The British Eventing Show: A Christmas Conversation with British Eventing
Release Date: 12/22/2025
Ask Us Anything: Listener Q&A
EquiRatings Eventing Podcast
The Eventing Podcast inbox has been overflowing, and since we couldn't get to them all during the last episode, here's a full listener-powered question episode for you. From season plans and LA 2028 predictions to Badminton memories, German dominance, and the rising stars reshaping 2026, nothing is off-limits. It’s opinions, insight, and a few unfiltered tangents from the people who see every side of the sport. Highlights What 2026 could mean for the world number one battle Who the team are backing for LA (and why the case isn’t straightforward) Early-season plans for Rocket, Goldman, and...
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Back at the Table with the A-Team
EquiRatings Eventing Podcast
The A-Team is back and somehow January already feels long. Between Diarm’s medical misadventures, Spike’s family odyssey to Cape Town and Sam getting ID’d at 40, it’s a suitably unhinged reunion… before we finally get to the sport. From why flag penalties moved from 15 to nine, to what really separates a championship horse from a five-star horse, to Ireland’s new high-performance era under Sam Griffiths, it’s a state-of-play start to 2026 with perhaps more questions than answers... Listeners sent in plenty of those questions, so this is Part One - the Q&A show follows next!...
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When Nicole Met: Kate Rocher-Smith
EquiRatings Eventing Podcast
On today’s episode of When Nicole Met, supported by Bedmax, we sit down with five-star rider and producer Kate Rocher-Smith to unravel a career built as much in the sales yard as in the start box. From a first Badminton to eight- and nine-year-olds at Aston le Walls and a stable full of rising prospects, Kate explains how Dassett Eventing has become one of the sport’s most influential pipelines for top horses and top riders. Highlights Badminton 2025 and the first-five-star learning curve How Dassett Eventing reshaped the sales + production model The traits that matter most in young...
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Red Mills Special: Tina & Isabelle Cook on 2026
EquiRatings Eventing Podcast
On today’s Connolly’s Red Mills Special, we’ve got a brilliant double act: former European Champion Tina Cook and one of the most exciting young names coming through, her daughter Izzy. With the 2026 season in sight, we look back on a year that included Boekelo, Young Rider medals and a first full run at four-star, and ahead to under-25 Worlds, Bramham ambitions and the next crop of homebreds coming through the yard. From the call that cost an individual medal at Strzegom to the seven-year-olds they both hope to take to Le Lion, the Cooks open the door on what’s to come. Highlights ...
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USEA Special: Keeping Eventing's Trust with David O'Connor
EquiRatings Eventing Podcast
Welcome back to the Eventing Podcast. We have teamed up with the USEA and for this New Year special, we’re taking on one of the biggest conversations in equestrian sport: social license. What it is, why it matters, and how every one of us plays a role in the future of eventing. Olympic champion, five-star winner, USEF Chief of Sport, and USEA EA21 Director of Coaching David O’Connor joins the show to unpack trust, education, safety, and responsibility, and how the sport can evolve while keeping its core values at the center. For the latest in U.S. eventing, competition highlights, rider...
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Strawmax Stable Chat: Andy Heffernan
EquiRatings Eventing Podcast
Andy Heffernan steps into the stable and we go well beyond course plans and CV lines — from winter escapes and family life to AI fence drawings, Olympic dream seats, and why Bramham still means everything to him. HIGHLIGHTS Why winter never really slows him down Using AI to turn fences into drawings The advice from Andrew Nicholson that shaped his career Why Bramham is still his favourite event Olympic finals, jump racing, and skiing envy “More tolerant than I used to be” - summing himself up in a few words GUEST Andy Heffernan - international course designer, coach, and rider ...
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When Nicole Met: Annie Bishop
EquiRatings Eventing Podcast
Today on When Nicole Met, supported by Bedmax, we meet someone whose life has touched every corner of eventing. From growing up in a family steeped in eventing history to carving out her own path in advertising, creative production and now commentary and podcasting, Annie Bishop talks storytelling, sport, and why fresh voices matter. She also gives an inside look at the US Equestrian Open podcast, working alongside riders across dressage, jumping and eventing, and how the Open format is helping develop combinations and build fans in the lead-up to LA. Highlights Parents who rode at Olympic...
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Sam Lissington on Data, Depth, & the Road to LA
EquiRatings Eventing Podcast
After closing out 2025 as world number seven, Sam Lissington sits down to unpack the season that changed everything and the road ahead. She reflects on the pride of consistency across Luhmühlen, Burghley, Blenheim and Strzegom, the satisfaction of finally showing what long-term horses like Sooty can do, and the analytical approach behind improving weaknesses and speed through the winter. Sam also tackles the tougher side of the year: Badminton heartbreak, late injuries to key horses and rebuilding horsepower for 2026–27. Plus, an inside look at Lucas Stone’s rise and what data, instinct...
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Red Mills Feed Room: Protein and Performance
EquiRatings Eventing Podcast
In this Red Mills Feed Room episode, Spike is joined by Louise Jones from Red Mills to tackle one of the most misunderstood topics in horse nutrition: protein. Does protein really make horses hot? Can you underfeed it without realising? Is soya actually a problem, or just another internet myth? From muscle development and rehab to allergies, topline and performance, this is a straight-talking myth-busting conversation that separates fact from long-held stable lore. Highlights: Why protein is so often blamed for excitability What actually happens when horses are under-fed protein The truth...
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When Nicole Met: Adam Short
EquiRatings Eventing Podcast
On today’s When Nicole Met show, supported by Bedmax, we are joined by someone who has become one of eventing’s most recognisable personalities and a firm favourite with so many. Adam Short takes us from the heart of Newcastle, where ten riding lessons at Stepney Bank Stables changed the course of his life, right through to grooming at Olympic level. He reflects on the years learning under the incomparable Jackie Potts, the leap to Tom McEwen’s team and the reality of managing horses and riders through the pressure of major championships. Adam also shares the emotion behind Dublin’s...
info_outlineBetween Christmas and New Year is always a strange pause. The horses still need doing, the calendar for next season is already filling up, and yet it’s the one moment in the year where everyone takes a breath and looks around.
In this Christmas special, Nicole brings together an all-star panel to reflect on 2025, from personal milestones and big championship moments to confidence wobbles, comeback stories and the quieter wins that matter just as much. It’s an honest conversation about perspective, community, and why eventing is as much about the people as it is the results, before attention inevitably turns to championship season and what’s coming next.
Highlights
- Personal and professional highlights from 2025, including championship highs and lessons learned along the way
- How family, perspective and confidence shape performance at the top level
- British Eventing’s year in numbers, participation growth and behind-the-scenes progress
- Why community matters, from grassroots riders to five-star finish lines
- Looking ahead to 2026, with world championships, goals, and renewed motivation
- A festive Q&A covering training basics, accessibility, mindset and enjoying the sport
Guests
- Lucinda Green – Six-time Badminton winner and legendary voice of experience
- Tom McEwen – Two-time Olympic gold medallist
- Rosie Williams – CEO of British Eventing
- Simon Grieve – Five-star rider and fan
Follow @britisheventing on Instagram to stay up to date with all the action.
Inspired to get more involved? Find out how you can support training, education and the eventing community:
👉 British Eventing Training Foundation
👉 Volunteer with British Eventing