Blenheim first-timer impresses the judges to shoot into CCI4*-L dressage lead

Dressage kicked off at Blenheim Palace International Horse Trials today (September 15), with Piggy March and Brookfield Inocent moving into the lead following a beautiful test.

Piggy, who was making her Blenheim debut, scored 23.2 in the CCI4*-L class to finish ahead of reigning Olympic champion Julia Krajewski and Amande De B’Neville (25.9), while New Zealand’s Tim Price and Vitali (26.4) are in third place.

Piggy, who was riding Brookfield Inocent for the first time at this level, was delighted with her performance.

"I'm absolutely thrilled with him," she said. "He's a very special horse and I'm so lucky to have him. He's still quite green at this level, but he's learning all the time and he's got a huge amount of potential."

Julia Krajewski was also pleased with her test, despite a few mistakes from Amande De B'Neville.

"I'm really happy with how she went," said Julia. "She's a very talented horse and she's still learning. I'm sure she'll be even better tomorrow."

Tim Price was also happy with Vitali's performance, although he admitted that the horse was a little bit tired after the long journey from New Zealand.

"He's a very good horse and I'm really looking forward to the rest of the weekend," said Tim.

The CCI4*-L dressage continues tomorrow, with the top 30 riders going through to the showjumping phase on Saturday. The cross-country phase will take place on Sunday.