely related to Oliver’s Kentucky CCI5* champion Cooley Rosalent, and Oliver said: “I’m just hugely relieved for her owner, Sarah Robertson – it’s a big gamble to buy a horse off a video, and luckily we’ve repaid her. I love the horse and I couldn’t be happier with how she’s progressed. She’s very, very professional for her age. She’s just galloped all over that track today, where some of them found it tough and I think her enthusiasm will carry her through. She’s run up the hills with her ears pricked and I couldn’t be happier with her.
“The track couldn’t have been better. At the end of the course you definitely knew whether you had a good horse or not, and that’s what this stage of eventing should be. It’s the perfect end to a long season for a five-year-old, and Sarah and I were honoured to receive our prizes from HRH The Duchess of Edinburgh.”
Kitty King said: “Park All The Hype is a lovely young horse. We love coming to Cornbury, and we’ve had a brilliant couple of days with a fantastic result, which just tops it all off.”
She added with a smile: “He was second after dressage, then he showjumped clear and was superb cross-country, so stayed in second the whole way through. We finished on the same score as the winner, so I think we’re equal first!”
Mollie Summerland led from pillar to post to take the British Eventing Young Horse Championship for six-year-olds with her own Don Alfredo. She scored 25.5 with a very smart dressage performance, and followed up with a clear showjumping and a blistering cross-country round inside the time to remain clear of the 90-strong field.
Mollie said: “He’s like a little pocket rocket! I’m used to riding horses which are over 17hh, but he has so much power and it’s just about trying to channel his enthusiasm. He’s really cute – like an overgrown pony.”
Dressage-bred by Dancier with thoroughbred blood on his dam side, Don Alfredo came from friends of Mollie’s in Belgium.
“He’d never jumped under saddle when he came to me and he took a long time to build trust. He was very nervous in the beginning. I spent hours up in the arena just walking him in hand over poles, and now I think we have a really nice partnership. I have to say a special thank you to Alfie Bradstock, where I’m based at Cherry Gardens Farm, because he has been instrumental in my confidence in the showjumping. I wouldn’t naturally go into that phase feeling super confident and Alfie has worked miracles with me this year.
“Cornbury is an incredible event and it’s one that I always try to come to. It was on my bucket list to win a national title, so it’s great to achieve that.”
Possibly the biggest cheer of the day at prize-giving went to 16-year-old Fenella Redvers, who won The Howden Way Youth junior CCI2*-S class riding ALS Russian Rolex. “Rolo”, as the horse is known, is owned by Fenella’s parents, Laura and David Redvers, and Jemima Howden. Jemima is the daughter of Cornbury House Horse Trials’ founder and president David Howden, to whom David Redvers is bloodstock and racing manager.
A delighted Fenella said: “I’ve had Rolo for just a year, and before this season I’d never even done a two-star, so it’s amazing to be able to think about actually winning one. To be able to pull it out of the bag here at Cornbury with the Howdens just makes it so much more special.
“Rolo has the biggest heart. He is the sweetest horse, and coming out of the start box across country, I just know he is going to do his best to look after me. Riding him has taught me so much.”
Alongside top-class sport, Cornbury offers so much to its visitors, such as:
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Browsing the hand-picked, curated selection of independent retailers that comprise the Cornbury Village
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Sampling exceptional, locally sourced food and drink at our “From the Farm” initiative, which will bring together some of the region’s finest producers, including Cornbury Farm, Bruern Farm, Honeydale Farm and Diddly Squat
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NEW Artisan Food and Drink Tent, featuring local producers
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NEW Cornbury Chat Stage, featuring local personalities and equestrian heroes
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NEW Diddly Dog Show supported by Diddly Squat Farm on Saturday, 12 September
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Entertainment every night after the sport finishes in the Wychwood Inn on-site
Visit www.cornburyhousehorsetrials.co.uk for more information and to buy tickets.
Cornbury House Horse Trials’ supported charity for 2026 is the British Eventing Support Trust (BEST), and donations can be made at the point of ticket purchase.
Cross-country, showjumping and some highlights of the dressage will be shown on ClipMyHorse.tv.