Kent Farrington and Uceko win the King George V Cup at Hickstead

It’s been a long time since anyone’s had taken the King’s Cup from British soil, but Kent Farrington brought it back to the U.S. after a spectacular victory in the Longines King George V Cup in 2011 at the Royal International Horse Show in Hickstead, England.

Riding the 10-year-old Dutch Warmblood gelding, Uceko, Farrington triumphed over a field of 47. The 10-rider jump-off had the crowd cheering and gasping as the final fence, the imposing Hickstead planks, came down for rider after rider. Farrington’s very fast 54.36 seconds jump-off time earned him a 0.5 second margin over British rider, Robert Smith, landing the win on his first-ever trip to the West Sussex venue.

"I thought it was a really nice course today, and it was classically built," Farrington said.

Ironically, RCG Farm purchased this grey horse for Farrington from Leon Thijssen of the Netherlands, who took third-place in the contest on Tyson. "He probably wishes he hadn't sold him to me now," Farrington said.

“When I saw the first rider go clear, I knew we would have to be fast," Farrington said. With five British riders through to the jump-off, the crowd at Hickstead seemed likely to enjoy a home win, but no one could better the jump-off time of Kent Farrington and Uceko.

Source: The Equestrian News and Equestrian Life