Tom McEwen hailed Land Rover Burghley Horse Trials as the best 5* event in world eventing as he sets his sights on the World Championships later this month.

McEwen, 31, was sitting in 14th place at the start of the day after a superb dressage score of 25.6 was followed by a sensational cross-country time of 11 minutes and 44 seconds on CHF Cooliser.

But despite hitting two fences and racking up eight penalty points as a result, the Gatcombe equestrian rose up the table after the showjumping finale to finish 12th overall.

“It’s lovely to be back, it’s the best 5* in the world,” he said.

“It’s an incredible crowd and it was an incredible performance, it’s really nice to perform with my new upcoming mare too.

“She’s learnt an awful lot being here. It wasn’t quite what we had hoped for today, she can be a great jumper and she just had a couple that fell.

“We’ve just got to look back at some rideability really and training through the winter and then we’ll be back out and ever sharper next year.”

This year saw the Land Rover Burghley Horse Trials return bigger and better than ever with thousands of fans packing into the Lincolnshire course, an environment McEwen and his mare relished.

“The atmosphere is great and actually, she’s gone from being completely mad to absolutely loving the crowds,” he said.

“For her it’s a real change in emotions, development is key and it’s helped her along the way. Hopefully next year we can come out and get some real strong and sturdy results with her.”

McEwen is now hoping to take his momentum into the Eventing World Championships, where he is eyeing up more success with the British team.

He added: “That had slightly slipped off my mind since Thursday, I’m not going to lie, but that is the next thing for me now.

“I’m really looking forward to it and it’s all about getting there in one piece. I seriously cannot wait.”

Land Rover Burghley Horse Trials (1-4 September 2022) returns after a two-year hiatus, due to the Covid-19 pandemic. A major international sporting and social event for over 50 years it attracts 80 of the world’s top equestrians and over 170,000 visitors. For more information visit www.burghley-horse.co.uk