Amanda Knapp
The Badminton Horse Trials is an annual event dating back to 1949, when it was first held by the 10th Duke of Beaufort to help British riders train for international events. The competition has three phases: dressage, cross-country, and show jumping. The most successful rider at Badminton is Lucinda Green, with six wins. The most recent winner of the Badminton Horse Trials is Caroline Powell, riding Greenacres Special Cavalier. The event has also faced several challenges, including cancellations due to bad weather and pandemics, and incidents of dangerous riding and horse abuse.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Year of first Badminton Horse Trials | 1949 |
| Host of first Badminton Horse Trials | 10th Duke of Beaufort |
| Winner of first Badminton Horse Trials | Golden Willow |
| Winner of the European Championship in 1953 | Major Laurence Rook on Starlight XV |
| Year Badminton was first televised | 1956 |
| Year Badminton was divided into Great and Little Badminton | 1959 |
| Most successful rider | Lucinda Green |
| Rider with the highest number of Badminton completions | Andrew Nicholson (37 completions) |
| Winner of the 2024 Badminton Horse Trials | Caroline Powell (New Zealand) on Greenacres Special Cavalier |
| Winner of the 2025 Badminton Horse Trials | Ros Canter and Lordships Graffalo |
| Rider with the most number of Yellow Warning Cards | Mollie Summerland (2 cards) |
| Winners of the Rolex Grand Slam of Eventing | Pippa Funnell (2003), Michael Jung (2015/2016) |
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What You'll Learn
The first Badminton winner was Golden Willow in 1949
The Thomas Cup is a prestigious men's badminton team competition held by the Badminton World Federation (BWF). The tournament was first planned for 1941-1942 but was delayed due to World War II. The inaugural tournament finally took place in 1948-1949, with ten national teams participating. The first winner of the Thomas Cup, and therefore the first winner of a major international badminton tournament, was Malaya (now Malaysia and Singapore).
The tournament had three qualifying zones: Pan America, Europe, and the Pacific. As the only Pacific zone participant, Malaya progressed to the inter-zone ties, where they faced the United States and Denmark, who had won their respective zone qualifications. In a highly competitive match played in Glasgow, Scotland, Malaya defeated the USA 6-3.
This historic tournament marked the first of only three matches between the USA's Dave Freeman and Malaya's Wong Peng Soon, two of the greatest singles players of the early post-war period. The Thomas Cup has been held once every two years since its inception and continues to be one of the most important competitions in men's badminton.
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Lucinda Green has the most Badminton wins at six
The Badminton Horse Trials, first held in 1949, are considered "the most important horse event in Britain." The competition forms the Rolex Grand Slam of Eventing, alongside the Kentucky Three-Day Event and the Burghley Horse Trials. Only two people have ever won the Grand Slam: Pippa Funnell in 2003 and Michael Jung in 2015/2016.
Lucinda Green (née Prior-Palmer) is the only rider to have won Badminton six times, on six different horses. Her wins were in 1973 (Be Fair), 1976 (Wide Awake), 1977 (George), 1979 (Killaire), 1983 (Regal Realm), and 1984 (Beagle Bay). Green, a former international event rider and popular trainer, began riding at the age of four and received her first horse, Be Fair, as a birthday gift when she was fifteen. Green and Be Fair worked their way up through the eventing grades and went on to win Badminton seven years later. Green's success extended beyond Badminton; she claimed several gold and silver medals and won two European Championships. In 1977, she came first at Badminton, Burghley, and the European Championships. Green has won the Tony Collins Trophy, awarded to the rider with the most British Eventing points in a season, a record seven times. Her dedication and expertise continue to inspire a generation of riders.
Green's daughter, Lissa Green, is following in her mother's footsteps as a professional event rider. In 2017, Lissa made her debut at the Mitsubishi Motors Badminton Horse Trials, riding The Ali G Syndicate's Malin Head Clover.
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The 2024 winner was Caroline Powell
The 2024 winner of the Badminton Horse Trials, held in Gloucestershire, was none other than Caroline Powell, a New Zealand horsewoman. This victory was particularly notable as it was the 75th anniversary of the event. Powell rode Chris and Michelle Mann's Greenacres Special Cavalier to victory, steadily climbing the leaderboard from an initial sixth place after cross-country, with one of only four clear rounds.
