Laura Collett and the indomitable London 52 lead the way after the CCI5* dressage at the 2025 Longines Luhmühlen Horse Trials.
The duo have an enviable record at five-star having won all their starts at this level – this event in 2023, Badminton in 2022 and Pau in 2020. They scored 25.4, which puts them 0.6 of a penalty ahead of second-placed Ros Canter and Izilot DHI.
Their test was virtually fault-free, scoring two nines from the judges – which have been a rare commodity in this class this year – one for their mid-test halt and one for their final halt.
“He’s an absolute dream to ride. He knows what he’s doing now, so it’s just about trusting the process and not getting caught up working in too much,” said Laura. “I rode him this morning and he was very, very fresh, but I just trusted that he’s old enough to know what he’s doing now. He was on the edge in there – it’s quite an atmosphere, but he loves an atmosphere.”
On whether she felt more or less pressure riding such an accomplished horse as London 52, Laura said: “I came into this year saying that after last year with the pressure of the Olympics and everything, I just wanted to enjoy him and enjoy having him around and not having the pressure. But the closer we got to here, I was definitely feeling it, mainly because I don’t want to let him down and he deserves to win every event he goes to, so it’s my job to allow him to do that.”
Going more into her test today, Laura said: “In the trot, he was wanting to show a bit of piaffe and show off a little too much, but we could have had just a bit more rhythm and connection.”
Laura explained that she rarely rides London 52 on the flat at home.
“It’s just a case of keeping him happy, to be honest – he knows all the movements now, so I probably only school him once a month on the flat when I have a lesson.”
Ros Canter: “He was an absolute delight”
Ros was delighted with the efforts of “Isaac”, who can be spooky. But the 12-year-old, who was fourth here and second at Pau last year, who won Pau in 2023, held it together in the first phase, which was bathed in 27°C sunshine but with a brisk breeze.
“I’m absolutely over the moon – he’s a spooky chap, but time and time again he pulls it off and he’s an absolute delight,” said Ros. “We’re much more secure and with each other now he’s 12 years old. We’ve been together a long time and I think he’s trusting me a bit more, and I’m certainly trusting him a bit more and I know him inside out – it’s just about building that relationship.”
Ros said Isaac’s neck is “tricky for her to gauge”.
“I have to rely on people watching me to tell me how it feels, and sometimes he feels elastic and sometimes he doesn’t. But I knew his neck was good because my supporters told me it was – sometimes it doesn’t feel as good as it I’d love it to and I would like to have him a little bit lower and rounder, but when you have him in a place where you’d have another horse, he always looks over-bent, so we just have to have him that little bit more up and out than maybe I feel comfortable with.
“I think I could always get more elasticity in the canter, and that’s kind of his weakness. He’s very comfortable in trot, which is quite unusual for event horses, as most do their best work in canter, but he’s more elastic in the trot.”
Ros said she rode Isaac “a little bit on the safe side” today but that although he is spooky, his brain is “really easy”.
“He’s not a horse that blows up and gets tense – he’s just spooky, and he’s got a real flight instinct, so if he spooks at something, it’s a bit more dramatic than maybe some other horses, but on the whole, he’s pretty chilled so it’s always about balance of having worked enough so he doesn’t spook but not having worked him so much that he doesn’t show off his true nature.”
The home crowd was delighted when Malin Hansen-Hotopp slotted into third with her 2022 Blenheim CCI4*-L winner, Carlitos Quidditch K, who also finished fourth on his five-star debut at Kentucky last year. They were another pair who made no obvious mistakes and went on to score 28,9,
“He was just awesome,” said Malin. “He came into the arena and was a bit ‘Ooh’ at the crowd, but if I stay cool and just ride, I get him like that.”
Samantha Lissington on “finding the balance”
British-based New Zealander Samantha Lissington, who is on flying form having finished in the top three with all three of her rides in the CCI4*-L at France’s Royal Jump event at the end of May, is hoping to capitalise on that, this week. She sits in fourth on Ricker Ridge Sooty GNZ, who finished second in the CCI4*-S at Royal Jump, on 28.9.
“He’s just so obedient and so easy to ride – I came out here and didn’t have to do a lot because he knows his job so well. It’s more just making sure we’re both sharp enough,” said Sam. “It is tricky finding that balance – you want them rideable enough, but quick enough to be on your leg for the changes, I wanted him relaxed and easy and rideable, but not too rideable that I missed a change.”
Gemma Stevens on the Luhmühlen Horse Trials dressage: “I don’t know what we’re supposed to do”
As was the case on the first day of Luhmühlen Horse Trials dressage yesterday, there were many murmurings about the marks in the first phase. One of the riders rueing the mark given was Gemma Stevens, who sits in fifth with Jalapeno on 29.4
“I’m thrilled with her – I don’t know what we’re supposed to do though. That is the best test she’s ever done and she has scored 22s in the past,” said Gemma. “The changes were on the button, she was soft, through and over her back, good in the frame and her transitions were amazing and she didn’t make a mistake. She normally scores in the low 20s and I don’t know why [the judges] have to be like that – I don’t know what they’re trying to achieve, what are they looking for?”
Austria’s Lea Siegl is sixth and 15th riding Van Helsing P and DSP Fighting Line respectively on scores of 29.8 and 34.4. Piggy March sits seventh on 29.9 riding Halo.
“I was absolutely delighted. I’m in my own bubble all week and I’ve got a cute little horse,” said Piggy. “The field is very hot, but I’m here for my own interest to find out where I’m at with my horse.
“It will be his first time galloping 11 minutes across country – he’s a lovely galloping horse, I just hope he settles at the beginning so he doesn’t run his race too early. But he’s 12 and I think he’s a real championship horse – he’s not the finished article yet and there’s lots more to come.”
On the scoring in the Luhmühlen Horse Trials dressage, Piggy said: “I was watching Gemma’s [Stevens] work all morning and it’s been looking very, very smart, and so it’s quite demotivating. It’s nice when you do something good and judges give it a deserving mark, but they’ve stayed pretty miserable this week.
“Riders need to know what they’re training to – marks inspire them. I’ve spoken to ground juries before about it , but have never found the answer to the problem. Dressage is Marmite, isn’t it? But at this level, [this kind of marking] is actually not good enough. Riders have come back in tears and demoralised – these good sportspeople are trying to get to the very top.”
Kitty King and Vendredi Biats put in a polished performance to score 31.2 to sit in eighth. This is ‘Froggy’s’ worst dressage mark since scoring 32.8 in the CCI4*-S at Belton in March 2019.
“They’re just being fairly miserable, but I thought he did a nice test,” Kitty said.
Day one Luhmühlen Horse Trials dressage leader Selina Milnes and Cooley Snapchat sit in ninth on 31.5; Aaron Millar and KEC Deakon, who were second at the end of yesterday, are 10th on 31.6.
The cross-country gets under way at 8.45am tomorrow (7.45am UK time, 14 June).
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