AND THE WINNERS ARE…The Animal Health Trust UK Equestrian Awards 2015
Friday 30 October 2015
Equestrian excellence was once again celebrated in style at the annual Animal Health Trust (AHT) UK Equestrian Awards, held on Thursday 29 October. More than 350 people from the equestrian world attended the new-look awards evening at The Dorchester London Hotel, to applaud equestrian achievements in 2015 and to raise vital funds for the charity fighting disease and injury in animals, through treatment and research.
This year Mike Tucker and Zoey Bird presented the 27th UK Equestrian Awards, joined by a host of esteemed guests including Chief Executive of British Showjumping Iain Graham, to give Awards to respective winners in eight categories – Dressage, Eventing, Showjumping, Racing, Voluntary Service, Veterinary, the Animal Health Trust Special Award and, in a brand new category for 2015, the Under 25’s Star of the Future Award.
Full list of winners:
Tapi Carpets & Floors Under 25’s Star of the Future Award, awarded to: Eventing star Will Furlong, age 20 is an exceptional winner of this new award category. Based at Ingrams Eventing, Will started Eventing whilst at school as part of the East Sussex Pony club. In spring 2014 Will was crowned U21 National Champion at Houghton International with Livingstone11. Will is this year’s Young Rider European double gold medallist, winning both the individual and team gold medal at the Europeans at Strezgom in Poland.
Dressage Award, sponsored by Harvey Spack Field, awarded to: British Pony Dressage Team – Britain’s Pony Team of Phoebe Peters with SL Lucci, Rebecca Bell with Valido’s Sunshine, Isobel Berrington with DHI Langar and Clare Hole with Rembrandt DDH. The British Pony Team has had a very successful past two years at the FEI European Pony Championships, and 2015 has been no exception. Earlier this year, in Malmo, Sweden, the team claimed team gold ahead of Germany and Denmark – making history as the first time that Great Britain has ever won the team gold. In 2014 in Millstreet, Ireland they took silver and in 2013 at Arezzo, Italy they took bronze. Last year the team were also the proud recipients of this award at the AHT UK Equestrian Awards 2014, with Phoebe Peters and Rebecca Bell representing the British Pony Team in both years.
Eventing Award, awarded to: Yvonne Smith. Yvonne has been one of Eventing’s hardest working and longest serving volunteers at the Scottish and North of England BE competitions for over 30 years. Nominated by Alec Lochore, Director at Blair Castle Horse Trials, Alec says Yvonne has run the Dressage and Cross Country start and that she is a well-known face to many Scottish and Northern competitors. He also goes on to say that Yvonne is someone organisers can truly rely on to do the job well and with good humour.
Showjumping Award, sponsored by British Showjumping, awarded to: Scott Brash. World No.1 Scott Brash made ground-breaking history on 13 September 2015 when he landed the Rolex Grand Slam in Calgary. Scott is the only rider to have ever landed this title by winning three consecutive ‘Major’ Grand Prix’s; namely Geneva, Aachen and Spruce Meadows. Scott shot to the forefront of the sport in 2012 when he won team gold at the London Olympic Games on Hello Sanctos, owned by Lady Kirkham and Lord and Lady Harris. Since then Scott has positioned British Showjumping at a level it has never been before winning European Team Gold and individual bronze, two Global Champions Tour series titles and topping the World Ranking list since December 2013, all bar one month, cumulatively longer than any other rider, as both a rider and horse/rider combination. An incredible rider, producer and horseman, Scott is also extremely affable, likeable, determined and accompanied with an infectious personality that makes him an extremely popular ambassador for the sport.
Racing Award, sponsored by Bet Solutions International, awarded to: Anthony Oppenheimer and Golden Horn. Many have described it as British Racing at its best! Bred in England by his owner and breeder, Anthony Oppenheimer, Golden Horn has been trained throughout his career by John Gosden. This world famous racehorse has this year won the Epsom Derby, with Frankie Dettori onboard, and the Prix de L’Arc de Triomphe in France. For Anthony this has been the pinnacle of a breeding operation that was begun over half a century ago by his father.
Veterinary Award, sponsored by Balta Group, awarded to: Tim Greet. Tim has made an enormous contribution to equine surgery, publishing and lecturing widely on various equine surgical topics. He is a Fellow of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons. The Managing Partner and Senior Surgeon at Rossdales Equine Hospital, Newmarket, Tim’s veterinary career includes a number of highlights such as being elected as President of the British Equine Veterinary Association (BEVA), British Veterinary Association (BVA) and World Equine Veterinary Association (WEVA), and supervising the building of Rossdales Equine Hospital. Tim is an honorary member of BEVA, BVNA, and the British Association of Equine Dental Technicians (BAEDT) and in the past has been awarded the Richard Hartley Clinical Prize of the BEVA, the Centenary Award and the Chiron Award of the BVA. He gave the 6th Saki Paatsama lecture in Helsinki.
Voluntary Award, sponsored by SEIB Insurance Brokers, awarded to: Brough Scott on behalf of the Injured Jockey’s Fund. The Injured Jockeys Fund (IJF), established in 1964, has helped over 1,000 jockeys and their families to date and has paid out more than £18m in charitable assistance. In 2009 it opened its first rehabilitation centre, Oaksey House, in Lambourn and in April 2015 opened Jack Berry House, a second state-of-the-art rehabilitation and fitness centre in Malton for northern based jockeys. The IJF not only provides essential support to those in need of its services but works closely with racing authorities and other organisations on many initiatives. It part funds on-course physios and medical services and research into improved riding protection equipment for jockeys which has resulted in a number of improved manufacturing standards being implemented. The Fund also provided the Equichute based at The British Racing School which is used in fall training for students and current jockeys.
Animal Health Trust Special Award, awarded to: Martin Clunes. Actor, writer and horse owner Martin Clunes has been President of The British Horse Society since June 2011. His love of horses is evident in all the work and campaigning he does. Martin has been involved in a number of different aspects of the Society’s work, generously giving his time to help make a difference. Whether this is helping to launch a new bridleway, visiting riding schools to inspire the next generation of equestrians or campaigning to improve horse welfare – Martin’s passion and enthusiasm is invaluable. Martin is committed to improving the lives of horses throughout the UK and supports not only the BHS but other national equine charities in tackling the current horse crisis.
Sophie Tyser, Fundraising Officer at the Animal Health Trust, said: “The AHT UK Equestrian Awards is the flagship event in our fundraising calendar, raising vital funds for our work fighting disease and injury in horses, dogs and cats. We’re thrilled that it has been so well supported yet again and would especially like to thank Lady Harris, who has chaired the organising committee during 2015.
“The addition on the Under 25’s Star of the Future Award and new venue have really helped to keep the Awards evening exciting and more relevant to those who will no doubt go on to make equestrian history and will be celebrated in these awards for years to come.
“Our thanks go to all of our sponsors, and all those who attended on the night who have helped us reach a record-breaking fundraising total, and, of course, to all of the members of the organising committee for their continued support and dedication to making this event such a success. We are already looking forward to celebrating equestrian excellence in 2016.”
Photo caption left to right: Lady Kirkham, Mrs Brash and Lady Harris collecting on behalf of Scott Brash, winner of the Showjumping Award.
.jpg "British Showjumping’s Youth Teams announced for Nations Cup in Linz-Ebelsberg, Austria")
.JPG "Sophia Rogers makes a winning return and Rachel Proudley claims a championship double at Pony of the Year Show")
