British pair take Kentucky lead, despite early wobble: ‘I tried to put that behind me’

Yasmin Ingham has taken a decisive lead in the five-star after the first day of Defender Kentucky Three-Day Event dressage today.

Riding Janette Chinn and The Sue Davies Fund’s Banzai Du Loir, the British rider scored 26 to sit five marks ahead of her nearest rival, fellow Brit Kirsty Chabert with Classic VI.

Kentucky Three-Day Event dressage: one wobble

“He felt really good today,” said Yasmin. “It’s just such a treat to be back here and to be able to perform dressage in the Rolex stadium is very, very special, so I’m incredibly grateful to be here. He’s feeling really good and produced a brilliant score.”

The judges in the five-star never reached for the nine or 10 button during Yasmin’s Kentucky Three-Day Event dressage test, but the world champion and her 13-year-old chestnut scored plenty of 7.5s and eights. However, their test didn’t get off to the best start when they had a wobble on the first centreline and then moved in the first halt. They scored 6.5, five and seven for this movement.

Yasmin explained: “He just very slightly had a bit of a waver on the centerline, which is unlike him, but obviously we have to forget about that movement and focus on the rest of the test, so I tried to put that behind me very quickly and just focus.

“But he was very obedient and super expressive. He’s just a joy to ride so I really enjoy riding him on the flat. We’ve been working hard recently on getting him more expressive in the trot and he carries himself so well between the boards – he showed that today.”

Banzai Du Loir was held at the first trot-up, which Yasmin admitted was a tense moment.

“Clearly, I wasn’t running fast enough, maybe. Sometimes he’s a little bit too relaxed and just sort of doesn’t really carry himself as well as he does in the dressage arena. So on the second trot, it was much better,” she said.

Looking forward to Saturday’s cross-country, Yasmin said: “Derek di Grazia does such a brilliant job of designing – each year, he’s asking different questions. It’s a really true, big five-star track. The ground is perfection and the way the course has been dressed is just beautiful. I’m very much looking forward to riding it on Saturday and the presentation is 10 out of 10.”

World champions Yasmin and Banzai were second at Kentucky in 2022. They led the dressage last year, but had a run-out across-country.

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