Badminton Horse Trials return for Stathern event rider Emilie Chandler

The Stathern rider last completed the world-famous three-day event as an up-and-coming junior in 2003 when she won the best debutant prize.

After years of hard work and perseverance in setting up her own eventing yard business, and developing a new crop of elite horses, Emilie made it through to the start list for last year’s competition.

Yet injury to her star mount Coopers Law just a month out forced the combination’s withdrawal.

However, the pair have been involved in plenty of elite competition elsewhere in the meantime on their long journey together.

Emilie won one of two Burghley Young Event Horse titles in 2009 with the then five-year-old Coopers Law.

And four years later they made their Nations Cup debut together in Italy, winning individual silver and helping Britain to gold.

In 2015, the pair were on the reserve list for the 2015 European Championships and also completed Burghley together for the first time.

And last year the 37-year-old rider earned her best finish in international four-star company with 14th place at Pau, in France.

Dressage is held today (Thursday) and Friday followed by cross country on Saturday, and culminating with the show jumping test on Sunday.