2024 Adelaide Equestrian Festival

The Adelaide Equestrian Festival has all the sophistication of a top sporting event on a lovely, sunny autumn day, and if you have a thing for horses, there is nowhere better to be. The FEI Classics Series has been running in the city of Adelaide for 24 years. They even moved to its unique city parklands location in 1997 and obtained CCI4 Star status (then the highest possible ranking) in 1999. The organising committee got it right; taking the event to the people was an inspired decision and Adelaide is the only one of the seven FEI CCI Five Star events conducted around the world to be run in city parklands, just ten minutes from the CBD. Since the move to the autumn fixture last year, the only thing missing is the flowering jacarandas that give Adelaide a mauve dusting in the Spring.

Adelaide International CCI5 Star

Experience has a lot to do with success in equestrian sport, and 2024 Five Star winner, David Middleton from Warragul in Victoria has plenty of it. It was a long time between drinks, but David, who won the Five Star event in 2000 and was a member of the Australian Team at the WEG in Spain in 2002 aboard his off-the-track Thoroughbred, Willowbank Jack, arrived at Adelaide this year with two home-bred siblings and won the class riding WEC In The Money. Ninth after the dressage phase, David and In the Money were the second fastest across country with the addition of 8.8-time penalties to go into the final jumping phase in third place. As fellow Five Star competitor, Andrew Cooper stated of the event: “this is not a dressage competition.” Well, it wasn’t just a cross country event either, as it was David’s final phase clear round that saw him claim the 2024 title. He has clearly produced two wonderful jumping horses, as the mare, WEC In The Breeze, that was a bit too keen across country, was the next best in the final phase with the addition of just four penalties to finish in overall eighth place. WEC In the Money and WEC In the Breeze are both by In The Black (by Olympic Ferro) out of a Balou Du Rouet mare; certainly a recipe for good jumpers.

Read more about David's journey in this interview - David Middleton: Winning Adelaide 5-Star Two Decades Apart

Twenty-four-year-old Olivia Barton from NSW was the sensation of cross country day. She rode Robert Weight’s mare, Hollyander HG by Higgins (by Heraldik) to post the only clear run around the testing Mike Etherington-Smith designed Five Star track. The combination won the CCI4 Star-L at Melbourne last year and this was their first ever Five Star start, and we thought at the end of cross country day, their first ever Five Star win, as they had an advantage of over three fences going into the final phase. Such was their advantage that despite lowering four fences, they still finished in second place. So often we have seen a sure winner fall down the rankings in this final phase of the equestrian triathlon. It is not that they are not good horses or riders, but so many things that come into play for this final jumping phase. Horse and rider nerves, it is a big atmosphere at Adelaide; fatigue after the big day before, and these days it does not take much to lower a rail. They are horses, not machines. But no doubt we will be seeing much more of this talented combination in the future.

New Zealand visitor Diane Gilder and her impressive 19-year-old Your Attorney, a Thoroughbred by Legal Opinion proved that Thoroughbreds can do dressage, by scoring 31.5 to lead the Five Star field. He certainly did not look his age, and the lovely horse proved that he does not just leave his form in the dressage arena, by adding just cross country time penalties to head to the final phase in second place. But sadly, jumping penalties saw them slip to eventual seventh place. However, another typey New Zealand Thoroughbred, Donna Edwards-Smith’s DSE Mendosa by Scardee Cat moved from eighth to fourth after the cross country to eventual third with three down.

The final Five Star jumping phase was disappointing, and it remains the Achilles heel of three day eventing. The Five Star field this year was a bit light on for really experienced combinations. Shane Rose was greatly missed, Olympic medalists, Stuart Tinney and Clayton Fredricks were at Adelaide as Assistant Course Designers. One of SA’s favourite daughters and 2005 Five Star winner, Megan Jones gave her impressive Toulando his first Five Star start at Adelaide. They passed the final vet inspection, but Megan opted to retire before the final phase. Sonja Johnson always has a competitive horse was absent as were Sophia Hill and Andrew Barnett who are both in the UK. What the 2024 International Five Star told us was that Dave Middleton still has the mojo and that well-bred Olivia Barton, successful eventing rider Carlene Barton is her mother, has accepted the baton as one of Australia’s future eventing greats.

