Once again, Cornbury House Horse Trials is privileged to have received huge numbers of entries for its eventing classes and is very grateful for the support it has been shown by riders and owners alike.
However, we are all very aware that this spring and summer many parts of Britain have endured adverse, hot, dry weather conditions. Mindful of this, and of our experience in 2025 of the challenges involved in the best possible ground conditions for horses during four days of cross-country, the organisers feel it prudent to consolidate the event timetable to three days of cross-country and to reduce the duration of the horse trials by one day.
The Oxfordshire event, which was scheduled to take place from 9-13 September, will now conclude on 12 September and will run a slightly reduced number of classes, fewer horses in total and with a revised timetable.
Priority must be given to optimising the ground conditions, and minimising the number of different cross-country tracks used on any one day plays a significant role in this, allowing the Cornbury team to concentrate its efforts on each one and optimise preparation of them.
Young horses and riders are of central importance to this event, which has proved hugely popular with riders and owners since its inception in 2020. The organisers have therefore devised a plan that allows Cornbury House to accommodate as many of the entries received by the ballot date as possible, with the emphasis on prioritising The Howden Way British Eventing Young Horse Championships for five-, six- and seven-year-olds, and The Howden Way Youth classes – the new Advanced class for riders under 25, the Young Rider CCI3*-S and the Junior CCI2*-S.
The event will also stage the Arena Racing Company Racehorse to Eventer Challenge and some CCI3*-S sections. The open CCI2*-S class will not run in 2026.
Event president and founder David Howden said: “Cornbury House Horse Trials was founded with the core ethos being to provide the best possible conditions for young horses and young riders to perform and progress. Given the months of hot dry weather we’ve had, we don’t think we can provide those going conditions in this environment without making sacrifices and changes to this year’s event timetable.
“We’ve looked at every aspect of it and considered all the responsibilities that come into play. Based on the entries we had received, we examined the timetable to work out how we could accommodate as many people as possible and we have developed a plan that allows us to produce the best ground, and to continue to manage that ground effectively during the event.
“We know that this will result in disappointment to some riders, owners and spectators, and we are truly sorry for that. However, we think we can produce four days of really exciting sport – three days of cross-country – that is in the best interests of the horses, who are our over-riding consideration.”