Biography

It will be a first Badminton for British rider Greta Mason (25) who is based near Swindon in Wiltshire. In 2022 with Badminton entry Cooley for Sure Greta won the British U25 championship at Bramham – her first and last opportunity to compete in the competition – and successfully completed her first 5* at Pau (14^th). The pair was also a member of the Nations Cup team to contest Ballindenisk.

Greta was born in Melbourne, Australia where she lived for the first eight years of her life. On return to the UK the family settled in Northamptonshire not far from Burghley. She was a member of the Burghley PC, competed in the PC championships and gained her A test. After school Greta set her sights on a career in horses and first went to Tiny Clapham’s yard as working pupil. In 2020 she moved to Wiltshire to be based with former Badminton winner Rodney Powell (1991) and trainer Alex Franklin.

Cooley for Sure (aka Murphy), owned by Sarah Winfrey is an Irish-bred 16-year-old gelding by Ramiro B. He was originally acquired as a five-year-old for Greta’s twin brother Silas who competed him for a year. Greta then took over the ride when Silas had to concentrate on exams (Silas is now an equine vet). He completed his first 5* at Pau in 2022.