British showjumpers made a blistering start to the Equerry Bolesworth International Horse Show in front of a capacity crowd on Thursday.

The opening four-star international class - a two-phase competition sponsored by Naylors Equestrian - saw more than 50 starters tackle the International Arena class.

And it was Matt Sampson, riding the nine-year-old gelding Djanjo Blue (Chacco-Blue x Grandilot), who set a pace that proved too much for the rest of a 55-strong field.

Matt, one of British showjumping's shining young talents, clocked a time of 26.99 seconds in the jump-off phase to finish more than a second clear of his rivals.

Matt proved a social media hit before last year's Bolesworth show, making a series of videos when he sang a song he wrote to show president Nina Barbour in an attempt to secure a widcard entry.

He achieved his aim, and while no song was required this year, he struck the right note to take victory in a class that saw the top four finishers all go under 30 seconds.

Chloe Aston led the chasing pack, finishing almost one and a half seconds behind with the experienced campaigner Kolibri Classic (Kolibri x For Joy), while Ellen Whitaker and Casaktie (Cascari x Caresino) took third spot, just ahead of American Olympian Laura Kraut and Sfs Vincomte (Veni Vidi Vici x Magic Darco).

Visitors to Bolesworth are guaranteed a feast of world-class sporting action, culminating in Sunday's headline grand prix, which was won last year by Ireland's Anthony Condon.