Pony riders perform in the NAF Pony Five Star Finals
Monday 13 August 2018
The inaugural British Showjumping National Junior Academy Championships that are being held at Stoneleigh Park, Warwickshire between the 12th – 14th August hosted this year’s NAF Pony Five Star Finals. The Finals took place on Sunday 12th August and were once again a great showcase for the successes achieved via the NAF Pony Five Star Performance Awards Programme.
The competition was divided into three sections; 1*, 2* and 3* and was marked on the capability of the rider and their influence on the performance of the pony. The rider’s effectiveness, position, balance, feeling, timing, rhythm and impulsion to empower the pony to move and jump to the best of its ability was also judged and it was down to British Showjumping Coaches Hannah Jackson & Mia Palles-Clark to make the tough decision on who the eventual victors would be. Riders were not only competing for the winners titles, but also for NAF rugs and goodie bags on offer.
Each section was made up of a predesigned course which required a demonstration of flatwork movements as well as jumping a range of fences depending on the star level the rider has achieved on the NAF Pony Five Star Performance Awards Programme. Competitors with their 1* jumped a 0.70m track, 2* competitors jumped over 0.80m whilst 3* riders competed over 0.90m.
Following an afternoon of stiff competition, the section winners were announced as follows:
Eight year-old Evelyn Bond Smith from Bawdeswell, Norfolk was awarded the victory in the NAF 1* Pony Five Star Final on Clare Bond’s 13 year-old liver chestnut gelding Derrymore Lucky Lad.
The NAF 2* Pony Five Star Final was won by 14 year-old Kate Simmonds from Pulborough, West Sussex on Toby Star, an 11 year-old grey gelding owned by Ruth Simmonds.
Saskia Mohan, aged 15 from Kirtlington, Oxfordshire scooped the NAF 3* Pony Five Star Final on Rebecca Long’s 6 year-old grey gelding Ballyerk Cobalt.
The NAF Pony Five Star Performance Awards Programme has been designed to provide a series of progressive standards to assist pony riders with a focus for their training and improved performance in the ring alongside developing stable management skills. For more information on the programme, please contact Laura Rolph on 02476 698812 or Laura.Rolph@britishshowjumping.co.uk.
NAF’s premium range of Five Star brands include Superflex, Superflex Senior, PROFEET, Optimum, Magic, Oestress and Respirator Boost with quality at the heart of everything they do. They are a UFAS (Universal Feed Assurance Scheme), GMP+ (International Feed Assurance Scheme) and BETA NOPS (Naturally Occuring Prohibited Substances) accredited company and this enables them to guarantee full traceability on all the natural ingredients they utilise in their formulations, which are also selected in compliance with the FEI guidelines for Clean Sport. For further information, visit www.naf-equine.eu/uk/index.jsp.
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