Rising Lions: The Blenheim Challenge Preview

Sep 14, 2026

Rising Lions vs Stars and Stripes. The first ever Blenheim Challenge is here, and things are already getting competitive.

Nicole is firmly flying the flag for Britain, while Diarm and Annie are backing the US team, with a very handy Australian thrown into the mix. With head-to-head matchups in every phase, joker cards to play and £50,000 in prize money on the line, there is plenty to get stuck into.

Who has the strongest team on paper? Where could the points be won and lost? And, most importantly, who are we backing to come out on top?

Highlights

• How the new Blenheim Challenge actually works
• Rising Lions vs Stars and Stripes across all three phases
• Why Oliver Barrett and Sandhills Briar could be the pair to beat
• The joker cards we would play and when
• Why Saturday could be the Rising Lions’ chance to take control
• The serious show jumping strength on the Stars and Stripes side
• Our picks to win the first ever Blenheim Challenge

Guests

Nicole Brown
Nicole takes up the Rising Lions cause and makes the case for why a big Saturday could put the British team in the driving seat.

Diarmuid Byrne
Diarm is very firmly Team Stars and Stripes and is already putting himself forward for the team manager job.

Annie Bishop
Annie brings the US perspective, digging into the form of the Stars and Stripes combinations and where they could have the edge.

The Blenheim Challenge gets underway this week. Listen now wherever you get your podcasts.