‘Badminton is almost mythical. So to actually be here is tingly, goose-bumpy and a great feeling’: the debutante relishing the moment, and why she has a Piglet mascot

Samantha Lissington broke the sub-30 barrier with her first appearance in the iconic arena for the Mars Badminton Horse Trials dressage phase.

The 33-year-old New Zealand rider, who is based in Hungerford, lined up at two CCI5*s last year with Lord Seekonig, but this is her first British five-star.

She spoke of the “magical” experience of competing at Badminton.

“It’s a funny feeling coming here,” she says. “It’s such a special event, you watch it on the TV and it’s almost mythical. So to actually be here… it does feel magical.

“It’s a little bit tingly, goose-bumpy and it’s a great feeling. I went into the arena and though, ‘how lucky am I?’”

Lord Seekonig, a German-bred by Lord Fauntleroy, is lying 13th of the 81 dressage competitors on 29.9 at the end of phase one. It was overall a fluid and impressive test, with eights peppered throughout and just an error in the final flying change costing them marks.

“He’s quite a nervous person, so to go in there and hold it all together is really pleasing,” Samantha says. “I thought he’d get more electric in there, but he stayed with me the whole way, so it was good.

“His mascot is Piglet from Winnie the Pooh. He’s really brave inside, but outwardly quite anxious and relies a lot on his humans, especially on his groom to reassure him that everything’s OK. I had to hold his hand out there, but he surprised me by how mature he has become.”

Samantha Lissington on the strategy that took her to CCI5*

Lord Seekonig (Charlie) is the first horse Samantha has bought that was already competing at three-star. The now 12-year-old was produced by Alex Power in Ireland before Samantha bought him in 2022.

“I normally produce them from scratch, but after I sold a young horse well, I reinvested into an older horse,” she explains. “It was my first experiment at making an older horse feel like mine.

“Two years later we did our first five-star together, so it’s gone amazingly well. It was my first experience with it and I’ve just bought another nine-year-old to do the same thing, to try to cut the corner a bit on the years and years that go into it.

“I’m seeing if I can buy good jumping horses and put some work in on the flat, which seems to be my strong point.”

Samantha and Lord Seekonig – owned by Sharon Honiss, Robin and Annabelle Greville-Williams, Neil Robertson and Samantha’s husband Brayden Lissington – head out on cross-country on Saturday, 10 May, at 4.44pm, the penultimate combination to leave the startbox.

How to watch Badminton Horse Trials

If you want to watch the live action from Badminton Horse Trials from the comfort of your home, wherever you are in the world, you will need to subscribe to Badminton TV. This year, Badminton TV has teamed up with ClipMyHorse.TV, but you do not need a full ClipMyHorse.TV subscription to watch Badminton – you can just subscribe to Badminton TV for £21.99. Go to clipmyhorse.tv/en_GB/badminton to subscribe or to activate your account as an existing Badminton TV subscriber. If you are already a ClipMyHorse.TV premium member, Badminton TV is included in your subscription. As part of Badminton TV, you can enjoy the documentary programme Legends and Legacy, a fly-on-the-wall insight into the 2024 event and preview of 2025.

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To ensure you keep up to date with all the breaking news, behind the scenes insight, and the best of the action throughout Badminton Horse Trials with no limits on how much you can read, subscribe to the Horse & Hound website from as little as £1 a week. Sign up now. And don’t miss our bumper 22-page magazine report on Badminton, including in-depth analysis and exclusive comments from top names, in the issue of Horse & Hound dated 15 May.

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