Last week in Hickstead the British team made it a home fest winning the Nations Cup, but the story could have been different was Ireland's Mark McAuley and his GRS Lady Amaro not eliminated due to the blood rules. "The horse had a very, very slight scratch," says showjumping chef d'equipe, Michael Blake.
In a reaction to H&H Blake outs his frustration. "I felt we were hard done by, but the rules are the rules," he says. "Mark his horse jumped his hert out. Of course horse welfare is absolutely paramount, but when your horse jumps that hard for you, it's not a good rule, it was just a slight scratch, up at the saddle pad. It's not a good rule, it needs changing."
Horse welfare is at the forefront of everything within the sport, but blood rules and spur use have created much debate and controversy in recent years.
Apart from this incident, Blake was proud of the different rounds of his team...
source: Horse & Hound