A shock disqualification, Burghley’s oldest rider making his five-star debut, and other things the horse world is talking about

Olympic team disqualified for positive drug test

The Belgian eventing team, which finished fourth at the Paris Games, has been disqualified after Tine Magnus’ ride Dia Van Her Lichterveld Z tested positive for a banned substance. The FEI said the 10-year-old mare tested positive for trazodone, an anti-depressant, at the Olympics. Tine has denied the doping, and said she is a “sportswoman who values honesty” and “will do everything” she can to prove her innocence. Tine has been provisionally suspended from 3 September “until the FEI Tribunal renders its decision”. Dia Van Her Lichterveld Z has also been provisionally suspended for two months. Belgian team coach Kai-Steffen Meier said “we were very sure that we were very careful, and that with all food and supplements, we had everything tested before. So at the moment we simply cannot explain where contamination could have happened”, and that they will work with the FEI and vets to find the reason.

Read more from Tine and the Belgian team

Meet Burghley’s oldest rider

Ireland’s 56-year-old Declan Cullen is making his five-star debut at Burghley this week with skewbald Seavaghan Ash. The amateur rider formerly rode “Cassidy’s” sire, skewbald Glenhill Gold, a horse he nearly made it to Badminton with twice until changes in qualification requirements meant as an amateur rider with just a couple of horses he wasn’t able to go. Declan bought Seavaghan Ash as a foal and said he kept going in eventing because he believed the gelding was a five-star horse. “For many years I was going to quit – it’s hard financially, motivationally, in terms of horse power. We all question the effort and reward as we don’t get the same rewards as other sports so it’s a credit to all the riders and owners who keep going,” he said. Declan and Seavaghan Ash scored 35.2 in their dressage yesterday (5 September).

Find out more about Declan

Can Great Britain score another Paralympic medal at Paris?

The para dressage team competition gets under way in Paris today (6 September) and Great Britain will be hoping to add to their three individual bronze medals. Yesterday the selectors confirmed that Natasha Baker and Keystone Dawn Chorus, Sophie Wells and LJT Egebjerggards Samoa, and Georgia Wilson and Sakura, will compete today. Although Mari-Durward Akhurst will miss out, she will be back in action tomorrow (7 September) with Athene Lindebjerg in the individual freestyle tomorrow.

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