Rising talent on display in the Pony Foxhunter Championship
Saturday 05 October 2019
Glain Watkin-Jones flew the flag for Wales at Horse of the Year Show on Saturday afternoon, jumping to victory in the Pony Foxhunter Championship. Every year the calibre of junior riders in this class gets stronger and stronger and with 10 riders through to the jump off, this year was no exception. The Pony Foxhunter is one of the most significant national pony classes in Great Britain and plays an important part in the transition from junior to senior showjumping. Previous winners include Paul Barker, Louise Pavitt, William Whitaker and Matt Sampson, some of whom have been competing in international classes at HOYS this week.
Riding eight-year-old grey gelding Trevor H, Glain rode a thrilling jump off taking every opportunity to move forwards and then rebalance before the fence. Snaking around the turn to the last line, the crowd were right behind her as she flew to the last, finishing on a time of 34.43 seconds. Despite last year’s reigning champion Holly Cooper and this year’s Pony Newcomers Champion Daisy Williams still to jump, the 16-year-old Welsh showjumper proved too quick for them to catch. Being awarded her first Pony Foxhunter Champion title at Horse of the Year Show, Glain is one to watch out for in the future.
“I knew he [Trevor] could do it because he’s really quick on the ground and he absolutely loves a jump off, so I just had to trust him and let him go. I was nervous having seen the crowd, but he just lights up when he goes in that arena and he tries so hard. We’ve only had him since last year and he was quite green when we got him. It took us a while to click but now we have I absolutely love him; he has a heart of gold. To qualify and then to win at HOYS is amazing. My mum is so supportive and helps me a lot, I wouldn’t be able to do this without her. This is my last year on ponies so my brother will take the ride of him next year and I will focus on some of our young horses.”
Listen to Glain Watkin-Jones’ interview here courtesy of LloydBell Productions:
