Spectacularly finishing third for Ireland at this year’s prestigious Badminton International Horse Trials.

Written by Zara Burke Ott – working student for Austin O’Connor. Austin is a British-based Irish event rider who has been at the top level of the sport for over 25 years. At the beginning of 2022, he relocated to his current yard in Oxfordshire. He lives onsite with his wife (Amy), two young sons (Alfie[5] and Wilf[3]) and four full-time members of staff (Ella, Zara, Tia and Jonas). Alderbrook Stud is home to a wide range of horses from young-stock to 5* heroes, including a few liveries and a couple of very important small ponies. Family, friends, owners, breeders, trainers, vets, farriers and dentists are all greatly valued components  of ‘Team O’Connor’. Everyone works together to ensure the happiness of all the animals and success of the athletes.

From the outside, eventing is an individual sport, a sport about one horse and one rider. However, it takes years of practice; blood, sweat and tears; and an enormous effort from an army of people to get a combination to the top level. Colorado Blue was bred by Kate Jarvey and is owned by The Salty Syndicate. He finished best of the Irish at the Tokyo Olympics, was eight last year at Badminton, and also took Austin to the World Championships in Pratoni. Being part of the success and celebrating the big results makes everything worth it. Eventing is a team sport, a sport about partnership and horsemanship and love and passion and commitment and so much more.

On the Tuesday after Badminton, I wrote on Facebook (while still kind of living in a haze on Cloud 9): “I am so so proud to be Irish. I am honoured to be just a small part of the team at Austin O’Connor Eventing. I could write an essay describing the utter pride I felt yesterday, smiling through the rain as Austin and Salty made history, becoming the first Irish combination in 40 years to finish on the podium. Today, my throat was sore from screaming. Thank You Austin for making us all immensely proud.” I guess that is where the idea to compose this article arose.

For me, the excitement of Badminton 2023 really only hit on Trot-Up Day. An exceptionally wet spring meant a stunted start to the eventing season this year, with many events being cancelled or abandoned and many horses missing runs. Winter seemed never-ending and I often found it difficult to keep motivated. After listening to The Eventing Podcast’s Badminton Preview Show on Thursday evening, the butterflies started to flutter. Equiratings spoke very highly of Austin and Colorado Blue, giving them great odds at placing well. I prayed and hoped that they could pull off the result that the statistics predicted they would, that Team O’Connor knew they could.

As the buzz and the adrenaline kicked in, I remembered why I love the sport of eventing; as a rider, as a groom or even just as a spectator. As riders, we’re always striving for better. I would love to get to the top myself some day; but, for now, I consider myself truly blessed to have the opportunity to experience the magic from the ground. Nothing beats being there: expertly put into words by Mr. O’Connor himself  in a Connolly’s Red Mills interview, “Badminton is very, very special… Once I got an interest in eventing and competing, Badminton was where I wanted to go.”

Friday was Dressage Day for Austin and Salty. Ella and Tia were the lucky ones to get to witness from the ring-side on what turned out to be the only dry day of competition. Jonas and I kept the show on the road back at the yard, only pausing briefly and tuning in to Badminton TV to watch the test. A 5* personal best for Colorado Blue in this phase meant they were off to a flying start. Then it was back to work, attending to the stars of the future.

The roles were reversed on Saturday. It was a real treat for Jonas and I to enjoy a day-trip to Badminton to observe some world-class dressage. We were fortunate enough to see Kitty King aboard Vendredi Biats and then 2018 World Champion – Rosalind Canter with Lordships Graffalo perform two breathtaking tests to sit at the top of the leaderboard. We also walked around the cross-country course, becoming mesmerised by its sheer size and complexity.

It is said that ‘when the going gets tough, the tough get going’. Never was there a truer example of this than on Cross-Country Day at “a vintage” Badminton. We (the staff at Team O’Connor) started work extra early on Sunday in an attempt to be finished with our jobs in time to watch an exhilarating display of cross-country riding. Fran (Austin’s groom at Badminton) kept us all updated on the preparations as we eagerly awaited his start. At the point when Austin left the start box with his trusty partner-in-crime, the clear round closest to the optimum time had been achieved by current World Number 1 – Tim Price, a whole minute over. Many combinations came home with over two minutes worth of time penalties, others not making it to the finish at all. The tension was building in the kitchen at Alderbrook Stud. As Austin and Salty progressed around the course, the shouting and cheering increased. Nobody was sitting down any more. Our dynamic duo really seemed to be testing the clock. They motored through the finishing flags just 27 seconds outside and straight to the top of the leaderboard after performing the sort of round dreams are made of.

