Pony Of The Year Show Youth Festival 2022
Tuesday 19 April 2022
The Pony of the Year Show made a welcome return to Arena UK in Lincolnshire and has now evolved into a youth festival. With a total prize fund of more than £40,000, the competition was top class as the five days played out in the Easter sun.
Ryan Perrett hit top form to score a handsome victory double with the LeMieux JA Grand Prix title and 1m Championship.
Thirty-one contended the first round of the LeMieux JA, Trial, over a 1.30m track with seven providing clears to access the jump-off. Only three jumped clear again, Ryan finding the shortest route to win by 1.53 seconds and pocket the £1,200 first prize on Olympia VI, a Danish-bred 14-year-old mare he took over from Eve McCoy in September.
“We’ve been slowly stepping up starting at 1.20m and jumped a couple of the last winter pony premier JA’s and she’s got better and better the more we have got to know each other. The track was quite tough and technical with a tricky combination at the end but she’s brave and scopey although she can be hot and fresh, so we keep her as relaxed as possible,” said Ryan.
Mia Newman claimed second on Ohwow and Madison Seedhouse provided the only other clean sheet for third with Quaprice D’Astree.
Tabitha Kyle topped day one’s JA with Atomic Du Bary and returned a clean sheet on day two with Gangnam Style alongside Noora von Bulow’s two Delflip and Elando Van De Roshoeve for equal first.
Ryan made a winning return with Ruby Trevelyan of Lyonnesse as the 2021 1.10m Champions lifted this year’s 1m Championship title. Seven of the 37 starters returned for the jump-off with Ryan and the 17-year-old French-bred mare Ruby scoring victory by 2.20 seconds.
Claudia Moore landed the Squibb Family Under 18 Championship with Dis Moi Tout De Clairbois.
Thirty-five came forward over a track starting at 1.35m and twelve answered all the questions to access the jump-off with Claudia and Chloe Lemieux counting two rides each. Five posted double clears, Claudia taking the tightest lines to win by 0.51 seconds for the £1,500 first prize on the Belgian-bred Ugano Sitte 13-year-old gelding.
“It’s fabulous to have a show dedicated to the youths themselves and gives the opportunity for younger riders to see what is required in pony and young rider ranks. I’ve won POYS Grand Prix’s [through 128cm, 138cm and JA] but this was special as my first Under 18,” said Claudia, who acquired Dis Moi Tout from Bertram Allen almost three years ago. “He was the first horse that pushed me into the junior category, and I knew the first time I sat on him he was perfect, he’s sassy, has so much character and won the 1.30m speed at our first show at Sentower Park [Belgium].
Marnie Green claimed an earlier Under 18 win with Ice Cold Z.
Olli Fletcher topped the Under 25 Grand Prix with BP Pocahontas in a two-way decider.
Eighteen competitors faced the 1.40m track with only two coming up with the right answers although a further five made just one mistake for four faults each. Olli went to head-to-head with Jake Myers on Sam W in round two but in the event a clear couldn’t be found, Olli winning on the Irish-bred Emilion 8-year-old with four faults.
Jake was consistent throughout the show and topped both the qualifying classes on the Canaye 14-year-old Sam W, and day one’s Under 18 class with the Westpoint Quickfire 10-year-old mare Calcourt Qualvados.
Tabitha Kyle netted the E-Vet Children on Horses Championship from the larger section of the 125/1.30m handicap with Da Vinci V.
Ten from the 1.25m section were pitted against seven of the 1.30m jumpers with those from the higher section taking the top four places in the five-horse decider, the experienced Tabitha forging ahead on the 14-year-old Carthino Z x Indoctro stallion to win six sec to spare over Emily Morris on Fjara with the only other double clear.
Tabitha topped the first day’s Children’s class with Indiana D’Ayrifagne, again from the 1.30m section, and finished second and third with Da Vinci and Indiana to Noora von Bulow’s Interstar B on day two.
Megan Li provided the sole double clear to take the Under 25 B and C Championship in a five-horse decider aboard the Taloubet Z x Cruising 10-year-old Premier Titanium – 2019 HOYS Foxhunter Champion with Simon Crippen. Allana Clutterbuck was quicker by more than two seconds, but a rail down put Kitty III into second. Their consistency, a win and a sixth in the two qualifiers added to the Championship second, was rewarded with the leading rider award.
Tilly Bamford secured victory in the Sir AP McCoy 138cm Championship on Playboy Van De Zoetewei. Eleven of the nineteen starters contended the jump-off with Tilly and the Belgian-bred 11-year-old one of only two double clears, taking the win by 1.78 seconds over Ella Spencer in second with Top Silvio Hastak.
The TDA Telecoms 128cm Grand Prix could not have been any tighter as just 0.01 seconds separated the top two in a breath-taking jump-off as Liala Ramaci just found the edge on Lambay Off Broadway.
Nine of the eleven starters made their way into the jump-off with Emily Gulliver and Sophia Rogers both counting two chances each. Emily took an early lead on Sparkel III that looked seemingly unbeatable, until Liala made a supreme effort with nigh on impossibly tight turns on the 11-year-old mare Off Broadway to ease ahead by the narrowest of margins for victory and the leading rider award.
Emily Fisher outpaced all rivals to take victory in the Liege Manor Talent Spotters Final on Nils D Hurl Vent. The thirty-five starters were reduced to sixteen for the jump-off but Emily found the tightest lines on the experienced Quick Star 21-year-old to win by 0.66 seconds.
Ryan de Souza landed the final Grand Prix to round off the 2022 five-day extravaganza on a high in the Aztec Diamond 1.10m Championship with Mighty Mouse W Van De Dauwhoeve.
Six of the sixteen riders returned for the final decider, Ryan and the 10-year-old Breemeersen Crescendo daughter winning by 2.53 sec to also take the leading rider award.
Olivia Brightmore dominated the 11 and under final with the top two places with two relatively new 138cm rides. It was some feat as nineteen of the twenty-eight starters returned for the jump-off but they were no match for Olivia. She claimed victory on Bhil Du Villon, an 11-year-old she has competed for two months, and finished second with ride of one month, the 15-year-old Bobby Lee, 0.54 seconds separating the two and almost a second quicker than the nearest rival.
Kiera Merriman captured the Bamford Family Mini Grand Prix with amazingly tight rollback turns on Drombane Liath. Thirty of the forty starters made their way into the jump-off with first round clears and hit top gear in a bid for the coveted rug and sash on offer. Kiera was the quickest as the 12-year-old Irish-bred mare Liath matched enthusiasm stride for stride to win the class by 0.32 seconds and take the leading rider award.
Kirstin-Sylvi Robbins celebrated victory at just her second show with Park Mr Smart in the Introductory Final. Twenty-four of the original thirty-seven starters contended the jump-off with Kirstin-Sylvi and the Irish-bred 18-year-old finding the shortest route to win by 0.52 seconds.
Maddison Harris emerged triumphant to take the Lawson Family Prelim title with a late challenge of Oreo Patches. Two thirds of the thirty-six strong class posted initial clears for a total of twenty-four in the competitive jump-off and as promised, it was tight at the top. Maddison rode a flying round on the coloured 11-year-old Oreo Patches to take over the lead. She was chased hard by Sophie Baines on Lady Bastille IV but they stopped the clock just 0.01 sec in arrears for second place. However, the runner-up spot earned enough points for the leading rider award.
Image Credit: SBM Photographic - www.sbmphotographic.co.uk
14kvaj7pl3106.jpg "Jonathan Egmore and Mollie Rose Smith are winners in the Equissage Pulse British Novice Second Rounds.")
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