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Saddleworld Australian Youth Showjumping Festival – 3 Days of Fun and Camaraderie

Saddleworld

The Camden Bicentennial Equestrian Park again played host to almost 200 riders between the ages of 9 and 21 in a fantastic festival of friendship and fun, held over 3 days from the 3rd to 5th October 2015.

The Event Director Jane Frankum said, “We are delighted with the 2015 entry numbers – the competition is going from strength to strength.  It was great to see all states in Australia represented – we even had riders representing the Northern Territory.  New Zealand fielded a very capable team and the riders made travelling to Australia a positive learning experience.  The main aim of this event is to introduce the International rules through affiliation with the FEI which will provide a platform to foster the development of showjumping at International level!”

  Young Showjumpers  

Saddleworld has been involved since the inception of this event 13 years ago. The concept of this competition was the brainchild of John Vallance and Jane Frankum along with John and Bob Cameron who came together to get a showjumping festival for young riders into a viable format.  They took the idea to Saddleworld and the national retailing group enthusiastically offered their support.

The Festival conducts classes for very young riders over lower obstacles, right through to a 1.30-meter course to challenge the older and more experienced combinations. 

The highlight of the Festival is the FEI Children's International Classic - which is conducted under the rules of the FEI.  This part of the competition has three sections:
Gold - for riders aged 12, 13 and 14 with a course built up to 1.20 meters in height.
Silver – for riders 14 and under, up to 1.10 meters
Bronze – for riders 14 and under, up to 1 meter in height.

The FEI appointed an international course builder to design a course for use by all participating countries, with the layout, distances and heights sent to the competition course builder in each country.  Australia’s John Vallance was charged with the responsibility of constructing the Camden course to meet the international specifications.

At the completion of the event, Australia’s results were submitted to the FEI and the top 20 placed riders are eligible to take part at the international final which is held in Europe, where they will compete on borrowed horses.

For the European final, the same FEI course builder will design the track so the riders will be familiar with the style and complexity of the jumps they will face.

Jane Frankum added, “This is a very important competition for Australia’s young, up and coming showjumping riders and it makes a great stepping stone for them to enter an international career in the sport.  We value the opportunity to give our youth the experience of taking part in an FEI event and the possibility and organisational framework to compete overseas.”

“Saddleworld’s support over the past 13 years has been brilliant, we could not stage the event without their generosity.  Saddleworld provides the trophy rugs, vouchers and financial support.  In addition, the riders receive a lovely stable plaque, which is a great permanent memento of their participation.  The young riders just love receiving gift vouchers and we would hope that this introduces new customers to Saddleworld, making the event a win/win collaboration.”

“We are already looking forward to a bigger and better event in 2016 and urge fans to watch out for details and get their entries in,” concluded Jane Frankum.

Sophia Carlon
Gold Tour winner Sophia Carlon
NZ team
NZ team show their style
NZ Team Members
NZ Team Members

Olivia Dalton

Olivia Dalton

For full results CLICK HERE