Cool cucumber delivers

A last-minute find turns into a winning partner, polar opposite stablemates both take titles and a determined rider triumphs after a week sick in bed

- ANDREA OAKES

CLAIRE ABEL took top honours in the inter I silver with her “cool cucumber” GF Sezuki.

“She’s really focused on me and desperate to get things right,” said Claire of the 11-year-old Sezuan mare. “I bought her as a foal in Herefordshire, after trawling Europe looking. You wouldn’t know she’s a mare – she’s a bit of a tomboy and the easiest horse I’ve had.”

With support from trainers Adam Kemp and Lisa Hopkins, Claire has her sights set on stepping up.

“The big plan is inter II by the end of this year and hopefully grand prix next year,” she added.

Meanwhile, Rose Hugh-Smith is aiming for a strong return to the nationals after a stop-start season, first due to a broken shoulder and then an ankle injury. She clinched elementary freestyle silver aboard Quintana I, who also won medium freestyle silver at Onley Grounds Winter Regionals in January.

“I’m hoping this year I don’t injure myself again,” Rose joked. “Quin is pretty special – clever, self-confident and such a competitor.

“We’ve been focusing on getting her stronger behind and more collected,” she added, crediting trainer Erik Theilgaard. “She shows natural talent for piaffe and passage.”

Dannie Morgan secured six titles with a quartet of horses, achieving a standout score of 81.56% in the medium freestyle gold aboard Fever Tree – nearly 10% ahead of the field.

The “top-class” Fever Tree also headed the advanced medium gold straight class, while Kristina Rausing’s eight-year-old Revolution mare, Vive La Reinne VH, won the freestyle.