Badminton Horse Trials success for Teesdale event rider

Teesdale event rider Katie Magee, at only her second Badminton Horse Trials, piloted her 17.2hh horse Treworra to a fantastic fifth place.

Entering the showjumping phase on her dressage score of 33.3 penalty points, Katie had one fence down, but she proved she could handle the intense pressure of the world’s most prestigious eventing competition.

Last year she finished 11th and was the highest placed Badminton first-timer.

In Saturday’s gruelling cross-country phase, while many experienced pairs foundered on the demanding course, 44-year-old Katie and Treworra – stable name Wilf – produced an effortless-looking faultless round six seconds inside the time.

“I loved every single second,” she said later in a BBC interview. “He was simply brilliant. I have spent 30-odd years watching Badminton on television at home, so to be here is indescribable.”

Last August Katie won the British Open Eventing title riding the 12-year-old dark bay gelding – a “favourite” at her yard in Lartington.

Katie came from a non-horsey family and got hooked on riding thanks to her cousins and their ponies.

“Wilf is one of the best cross country horses in the world,” Katie told the Mercury. “We’ve been together since he was five.

“He’s a quick horse but very adjustable – not strong. He was enjoying himself and I did enjoy the round and jumping iconic fences such as the Vicarage Vee which were not on the course last year.”

When not in work or at competition, Wilf spends a lot of time sleeping in the field with his best friend,

Claude, Katie has said in the past. She told the BBC: “He can eat his own body weight in carrots and extra strong mints.”

Katie got to know Wilf’s owner Angela Hislop after schooling a pony for her granddaughter, and became Wilf’s rider shortly after.

In the past, Katie has spoken highly of the support she gets from both owner and her trainer, former event rider Nicola Wilson.

“Nicola’s been helping me a lot,” she says. “She’s been trying to push me to that next level and get me performing better across the board. She has been wonderful, with me every second of the way. I couldn’t do it without her.”

Katie had a small close-knit team behind her at Badminton, including husband, Ciaran, and son, Peter, as her “super grooms”.

Asked what’s next for the Magee yard, Katie said: “It’s a busy few weeks. We will be supporting a more local event – Belsay – where I have nine horses competing across all levels.”