Biography

British team medallist Piggy French (43) who is based near Maidwell in Northamptonshire won the event in 2019 with Vanir Kamira. In 2022 the combination placed fourth and went on to win Burghley later in the year.

With this year’s entry Brookfield Innocent, she won individual silver and team gold at the 2021 European Championships in Avenches. The pair placed 2^nd at Pau 5* in 2020 having won the 4*L at Blenheim in 2019. They have also won the 4*S (2023) at Hartpury and Thoresby (2022).

A former Young Rider team gold medal winner and U25 Champion she is currently #6 in the FEI world rider ranking.

Piggy comes from a horsey family – her mother, Kate and sister Nina have both also competed in the sport; Nina currently competes at advanced level. She ran her first yard while based at home in Norfolk producing young horses. With Flintlock II, Piggy achieved her break-through winning Young Rider team gold (2001) and competed at her first Badminton in 2003. In 2004 she won the national Under-25 championship (Which Way II). After a successful 2009 she gained her first senior flag winning European individual silver (Some Day Soon) and in 2010 with Jakata she contested the World Equestrian Games (16^th). In 2011 she was second at Badminton with Jakata and the pair was selected for the British European team winning team bronze. At the end of that year she celebrated her first major three-day win at Blenheim with DHI Topper W with who she had won the Olympic Test Event at Greenwich. The pair was selected for the 2012 British Olympic team but had to withdraw just two weeks before due to injury to DHI Topper. In 2017 with Vanir Kamira she was second at Burghley and made a return to the British squad competing as an individual at the European Championships in Strzegom with Quarrycrest Echo (28^th) and finished the season winning the national six-year-old championship with AKD Corline.

In 2018 with Quarrycrest Echo she was a member of the British team that won gold at the 2018 World Games and a month later was 2^nd in the World Young Horse six-year-old championship at Le Lions (Emerald Jonny). In 2019 again with Quarrycrest Echo she was a member of the team that won team silver at the European Championships. In 2020 she was 2^nd at Pau with Brookfield Innocent and in 2021 the pair won European team gold and individual silver.

Piggy trains with Ian Woodhead.

She and husband Tom March have a 7-year-old son Max. Off horses she runs an online training platform called Piggy TV and enjoys down time with Max.

Brookfield Innocent is a 15-year-old Irish Sport Horse registered gelding. Bred by John Mulvey he is by Innocent 3 out of a mare by Kings Servant. He was produced to 3* by Australian Kevin McNab – Piggy took the ride in June 2018. The following year the pair won the 4*L at Blenheim and in 2020 was 2^nd in their first 5* at Pau and in 2021, a member of the British gold medal team at the European Championships also winning individual silver.