EQUESTRIAN: Doel is just Magic at Somerley Park (From The Wiltshire Gazette and Herald)

EQUESTRIAN: Doel is just Magic at Somerley Park

1:00pm Friday 3rd August 2012 in General Sport

Reybridge’s David Doel continued his current fine form with a cracking win at the Somerley Park BE (British Eventing) Horse Trials at Ringwood in Hampshire.

Doel, who has been confirmed in Britain’s team for the FEI Young Riders European Eventing Championships in Sweden next week, headed the Open Intermediare U21 section by a clear three marks on Koyuna Sun Magic and also filled fourth spot on Cartman.

His winning ride, now 16, was reserve for the 2008 Australian Olympic three day event team with long time partner Wendy Schaeffer and has now been retired from the highest level of competition.

Doel took on the ride last spring and the veteran gelding proved he is as talented as ever with a cracking cross country clear, which saw him finish just one second over the optimum time.

Lower Stanton St Quinton-based Kitty King just missed a win in the Open Intermediate section when she finished on the same score as the winner, but was fractionally further from the cross country optimum time to finish second.

She was riding seven-year-old Persimmon, who only started running at Open Intermediate level in June and was fresh from a great international two star win at Barbury Castle last month.

Hodnon’s Tom McEwen also made the winners’ circle in a strong Intermediate section, coming home an emphatic nine marks clear of New Zealand Olympian Dan Jocelyn.

His partner was the bay gelding Rehy USA, who completed on an excellent dressage score of 23.6.

Devizes rider Coral Keen picked up a fourth and sixth on her Intermediate rides Zoe and Wellshead Fare Opposition.

French international eventer Leonard Goerens, who rides from a yard at Crudwell, was among the Novice section winners.

He topped his section by close to nine marks on Principal Espoir, who he is in his first full season with.

Pewsey-based New Zealand rider Lizzie Brown took both her Novice rides – the six year olds Green Mount Flight and Bulana – into second place, a season’s best for both horses.

Alice Bromfield, a past highly successful rider for the Avon Vale Hunt Pony Club, also claimed a second at Novice level.

The Chippenham rider partnered her only event horse, Springtime Orla, after completing on her dressage score of 28.5.