12:50pm Thursday 2nd September 2010
ANDREW Nicholson’s main priority this year remains next month’s World Equestrian Games – but he admits that won’t stop him aiming to win at this weekend’s Burghley Horse Trials, writes RYAN BANGS.
The Marlborough-based New Zealander will travel across the Atlantic to Kentucky for the World Equestrian Games in less than a month’s time, where he will ride Nereo.
However Nicholson has plenty before then and is set to board Armada and Avebury at Burghley, which acts as the penultimate leg of the HSBC FEI Classics series.
Burghley will be Nicholson’s third four-star and HSBC FEI Classics appearance this year having ridden at Badminton in the spring and at Luhmuhlen back in June.
Nicholson finished a best of fourth aboard Mr Cruise Control at Luhmuhlen and despite his sights slowly looking elsewhere he believes can upgrade that to first at Burghley.
“I won at Burghley back in 1995 and 2000 and I go every year and I will be going to win and I believe I have a good chance of doing so this year,” said Nicholson – who sits tenth in the HSBC FEI Classics standings with eight points.
“Armada is probably the more experienced of the two horses, he isn’t quite so good at the dressage while Avebury is a younger and probably more all round horse.
“I always go to Burghley and the event has come on an awful lot since I first went and it is one of the best courses to ride around.
“I have been going well this year and I have got the Blenheim Palace Horse Trials coming after Burghley and with the worlds also there I am pretty busy.
“Nereo is probably the best horse for me to take to Kentucky and I will be hoping to win there as well. Nereo is a good horse and I hope we can step up and get a medal.”
The HSBC FEI Classics™ unites the top end of the international eventing circuit - namely the five four-star competitions across the world. The Land Rover Burghley Horse Trials is the penultimate event in the HSBC FEI Classics™.
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