Graham Fletcher: ‘The talent seekers final at HOYS needs a rethink’

Graham Fletcher weighs up the merits of the novice titles at HOYS

The huge significance of a successful Horse of the Year Show (HOYS) to British Showjumping (BS) and its members cannot be underestimated. Jumping in Britain has changed irrevocably in the past five years, so much so that centre shows have become the lifeblood of the sport.

Indeed, riders’ enthusiasm to compete in the novice classes with HOYS finals means qualifiers get bumper entries at these venues. If the finals weren’t at such a prestigious show, it’s likely the system would collapse.

Many professionals have called for all novice finals – including the Foxhunter and newcomers – to be changed to age classes. Such a move would reflect what happens at nearly every other international show, most of which have classes for five-, six- and seven-year-olds.

Hickstead ran a top show this season purely based on age categories, while Lanaken in Belgium hosts the World Breeding Championships, the ultimate destination for the best young horses.

It could be argued that our system – the one that’s so popular with the BS membership – should be left alone.

However, one class that needs reviewing is the talent seekers, which sees all ages competing in a HOYS final. Try explaining to friends in Europe why a seven-year-old is followed into the ring by a 14-year-old, and they think you’re talking nonsense.

If it was restricted to six- and seven-year-olds, the talent seekers could become a strong competition. More people in the business would watch it and producers could showcase their protégés. It should also revert to its previous name, Olympic Star Spotters.

Foreign influence

There were some exciting classes at this year’s HOYS. The Andrews Bowen surface was spot on. International course-designer Alan Wade got it just right, as did Ben Townley for the novice classes. But there weren’t many foreign riders at HOYS.

As has been said before, post-Brexit it costs us more than £1,000 more per horse for every Channel crossing. Clearly the same penalty faces foreign riders thinking of coming to British shows.

If I sell a horse overseas, transporting it to Europe is a one-off and I can put up with the extra expenses for vets, health papers and so on. But charging the same for competition horses as for exports is unfair.

Do other sports hold the answer?

Time slots for HOYS’ evening competitions, when the main class often doesn’t start until 9.30pm, need some thought.

It would be great to see the NEC stadium as full for every performance as it was on Saturday afternoon and evening; so it’s worth taking a look at what other sports do.

For example, pay-to-view boxing championship fights are always on late on a Saturday night, rather than through the week or on Sunday evening. The latest a football match typically starts is 8pm, finishing by 10pm.

Being in Birmingham, the NEC has the advantage that it can be reached by many people within an hour-and-a-half or two-hour drive.

Its disadvantage is that everything shuts down when the last class starts. When the bars, restaurants and shopping village are closed, the venue is soulless – unlike London International and many European shows that keep their out-of-the-arena attractions open until the classes have finished, adding to the atmosphere.

If, say, the talent seekers on the Wednesday and the Foxhunter on Thursday started at 8pm, a lot more people would make the trip.

Huge achievement

Seventy-five years of HOYS is a colossal achievement. The show was the inspiration of its founder Sir Mike Ansell, who by 1940 had risen to become the youngest commanding officer in the British Army.

How Sir Mike came to be blinded and with four fingers amputated during his military service is truly harrowing. I was privileged to meet him on several occasions, and in my opinion, he was the greatest man our sport has ever seen.

How we could do with one half as good today.

● Should we continue the HOYS finals as they are, or make way for age classes? Share your thoughts at hhletters@futurenet.com, including your name, nearest town and country, for the chance for your letter to appear in a forthcoming issue of the magazine

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