Sarah Cohen, Emily Prangnall & Liz Inman L-R
The Kettlethorpe Sport Horses owner is a woman on a mission this year at Burghley; desperate to master the new look course and make her mark at the four-star event.
Her horse DHI Beaunesse will be one of 100 horses taking to the international event in Burghley Park from August 30 – one of just six four-star events in the world.
Event riders will compete in dressage, cross country and show jumping disciplines, looking to follow in the footsteps of 2017 winner Oliver Townend as well as six-time champion William Fox-Pitt.
But for Prangnell, having Burghley on her doorstep means this experience will take on an extra special meaning.
“With it being our first four-star event, my primary goal is to complete everything and maybe finish in the top half,” said Prangnell.
“We hope that’s a realistic goal and anything from there really is a bonus. I’m going to try and do my best and so who knows what I can achieve.
“Burghley Horse Trials is such a big deal for me; I’m a local rider and I come from Lincolnshire.
“I’ve lost count of the number of times I have visited Burghley, I’ve competed in the Pony Club Show jumping, I’ve done the Burghley Event Trial here – but I never thought I was going to compete one day at the big four-star event.
“It’s a huge deal for me and exciting. To step up to four-star is a huge unknown, we’ve done six three-star events and so we’ve at least consolidated at that level.”
With experience comes results as Prangnell has found, finishing tenth at Chatsworth CCI three-star in 2014 after adopting a newly-relaxed attitude.
While the pressure of eventing may have weighed heavily on Prangnell’s shoulders in the past, the Lincolnshire eventer is thoroughly excited to get on the saddle at Burghley.
She’ll do so with the world’s best riders for company, while more than 160,000 annually attend the four days of competition held in the heart of the county.
“In the past my friends have known to come and watch but they stay away from the lorry generally because I have been so nervous,” she added.
“I don’t know what’s happened in the last year, but I have settled into it. We’ve been doing it for such a long time together now and I am sure we will all be having a barbecue at the lorry most nights.
“My friends are really excited. I don’t think some of them can believe it really. They think it’s just me and not a four-star rider. To them I am just Emily.”
Prangnell also paid tribute to her horse, DHI Beaunesse, who she is convinced is ready to deliver on the biggest stage yet of their fledgling partnership.
“I’ve had her for six years, I know the horse and she knows me,” added Prangnell. “We’re a real partnership and hopefully that should give us some confidence.
“My horse is also known as Dolly, I’ve had her since she was six. We’ve come through the levels together, she is a real diva. Everything must be her way, she can sometimes be difficult to handle.
“She is very forward thinking, she always wants to get on with the job in hand and that’s what makes her so good at Cross Country. That can sometimes make her a little harder in the dressage.
“She’s starting to settle, she enjoys the crowd at big events – I think they help her to settle.”
The multi-award-winning Land Rover Burghley Horse Trials from August 30 – September 2 has been established as a major international equestrian and social event in the Autumn Sporting Calendar for over 50 years.
By Ryan Walters, Sportsbeat
