The 2019 British Eventing fixtures list for next season brings new venues and classes to the calendar, along with changes to international class codes.

Stapleton Manor in County Durham will host its first BE event on August 17-18 with classes up to novice.

Ten regular venues will hold new classes next year. Bicton, in April, will host a new CCI2*-S class , Warwick Hall, will hold four- and five-year-old championship qualifiers in July, and Burnham Market,will add an intermediate class.

Changes for Scotland include a new venue.Glamis Castle in Angus will run in August, following the loss of Hendersyde Park and Aswanley this year. Eglinton in June will be hosting a novice regional final, while Forgandenny in July will host a four- and five-year-old championship qualifier. Kirriemuir which previously ran twice will now run only on  May 4.

West Sussex event rider Gemma Tattersall competing with Arctic Soul
Photo: British Eventing

Other changes riders can look forward to include a new BE90Ou18 class, a BE90 exclusively for riders under the age of 18, andthe introduction of the BE80(T) regional finals for riders competing at grassroots levels, with the championship being hosted by Kelsall Hill, Cheshire on September 27-29.

A bumper event in June for Bramham International Horse Trials has been crowned with the announcement that fellow Yorkshire brand Equi-Trek has signed for a further three years as title sponsors.

As world leaders in luxury horse transportation, Equi-Trek provides the perfect partnership for Bramham as the event is world renowned for producing champions of the future.  The full Equi-Trek range, from trailers to HGV lorries, will be at the heart of next year’s event, June 6 – 9  .

Action at  Bramham Horse Trials this year          Photo courtesy of Bramham

The showcase CCI4*-L winner  in 2019 will take away a cheque for more than £5,750- but even more coveted is the brand new Equi-Trek Sonic 3.5 tonne horsebox that will be awarded to the winner for a whole year.

Mr Bramham himself, William Fox-Pitt has been lucky to given the keys to a Sonic on two occasions and has now added one to his fleet of vehicles at his Dorset base.  And being a truly international event, should the winner come from foreign shores, it is no problem as Equi-Trek boasts a global dealer network.  2018 victor Yoshi Oiwa from Japan and this year’s champion Julia Krajewski are both based in Germany and have enjoyed a left hand drive Sonic.

William Fox Pitt competing     :Photo courtesy of  Kit Houghton

Equi-Trek’s Managing Director Tom Janion commented; “Equi-trek is honoured to renew for a further three years of support at Bramham.  We have a wonderful relationship with the team and showcasing our extensive range of trailers and horse boxes in the stunning parkland against the backdrop of Bramham Park alongside world class equestrian competition is perfect for us. We’re a proud Yorkshire brand and are equally proud to align with Yorkshire’s best loved equestrian celebration.”

The online Box Office for the 2019 event opens on 1 December – just five weeks away. In celebration of the partnership news, Bramham and Equi-Trek have teamed up to bring fans an amazing competition.

Anyone who makes a ticket purchase between the box office opening and  January 15 2019 will be entered into a prize draw to win a complementary weekend hire of an Equi-Trek Sonic horsebox, which at 3.5 tonnes, can be driven on a standard car licence! Terms and conditions apply.

Tickets for next year’s event make the perfect Christmas present and buying now means you beat the rush and guarantees the tickets you want, not to mention some healthy discounts!  Visit www.bramham-horse.co.uk to see what’s on offer.

After a record-breaking twenty eight years as title sponsor of the Badminton Horse Trials, Mitsubishi Motors in the UK has decided to withdraw after the 2019 Event.

Badminton is recognised as one of the world’s greatest sporting contests. Mitsubishi Motors has played an enormous role in maintaining the prestige of this ultimate test of all round horsemanship.

Plenty of action is ensured at Badminton each year Photo: John Simpson

Badminton celebrates its 70th anniversary in 2019 and recently has had year-on-year record attendances with 185,000 spectators during this year’s competition.

Said event director Hugh Thomas, “It is always sad when a very successful partnership comes to an end, and especially when over the years event and sponsor have developed a genuine friendship, however when one door closes another one opens and it will be exciting to see where that leads.”

Rob Lindley, Managing Director at Mitsubishi Motors in the UK commented “We have had an outstanding collaboration with the Badminton Horse Trials and it has played an important part in raising the profile of our brand and our vehicles over the years. Badminton 2019 will be as prestigious as ever and we wish the event the greatest success for the future.”

