Britain’s Ben Maher soldiers on with a broken foot to win WEF Challenge

The final week of the Winter Equestrian Festival [WEF] brings out the toughest competitors on the international stage – none more so than Britain’s Ben Maher, who won the $116,100 FEI 5* WEF Challenge Cup in spite of a broken foot, aboard the aptly-named Point Break.

Fifty-nine entries whittled down to a 16-strong jump off, which could have been larger had eight riders not withdrawn after the opening round, looking to save their horses for WEF’s grand finale, the $750,000 Rolex US Open CSI5* Grand Prix playing out at ‘Saturday Night Lights’. 

Ben’s time of 37.6 seconds knocked USA’s Kent Farrington and Toulayna into second place with their time of 38.75, while Ireland’s Daniel Coyle, third last to jump with Legacy in a time of 38.8, earned the final place on the podium.

“I didn’t watch Kent [in the jump off] today. I’ve made that mistake a couple of times this season already,” said Ben, whose foot was broken two days ago when “I opened the back of the car and a heavy piece of machinery fell on it.” The broken bones remain in alignment and Ben sports a riding boot with a special synthetic sole for support, which allowed him to compete aboard the 11-year-old stallion, Point Break who made a brief appearance in Wellington for the class. “He arrived on Sunday, and then he flies back again to Europe tomorrow,” said Ben. “So he came, did his job, and he’s leaving.”

Six of the world’s top ten riders were on show in the class – which Ben, ranked fifth, sees as a mixed blessing. “It would be nice to avoid them, to be honest,” he said. “Competition’s tough here. It always is. But I think more and more of the world’s best are coming here. Obviously, bringing bigger prize money, trying to update the facilities here, making a difference, but it’s tough. 

“It’s tough to win, and it raises the standard of the course builders, the whole sport in general, and the riders. So nothing’s for free here and we take every win that we can get.”

Now Ben’s focus turns to the weekend. His plan has worked so far and Saturday, he brings out his Olympic mount, 12-year-old mare Dallas Vegas Batilly, with whom he won Team Gold and finished ninth individually in Paris. 

“She’s been jumping great,” he said. “She feels in form and ready to make a difference. We kept her a little bit back in the stable this week and let Point Break do his job before he goes to the World Cup final. I’m in a very lucky position to be able to switch and make them help each other and hopefully the plan is the right plan this week.”

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