Oliver Townend sets his sights on Rolex Grand Slam

Great Britain’s Oliver Townend will be competing for the much-coveted Rolex Grand Slam of Eventing at this weekend’s Mitsubishi Motors Badminton Horse Trials after he and Cooley Master Class were crowned the winners of the 2018 Kentucky Three-Day Event after a nail-biting finale to the competition over the weekend in which Michael Jung and FischerRocana FST finished second.

The weekend’s win means that Yorkshire-bred Oliver, age 36, has now consecutively won two of the three titles needed to take the Rolex Grand Slam title, having won at Burghley last year; Oliver is contesting Badminton this week with strong rides in the form of his 2017 Burghley winner Ballaghmor Class and his recent European Championship partner, Cooley SRS.

Oliver, photographed above with his former great cross-country ride Armada, said of his Kentucky mount Cooley Master Class: “I have had him since he was four, he has won at nearly every level and never lets us down. He’s suffered with injuries in the past and at some points we weren’t sure if he would even come through, but the last two seasons he has been amazing, he’s always been cheeky and extremely talented so it’s great to be here with him.”

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