Meet HOYS supreme pony Coco Bongo *H&H Plus*

Continuing our series on horses and ponies we can’t wait to see after lockdown, Alex Robinson profiles the little grey who made history at the 2019 Horse of the Year Show

Coco Bongo

Age: 11
Breeding: unknown
Owner: Will Calder
Riders: Chloe Lemieux and Jessica Calder
Greatest achievements: HOYS 133cm working hunter pony (WHP) of the year, overall WHP champion and supreme pony; BSPS Desert Orchid WHP final champion; first 133cm WHP and nursery stakes Royal Highland show; second RIHS 133cm and nursery stakes (all 2019).

Owner Will Calder

“We bought ‘Bluebell’ from friends of ours in Inverness. They purchased her from Ireland a couple of years before and had just done some local showing with her. It was our current producers, Russell Skelton and James Munro, who said we should give her a go. ‘She’s been out of work and she doesn’t look much at the minute, but she can certainly jump,’ they said.

“My daughter Jess rides her in nursery stakes classes. Last April we stopped at a friend’s on the way to the British Show Pony Society [BSPS] winter championships and Jess broke her wrist. I turned to social media to find a jockey, and Chloe Lemieux replied. Chloe and Bluebell won twice that weekend and Chloe kept the ride in the open 133cms for the season.

Alex Robinson

Freelance equestrian journalist

Born and raised in the Lake District, Alex has grown up on the showing scene. She has qualified and competed ponies at the Royal International, Horse of the Year Show and Olympia and has first-hand knowledge of the current issues in the showing world as well as the horses, ponies and riders who compete in the sport. Alex joined H&H in January 2018 as showing editor, cementing its place as the leading equestrian publication for both showing reports and current showing news in the UK. She moved on in October 2024 to pursue other opportunities, but continues to write for us on a freelance basis.