Stuart Hollings: ‘Let’s re-introduce some fun classes’ *H&H Plus*

Showing opinion

We need to promote the plaited ridden pony, says Stuart Hollings

H&H editor-in-chief Sarah Jenkins mentioned in her editorial (28 January) that good news is getting harder to find in these challenging times. So when a positive headliner comes along, especially at the beginning of another competition year, it raises people’s spirits.

The British Show Pony Society (BSPS) definitely came up trumps at its Zoom annual general meeting a week later when announcing that the next Le Mieux mountain and moorland supreme championship would be taking place at Liverpool International on 1 January 2022. The judges there will be Vanessa Clark, Pat Pattinson, Natalie Middlemas and James Munro.

As ridden native ponies have been competing at the London venue since 1978, I’m sure enthusiasts will continue to nickname the competition “Olympia” for some time, just as the diehards still refer to the Horse of the Year Show (HOYS) as “Wembley” and the Cuddy in-hand competition as the “Lloyds”. Nevertheless, this is a most welcome move due to the development work at the Olympia site.

This exclusive column is also available to read in the Thursday 25 March issue of Horse & Hound magazine

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