Laura Birley ready for family affair at Defender Burghley
Laura Birley, 28, will make her debut at the event which takes place between 4th – 7th September
Belfast eventer Laura Birley knows the Defender Burghley Horse Trials will be a family affair.
Birley, 28, will make her debut at the event which takes place between 4th – 7th September aboard 17-year-old gelding Bob Cotton Bandit, in what will be just her third 5* competition.
Birley explained her mum Jan originally bought Bob Cotton Bandit for herself but found the horse better suited to her daughter.
After 10 years, the partnership between Birley and Bob Cotton Bandit is still going strong, and she is delighted to be able to compete upon her trusty companion on the biggest stage of them all.
“I couldn't have asked for a better horse to be going [to Burghley] on,” she said. “I know him so well.
“When he was younger, he used to get very excited when he went to competitions, so my mum decided that he wasn’t really for her, and she gave him to me.
“We all thought I’d just do a few events with him, but he’s continued to move up the levels and here we are.
“Burghley is the pinnacle and it’s great to be going with him.”
Birley moved to Ireland in 2021, later moving to Northern Ireland, where she still resides.
She made her bow at a 5* event at Luhmühlen in June 2024 and followed that up by finishing 53rd at Pau four months later.
Although Birley has experience of 5* events, she is anticipating Burghley to be unlike any event she’s been to and can’t wait to perform there.
“I'm so excited,” she continued. “I’m also very nervous. We did Luhmühlen and Pau last year, which were good, but they’re not quite the same as Burghley.
“Ever since I was a child, Badminton and Burghley are the two events I’ve wanted to ride at.
“[What makes Burghley so special] for me is the fact there are going to be so many people I know there, and they’ll be watching me. My mum and my dad are going and then I've got friends coming over from Northern Ireland too.”
Riders will compete in three disciplines, dressage, show jumping and cross country, during the event and Birley is expecting her horse to thrive the most during the latter.
She added: “Cross country is definitely the one that [Bob Cotton Bandit] is the strongest at, it’s the one he enjoys the most, he loves it.
“He'll jump anything as long as I can get him to a fence.”
Defender Burghley Horse Trials (4-7 September 2025) has been a major international sporting and social event for over 50 years. It attracts the world's top equestrians and is attended by vast and enthusiastic crowds. For more information visit www.burghley-horse.co.uk