In a post cross-country interview with Irish Eventing Times, Austin exclaimed, “He’s an unbelievable horse. It’s a privilege to ride a horse like him… He’s got mileage at this level, but my God, he had to dig deep today, and he did… It was tough going. It was big. In the build up, people were underestimating it. Realistically, if it was the perfect conditions, there’d still only be five or six in the time, I’ve no doubt about that… The weather changes everything. We’re not used to riding in abnormal conditions any more… I’m very lucky. We’ve got an amazing location. I’ve got an amazing team at home. We knew we had him ready. It’s not just about me. It’s about everybody else. The guys in the yard: day in, day out… He was ready, he was fit and he’s got a bit of class…”

As the competition continued, it seemed they were in a league of their own. No one could catch them. However, there were a few potential predators at the end of the start list. Tom McEwen and Oliver Townend were strong contenders aboard their respective experienced partners in their Olympic Team Gold medalists Toledo de Kerser and Ballaghmor Class. Oli never seemed to quite put his foot to the floor, presumably riding slightly on the cautious side following an elimination by the ground jury on his earlier horse, Swallow Springs. Tom also spared TDK. The clock kept ticking and we realised that he wasn’t going to be able to over-take Austin. I was skipping around the room with glee. Our imaginations went wild and ideas of achieving the impossible suddenly filled our heads. To our disappointment, but not surprise, the lead could not be held forever. Dressage leaders Ros Canter and Lordships Graffalo performed another stellar cross-country round to hold on to that top spot heading into the final day of competition.

Austin’s exhibit, nonetheless, remained popularly the ’round of the day’. Speaking of Colorado Blue to Horse & Hound Magazine, he reported, “He’s full of class. He’s one of the best horses in the world, in my opinion. It was a lot more difficult a round than I would normally have, but he dug deep and kept galloping. Eventing is about weather and weather changes. It was hard work even for a very, very good horse, but surely to God, that’s what eventing’s all about.”

On Monday morning, we were up and about bright and early again. The horses at Alderbrook had to be mucked out, fed, watered and exercised before we headed off to Badminton to see the final show-jumping phase. Beaming from ear to ear, I tied an Irish flag around my shoulders. The other three soon followed suit, all four of us proudly marching through the mud, showing how much we cared. On their own turf, I had Brits sporting tricolours on Coronation weekend. That’s power – proof of what a small, but mighty nation we are. Irish people are so loved. It’s only after I moved away from home a few years ago that I really could appreciate that. As we paraded through the trade stands, we were joined by more and more Irish supporters. The ‘Austin & Salty Fan Club’ was growing. I kept sending people to the Horse Sport Ireland stand to get more flags. I believe they eventually ran out! Before the jumping even started, there were hugs and kisses galore among the team.

Starting in reverse order of merit, it felt like an eternity before it was the turn of the beautiful Colorado Blue. Only two combinations had exited the arena having added 0 faults to their score; Tom Jackson partnering his Burghley 2022 runner-up – Capels Hollow Drift, and Tom McEwen with his Olympic Individual Silver medal ride. I must have muttered, “Come on Austin. Come on Salty. Come on Salty.” about a hundred times while my fingers began to turn blue from crossing them so tightly. Unfortunately two fences fell at the end of a long track, resulting in the pair dropping behind Oliver Townend and the ever consistent 5* campaigner – Ballaghmor Class, but the effort was enough to keep them ahead of Tom and Tom. Irish Eventing Times caught Austin’s reaction: “If I was given this position a week ago, I’d have taken it all day long… It was obviously a little bit of natural disappointment having those couple of cheap rails at the end… I think he jumped well, he tried his heart out… We’re here, we’re on the podium, so very happy… amazing…” Ros Canter closed the competition by jumping a flawless round on last year’s reserve champion – Lordships Graffalo, a thoroughly deserved victory after phenomenal performances in all three phases.

Once more, the heavens opened in the sky above Badminton Horse Trials. As the rain came down for the prize-giving, it almost felt like we were living in a fairytale. One by one, the winners collected their trophies. The drenched riders eventually re-mounted their horses for the lap of honour. They cantered around the perimeter of the arena, with no one receiving a greater applause than the Irishman and his silver steed. Team O’Connor were louder and prouder than anyone.

At the end of an emotional day; Austin, Fran and Salty arrived back late Monday evening to a hero’s welcome at Alderbrook Stud. After such a long winter and a still refusing to appear spring, the yard needed this uplifting result. “I am disappointed. He didn’t jump as well out of this ground as he can, so it caught up with us, but to be on the podium alongside two of the best riders in the world, I couldn’t be happier. I think you’ll be seeing an Irish rider win this in the next four or five years. And I hope he’s sitting on the podium now.” [Horse & Hound]