This departure from sponsoring the key event now leaves the door open for other major companies to step into the breach and apply to take over this key sponsorship role.

British Eventing has announced the appointment of London based agency, The Sports Consultancy as a rights marketing agent to support in the sale of sponsorship rights for the governing body of eventing in the UK.

The UK is the largest market globally for international eventing events and world ranked riders as demonstrated through strong participation numbers, large event attendance with over one million people attend eventing events in the UK annually and British Eventing’s 120 strong medal haul in international competition since 2000.

The Sports Consultancy’s rights marketing team, under the overall leadership of Marc Hope, brings a wealth of equestrian experience having represented and secured partnerships for the FEI in recent years.

David Holmes CEO of British Eventing

More widely the business has firmly established itself as a rights marketing specialist in Major Events and Olympic and Commonwealth sports having also represented and secured numerous agreements for the IAAF World Championships London 2017, World Para Athletics Championships London 2017, IAAF World Indoor Championships Birmingham 2018, British Athletics, European Indoor Athletics Championships Glasgow 2019, Team Scotland and Volvo Ocean Race alongside other premium sport and entertainment properties.

“We’re pleased to be working with The Sports Consultancy to maximise British Eventing’s opportunities to bring new revenue into the sport” commented David Holmes, CEO of British Eventing. Our commercial strategy has seen a huge amount of work to reposition and define British Eventing’s offer, now bolstered by our recent double gold medal success at the World Equestrian Games, so it’s great to see it all being put into action”.

Commenting on the appointment, The Sports Consultancy’s head of equestrian sales, Anais Bernier said: “We are proud to be representing British Eventing, it is the ultimate equestrian test for a horse and rider combination and is followed by a very defined demographic that we know is of interest to many commercial partners.

With our strong contacts in the equestrian sector and deep understanding of which brands are suited, we are confident we can help secure strong corporate partners.”

British Eventing is delighted to announce the appointment of London based agency, The Sports Consultancy, as a rights marketing agent to support in the sale of sponsorship rights for the governing body of eventing in the UK.

The UK is the largest market globally for international eventing events and world ranked riders as demonstrated through strong participation numbers, large event attendance with over one million people attend eventing events in the UK annually and British Eventing’s 120 strong medal haul in international competition since 2000.

Action at the Mitsubishi Motors Badminton Horse Trials
Photo: British Eventing

The Sports Consultancy’s rights marketing team, under the overall leadership of Marc Hope, brings a wealth of equestrian experience having represented and secured partnerships for the FEI in recent years and more widely the business has firmly established itself as a rights marketing specialist in Major Events and Olympic and Commonwealth sports.

In the past it has also represented and secured numerous agreements for the IAAF World Championships London 2017, World Para Athletics Championships London 2017, IAAF World Indoor Championships Birmingham 2018, British Athletics, European Indoor Athletics Championships Glasgow 2019, Team Scotland and Volvo Ocean Race alongside other premium sport and entertainment properties.

“We’re pleased to be working with The Sports Consultancy to maximise British Eventing’s opportunities to bring new revenue into the sport” comments David Holmes, CEO of British Eventing. Our commercial strategy has seen a huge amount of work to reposition and define British Eventing’s offer, now bolstered by our recent double gold medal success at the World Equestrian Games, so it’s great to see it all being put into action”.

Commenting on the appointment, The Sports Consultancy’s head of equestrian sales, Anais Bernier said: “We are proud to be representing British Eventing, it is the ultimate equestrian test for a horse and rider combination and is followed by a very defined demographic that we know is of interest to many commercial partners.

With our strong contacts in the equestrian sector and deep understanding of which brands are suited, we are confident we can help secure strong corporate partners.”

Great Britain’s eventing team have moved up into gold medal position after an incredible day of cross-country in the Mars Inc. eventing competition at the FEI World Equestrian Games in Tryon, North Carolina, USA.

All four team members jumped clear and finished inside the time after an exhilarating day of competition which sees three members of the team lying in the top ten with Ros Canter leading the way for Great Britain in second; Piggy French sits in eighth and Tom McEwen in tenth.

First out on the course on a windy morning in Tryon was pathfinder Gemma Tattersall, from West Sussex, with The Soul Syndicate’s Arctic Soul who got the team off to a perfect start going clear and inside the time.

