Nicolas Touzaint and Absolut Gold present at the Defender Burghley Horse Trials. Photo by Tilly Berendt.The field of competitors at the Defender Burghley CCI5* has thinned from 43 to 39 after this mornings final horse inspection, which took place after a night of heavy rain on site.Three of those losses to the start list occurred before the inspection even began: we saw early-morning withdrawals logged by Pippa Funnell and Majas Hope, who had been sitting 31st after a cross-country round in which theyd picked up a flag penalty and 19.6 time penalties; Holly Richardson and Bally Louis, whod been 36th after adding a 20 and 30 time penalties; and Tom McEwen and CHF Cooliser, whod delivered one of the rounds of the day to sit 14th.Jennie Brannigan and FE Lifestyle. Photo by Tilly Berendt.But when the remaining 40 horses came forward to present to Christina Klingspor (SWE), serving as president, Robert Stevenson (USA) and Nick Burton (GBR), the drama wasnt wholly behind them.Three horses were sent to the holding box throughout the course of proceedings: US representative Jennie Brannigans FE Lifestyle, 19th, British five-star debutant Lizzie Baughs B Exclusive, 37th, and French Olympian Nicolas Touzaints Absolut Gold HDC, ninth overnight. Both Jennie and Nicolas would ultimately get the nod to continue their competition but sadly, Lizzie would not.Lizzie Baugh and B Exclusive. Photo by Tilly Berendt.Todays showjumping finale will be split into two halves: our first nineteen pairs will jump from 10.30 a.m. (5.30 a.m. EST), while the top twenty will take to the ring from 14.15 (9.15 a.m. EST). Well be back with a full report from the final phase at the end of the day, but in the meantime, keep it locked on EN for live updates and analysis from Cheg throughout each round. In the meantime, you can catch up on all yesterdays action with our full report and live updates, and tune in to BurghleyTV to get yourself front row centre for the action thats about to start. As always: Go Eventing!Overnight leaders Ros Canter and Lordships Graffalo go into todays showjumping without a rail, but with time, in hand. Photo by Tilly Berendt.The top ten going into showjumping at the 2024 Defender Burghley Horse Trials.Our coverage of Burghley is brought to you by our incredible supporters, Kentucky Performance Products, your one-stop shop for science-backed nutritional products to keep your horse feeling their best at all times. Theyll even get on the phone with you to help you formulate a solid supplementation plan for your horses individual needs! Wed really appreciate your support of KPP, as theyre champions for our sport and beyond and are wonderful people to boot. Check them out here.Defender Burghley: [Website] [Entries] [Timing & Scoring] [Burghley TV] [Tickets] [ENs Coverage]