Cambridgeshire Rider Takes Silver League Championship
Wednesday 08 October 2014
Cambridgeshire rider Richard Barton made history at Horse of the Year Show (HOYS) on Wednesday by winning British Showjumping's inaugural Silver League Championship.
Richard, from Cambridge, triumphed with his dark brown gelding Solitary Boy, winning a seven horse jump-off after clipping 67 hundredths of a second off previous leader James Johnson's time.
The Silver League finalists qualified for HOYS via local leagues that were launched in April this year, followed by northern and southern semi-finals, with 14 combinations from Devon to Durham lining up in the Silver Championship.
Seven riders progressed to the jump-off in the Andrews Bowen International Arena at Birmingham's LG Arena, and Richard knew exactly he had to do, chasing 47.69 seconds or better - and going clear - to win the class.
Richard, 47, said: "It was very close between first and second. It's a great win.
"Going last, there is not as much as pressure as jumping first because you know what time you are chasing.
"The horse is home-bred, and he is terrific. It's all about consistency, and we were lucky enough to win the semi-final at Keysoe, which qualified us for HOYS."
Full results can be found on the following link http://results.scgvisual.com/2014/birmingham/r101.html
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