London 2012 Course Designer Bob Ellis back at Bolesworth
Monday 15 June 2015
Leading showjumpers from across the globe will converge on this week's Ashford Farm CSI**** Bolesworth International - but one of the leading players will be a 68-year-old Wolverhampton Wanderers fan who is affectionately known as "Bob the builder".
Leading showjumpers from across the globe will converge on this week's Ashford Farm CSI**** Bolesworth International - but one of the leading players will be a 68-year-old Wolverhampton Wanderers fan who is affectionately known as "Bob the builder".
Bob Ellis is the man in question, a showjumping course-builder par excellence who has been testing riders and horses probably for more years than he cares to mention, either on Britain's national circuit or at international venues throughout the world.
He has built and designed courses that cover the whole showjumping spectrum, from Pony European Championships, Young Rider Europeans and Junior Europeans, through to Senior European Championships and his crowning glory - the London 2012 Olympic Games.
And Bob will now bring his expertise to Bolesworth Castle in Cheshire, working with Kelvin Bywater to help provide some thrilling action as Bolesworth makes its debut as a four-star international show.
"I am really looking forward to it," said Bob. "Nina (Bolesworth International owner and show president Nina Barbour) bit the bullet and did it at Bolesworth, and we are all so chuffed that she did.
"I remember Kelvin and I going up a couple of times in the winter before last year's show while it was being prepared, and you could sort of half-visualise what it was going to be like, but when we actually got there the following June, it knocked you dead. It was absolutely awesome.
"We haven't had a show of this calibre in the north of England, and I just think it's brilliant."
Showjumping standards are perhaps higher than at any time in the sport's long and illustrious history, and Bob added: "Course-building has definitely got far more technically-demanding.
"The heights of the fences haven't got any bigger, but it is more technical and the fences are more adventurous. You have got your European poles now that are kiln-dried, which makes them a lot lighter, and you need good horses.
"You play with distances a little bit more that you used to, but the quality of riders and horses now is incredible. The horses are better schooled now, the riders are better trained, and they often find the distances so easily, whatever you do.
"One of the good things about Bolesworth is that the ground is so good. You can do a lot more things when the footing is good because you know the horses are not going to slip.
"You can be a little bit more adventurous with your angles, which you couldn't do, for example, on a wet grass surface. It gives us a strong building base to start from. It's a unique arena anyway, with the moat around the outside and the banking, and they have got some lovely fences."
And had the football season still been in full swing, visitors to Bolesworth should not have been surprised to see Bob's ear glued to a radio on Saturday or Sunday, such is his passion for Wolves.
"I was born in Wolverhampton, about half-a-mile from the ground. I have supported them for 60 years or so, and it's a great passion of mine. I fondly remember the times when we had the likes of Billy Wright and half the England team in the late 50s," he said.
"Wherever I am in the world, I listen to the commentary of the matches, and there have been times when I've finished building in Dubai on Saturday, caught an overnight flight and then been there to watch Wolves on the Sunday."
This year's Bolesworth International - from June 18-21 - has attracted a galaxy of top riders, including Britain's current world number one Scott Brash, John Whitaker, his son Robert and nephew William, along with their fellow Nations Cup performers Spencer Roe and Holly Gillott, in addition to the ultra-consistent Laura Renwick and Dan Nielson.
A strong Irish representation, meanwhile, includes London 2012 individual bronze medallist Cian O'Connor, recently-crowned Royal Windsor grand prix champion Dermot Lennon, last year's Hickstead Derby winner Trevor Breen, his brother Shane and their fellow global stars Billy Twomey and Cameron Hanley.
And considerable anticipation surrounds a mouthwatering overseas challenge, headed by Australia's Edwina Tops-Alexander, Americans Lauren Hough and Laura Kraut, young Belgian star Jos Verlooy, Italian Luca Moneta, Swedish challengers Angelica Augustsson and Angelie von Essen, plus Colombia's Daniel Bluman.
With more than £250,000 in prize money on offer, world-class showjumping at the sport's elite level is guaranteed, while a number of two-star classes also feature on an exciting Bolesworth schedule, together with national and amateur competitions.
1inbbkeu36fgo.jpg "Zara Nicholls Races to Top Spot in the STX-UK Pony British Novice Second Round at Weston Lawns")
.jpg "Marcella Johnstone and Will Brown Reach for the Stars in the second NAF Five Star Bronze and Silver League Qualifiers")
7y6b55koibbj.jpg "Brian Thompson and Alex Hewett are winners in the Nupafeed Supplements Senior Discovery Second Rounds")