Gemma Tattersall and Arctic Soul  Photo: Kingswood Associates

A delighted Gemma said; “Thank god I got the job done and achieved what I came for! He’s a machine over cross-country and gave me an amazing ride. I went round at the second water on team orders which put me about ten seconds down but by the end of the hill, I was 15 seconds up- that’s how good he is. I was nervous this morning with all the expectations but I just thought ‘do what you normally do at home’ and of course he delivers.”

Piggy French, based in Northamptonshire, was next out for the British team, setting out onboard Quarrycrest Echo, owned by Jayne McGivern. Competing at their second consecutive major championships as a combination, the duo produced a masterclass on the cross-country course, storming across the finish line inside the time after another clear round.

Out on the course just after lunch was the most experienced member of the team, Tina Cook, from West Sussex, riding Billy The Red, owned by the Billy Stud, competing as an individual combination. In her fifth World Equestrian Games, Tina showed her class with the 11 year-old gelding, making it home clear and with just 2.4 time penalties.

Kristina Cook and Billy The Red

Tina said; “When we first walked the course we thought it wasn’t too testing but the more you walked, the more you could see where there might be problems. He made me work today – he’s very fit.

“It’s been an up and down year with me breaking my shoulder so he’s not had the runs in preparation. I decided to go long at the second water at the risk of a few time penalties over 20 for a stop and I could just about get the time back. But I’m happy and he was a good boy today. The crowds were amazing – they cheered the whole way around.”

Next for the team were Championship debutants, Tom McEwen, from Gloucestershire, and Toledo de Kerser, owned by Jane Inns, Alison McEwen and Tom.  The pair showed no nerves and jumped fantastically before being welcomed into the U.S Trust Arena by the fans in the main stand, crossing the line a second under the time after going clear.

The final combination for the British team was Lincolnshire rider Ros Canter and Allstar B, owned by Ros and Caroline Moore. The pair, who came into this phase third overnight, put in a flawless performance on the anchor leg and raced home to finish clear and inside the time, ending on 24.6 penalties, moving into silver medal position.

At this point, Great Britain were in the lead in the team event on 80.80, with Ireland in second on 89.00 and France in third on 91.80. Individually, European Champion, Ingrid Klimke heads the standings on 23.30 just ahead of Ros Canter in second. Piggy French lies in sixth, Tom McEwen is in tenth, individual competitor, Tina Cook is in 13^th and Gemma Tattersall is in 18^th.

The final phase of the competition, the showjumping,  will see the team and individual medals decided on Monday after the FEI rescheduled the weekend timetable due to the weather.

Equestrian Team GBR is supported by the UK Sport National Lottery funded World Class Programme; the British teams are very grateful to the support they receive from the British Equestrian Federation Fund and official partners Dodson and Horrell, Equi-Trek, FALPRO England, Musto, NAF and Point Two.

The British Equestrian Federation (BEF) has confirmed the eventing squad, selected by the British Eventing senior selectors, for this year’s World Equestrian Games in Tryon, North Carolina (USA), 11-23 September 2018.

Two experienced West Sussex riders are in the team as expected- Gemma Tattersall and Tina Cook.

Kristina Cook and Billy The Red    Photo: British Eventing

Gemma Tattersall and Chico Bella Haras competing at Burghley

The selected athletes are (in alphabetical order);

• Ros Canter from Lincolnshire, with Caroline Moore and her own Allstar B
• Tina Cook from West Sussex, with Elisabeth Murdoch and Keith Tyson’s Billy The Red
• Piggy French from Northampton, with Jayne McGivern’s Quarrycrest Echo
• Tom McEwen from Gloucestershire, with Jane Inns, Ali McEwen and his own Toledo de Kerser
• Gemma Tattersall from West Sussex, with The Soul Syndicate and her own Arctic Soul

Eventing Performance Manager, Richard Waygood MBE said: “This year’s team selection was extremely close, with great strength and depth coming through the nominated list. We head to WEG with a strong squad and I look forward to continuing to work with the selected athletes in the build-up, to ensure we are best prepared for Tryon.”

Equestrian Team GBR is supported by the UK Sport National Lottery funded World Class Programme; the British teams are very grateful to the support they receive from the British Equestrian Federation Fund and official partners Dodson & Horrell, Equi-Trek, FALPRO England, Musto, NAF and Point Two Air Vests.