NEWSLETTER
There could have been no more popular a winner of the British Open Championship at the Festival of British Eventing, presented by BETA at Gatcombe Park, than Ruth Edge.
After posting the competition's best dressage score of 27.1, Ruth Mayhem III produced the only double clear in the show jumping and cross-country phases to lead from start to finish.
It was a consummate performance from one of Eventing's most professional and hard working but likeable stars. Although a handful of the best of the Brits were absent this year, having already left for the Olympics in Hong Kong, Ruth and Mayhem would still surely have been unbeatable.
In fact, Ruth herself very nearly made the Olympic team with her more experienced ride Two Thyme, a British Open winner of four years ago. However, the British team's loss where an injury removed them from the reserve list proved to be Gatcombe's gain.
Ruth, who hails from Cumbria, produced the 11 year old Mayhem