Britons Pippa Funnell and Izzy Taylor pick up medals in Le Lion

Ingrid Klimke and Christopher Burton were the winners at the FEI World Breeding Federation Eventing Championships for Young Horses, held at Le Lion d’Angers, France, but two of Britain’s top event riders were also among the medalists.

Izzy Taylor just missed out on winning the gold medal in the six-year-old section with Jockey Club Fleurelle, after a costly showjumping fence down.

In the end she had to settle for bronze behind Australia’s Christopher Burton (Fire Fly) and Switzerland’s Felix Vogg (Mathurin V/D Vogelzan).

“There were so many good six-year-old horses with good riders, I really needed all the luck for this win and I had exactly that in the jumping because my horse touched several poles that didn’t fall!” said Burton after his win. “There were others who were not so lucky. My horse performed exactly how I could have wished, and it’s great to finish this season so well.”

In the seven-year-olds, Germay’s Ingrid Klimke led from start to finish with the grey mare Weisse Duene, while Britain’s Pippa Funnell finished runner-up with the AES gelding Billy Walk On. New Zealand’s Jonelle Price finished third with Cooley Showtime.

Klimke described her horse as “definitely a mare for the future”, adding that “She certainly has the potential to go to the Olympics in Tokyo in four years time.”

Results

Seven-Year-Old Championship: GOLD – Weisse Duene (Ingrid Klimke) GER 36.9; SILVER – Billy Walk On (Pippa Funnell) GBR 39.0; BRONZE – Vroum D’Auzay (Maxime Livio) FRA. 45.7.

Six-Year-Old Championship: GOLD – Fire Fly (Christopher Burton) AUS 44.2; SILVER – Mathurin V/D Vogelzan (Felix Vogg) SUI 45.3; BRONZE – Jockey Club Fleurelle (Izzy Taylor) GBR 47.4.

Full results here