Horseland CCI4 Star-S

Who said Thoroughbreds don’t do dressage? Certainly, no one has told Shenae Lowing’s Bold Venture who scored the best dressage score of not only the Horseland CCI4 Star-S, but the combined event, 27.8. Shenae took out the 2023 Anna Savage “Best and Fairest” award voted by her peers on the strength of a super season with her beautiful Thoroughbred gelding, by the Sir Tristram son, Deveraja. They won the Four Star at Adelaide last year in April and then won the Olympic qualifier at Millstreet in Ireland last June. Bold Venture is strong in every phase, with lovely movement in the dressage and just sublime across country. His racing name was Hell On Wheels. Well he was Heaven On Wheels around the cross country and was the only horse to come home under the time allowed, if only by one second. He is usually clear in the final jumping phase, but a heart-stopping stumble on landing in a related line early in the course saw the front rail of an oxer fall for the addition of four penalties. Remarkably, both horse and rider stayed calm and confident for the remainder of the course. It would probably pay for Shenae to brush up on her French.

Busy man about eventing, Andrew Cooper from Queensland jumped his way from seventh after the dressage with just cross country time and one jumping rail to take second place riding Pepper Jack by Peppermill (Burggraaf/Voltaire). No rider, probably in the history of the sport in Australia, has been better bred for it than Oliver Barrett. His dad, Craig won the Adelaide Five Star in 2012 and has had a very successful career, and his mother, Prue was a successful international eventing rider, as well as an Australian Team coach. Oliver added to the family’s reputation at Adelaide riding his mother’s home bred mare, Sandhills Special by the NZ Sporthorse, Croftlea Artisan out of a Staccato mare. They were second after the dressage phase, but the addition of cross country time penalties and one jumping rail, saw them finish a very promising third.

Three-time Adelaide Five Star winners, Hazel Shannon and Terrence Snow’s legendary Willingapark Clifford have nothing to prove, and at 19-years-old Clifford does not need to run around another Five Star track. Having said that, he “looks a million dollars” according to one spectator. And he certainly does, and the gleaming chestnut was feeling pretty well too, with a ‘let me at ‘em’ attitude, causing Hazel to throttle down a little. Third after the dressage, cross country time and one rail saw them finish the Horseland CCI4 Star-S in fourth place.

Jessica Rae and her home-bred and produced Rascal, by Regardez Moi were the only combination to leave all the jumps standing in the final phase of the Horseland CCI4 Star-S. Fourth after the dressage, cross country time penalties were costly and the pair finished in fifth place.

Racing SA CCI3 Star-L and Bates Saddles Young Rider Championship

Olivia Barton made sure of victory by taking first place in the dressage phase with only the second sub-30 dressage score of the competition (29.9) riding her mother’s eight-year-old home-bred APH Sodoku (APH Rocardo/APH Coriandus). With the addition of two time penalties they slipped to second place after the cross country, but a clean slate in the final phase saw them regain the lead. In fact, the top three in this event left the jumps standing in this always influential final test. Olivia Shore was second on her beautiful Thoroughbred Dreamcatcher by Sebring that was produced by Niki Rose.

The combination from WA added nothing to their dressage score (32.4) to claim the Bates Saddles Young Rider title that was conducted within the Three Star test. Gemma Tinney, another bred for the job, rode Karen and Stuart Tinney’s dressage bred, PHS Hilton (Jazz C/ Anamour). They added just four cross country time penalties to take third place.

The event this year might have been missing a few of the names that have traditionally been associated with Adelaide, but what it did show was the wealth of young talent ready to step into their shoes.

Article: Anna Sharpley
Photos: Michelle Terlato Photography