Powell's win was a historic one, as she became just the second New Zealand woman to win Badminton, after Jonelle Price in 2018. Powell's triumph was especially impressive given her age and the challenges of reaching this stage of competition. In her own words: "I thought third place would be great, but to win – wow. It’s awesome and I’m not in my youth, so just to get a horse to this stage is difficult enough, but to win – I can’t believe it."
Powell first came to Britain as a groom for triple Badminton winner Ian Stark, and her own accolades include winning Burghley in 2010 on Lenamore, as well as two team bronze medals for New Zealand, in 2010 and at the 2012 Olympic Games. Greenacres Special Cavalier, an Irish-bred mare, was a horse that Powell had ridden since it was a youngster, and their partnership proved a recipe for success.
This victory at Badminton adds to Powell's impressive equestrian career, which also includes being an Accredited BE trainer and cross-country trainer for the Irish Pony Team.
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Ros Canter and Lordships Graffalo were the first partnership to regain their title
The Badminton Horse Trials, first held in 1949, is an iconic event in the equestrian world. It is one of the three events that form the Rolex Grand Slam of Eventing, alongside the Kentucky Three-Day Event and the Burghley Horse Trials. Only two people have ever won the Grand Slam: Pippa Funnell in 2003 and Michael Jung in 2015/2016.
Ros Canter and Lordships Graffalo, also known as 'Walter', made history at the 2025 Badminton Horse Trials by becoming the first partnership to regain their title. The pair first won in 2023, with Ros riding Michele Saul's 10-year-old gelding. They returned to South Gloucestershire, England, in 2025, delivering a faultless performance in the final moments of the competition. Their clear show jumping round left Oliver Townend and Cooley Rosalent with no room for error, and ultimately, Ros and Lordships Graffalo clinched the victory.
Ros Canter's triumph at Badminton adds to her impressive equestrian career. She is one of the few riders to have won both Burghley and Badminton, and her success extends to World and European titles, as well as Olympic gold. Ros's partnership with Lordships Graffalo has been exceptional, with the horse described as a "legend in his own right."
The 2025 Badminton Horse Trials was a thrilling competition, with twists and turns that captivated the audience. It featured the return of Gemma Stevens and the rise of Austin O'Connor, who finished third, matching his 2023 placement. The event also saw Oliver Townend receive a Yellow Warning Card for dangerous riding, highlighting the importance of horse and rider safety.
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The 2020 and 2021 events were cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic
The Badminton World Federation (BWF) cancelled several tournaments in 2020 and 2021 due to the coronavirus pandemic. In 2020, the BWF cancelled the Hyderabad Open, originally scheduled for August 11 to 16. The tournament was one of three to be held in India that year, as part of the BWF's efforts to restart badminton following pandemic-forced cancellations. The BWF also cancelled the Australian Open and the Korea Masters tournaments in 2020. The Australian Open, originally scheduled for June 2 to 7, was postponed with the hope of finding a suitable replacement date. However, both parties eventually agreed that holding the tournament later in the year was not feasible. The Korea Masters, a Super 300 tournament on the HSBC BWF World Tour, was scheduled for November 24 to 29 but was also cancelled.
In addition to these cancellations, the YONEX German Open, YONEX Swiss Open, and 2020 European Championships were suspended, with the potential for further changes to the tournament calendar. The BWF released a revamped tournament calendar for the remainder of the 2020 season but noted that additional modifications could be made as the situation evolved. While the specific reasons for the cancellations of the 2021 Asian badminton tournaments are unclear, it can be reasonably inferred that they were also due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
The impact of the coronavirus pandemic on the badminton world circuit led to disruptions in the 2019-2022 BWF World Tour seasons. The 2019 BWF World Tour, the second season of the BWF World Tour, consisted of 26 tournaments leading up to the World Tour Finals. Basel, Switzerland, hosted the 2019 BWF World Championships from August 19 to 25, marking the last major tournament before the pandemic-related cancellations. The next BWF World Championships took place in Tokyo, Japan, from August 22 to 28, 2022, with Denmark's Viktor Axelsen claiming his second badminton world title.
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Frequently asked questions
Caroline Powell from New Zealand won the Badminton Horse Trials in 2024.
The first Badminton Horse Trials was won by Golden Willow.
Capt. Martin Whiteley on The Poacher won the Little Badminton in 1952. Capt. James Templer on M’Lord Connolly won the Great Badminton.
Ros Canter from Great Britain won the Badminton Horse Trials in 2023.
Pippa Funnell in 2003 and Michael Jung in 2015/16 are the only two people to have won the Grand Slam.
