Germany's Michael Jung kept himself on course to win three-day eventing's richest prize with a strong start at the Badminton horse trials in south-west England on Thursday. Any rider who wins consecutive titles at Burghley in England, the United States' Kentucky event and Badminton completes the Grand Slam and with that claims a jackpot worth £240,000 ($347,000, 305,000 euros).
But the only rider to have completed this treble is Britain's Pippa Funnell and that was 13 years ago. However, Olympic and European individual champion Jung laid down a marker with a brilliant dressage score of 34.4 penalties on Thursday riding La Biosthetique-Sam, his London 2012 double gold medal-winning horse. That gave the 33-year-old the overnight lead although a number of competitors, including Britain's Zara Tindall - a former world champion and the granddaughter of Queen Elizabeth II - won't ride in the dressage phase until Friday.
"I think about it (the Grand Slam), yes," Jung said. "It's always in the head, but I would like to ride as normal, as if it is any other competition here," added Jung, looking to improve on his runner-up position at Badminton three years ago just months before he defends his Olympic title in Rio. Germany team trainer Chris Bartle, an Englishman, likened the chances of any rider completing the Grand Slam to Leicester City's shock success in winning the Premier League, having been 5,000/1 to be crowned the champions before the English football season started.
"The Grand Slam is like Leicester City, really, when you think of the odds of doing something like it," Bartle said. "He had a good step today with the dressage, which is great, and it is very much a case of one step at a time. "Michael is such a good person to work with because he is ultra-relaxed and so interested in every detail that you might say to him. He would never ever be arrogant enough to shrug off any suggestion you might make. "He is a huge talent. His mental attitude is fantastic, his coolness, his attention to detail and his focus - and an acceptance that every day doesn't always go fantastically. "Michael is very good at sticking to his system, which is a very important aspect of his success."
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