Australia’s Pony Club Champs This Weekend

Australia’s national Pony Club Championships kick off at the Sydney International Equestrian Centre on Sunday, with more than 230 riders taking part.

Riders from throughout Australia will compete across the equestrian disciplines of dressage, eventing, showjumping and mounted games at the event at Horsley Park, which runs until July 18.

New South Wales and Victoria have the greatest number of entries, with 46 and 45 respectively, followed by Queensland (39), Tasmania (37), South Australia (35), Western Australia (26), and Northern Territory (5).

Several past Olympic and elite riders began their riding career in Pony Club and competed at championships like these. Australia’s silver medal winning Olympic eventing team consisted of four former Australian Pony Club Members; Shane Rose (NSW), Megan Jones (SA) Sonja Johnson and Clayton Fredricks (WA).

Each discipline at the Pony Club Australia National Championships is divided into two events; a junior event for riders under 17, and an associate event for riders 17 to 25.

On the first day, horses and riders undergo a fitness check, before the warmup events for showjumping and dressage on Monday morning. The official competition for these diciplines starts on Tuesday. The dressage phase of the eventing contest commences on Wednesday, the day of the event’s opening ceremony.

Cross-country and junior mounted games feature on Thursday, and the finals for the dressage, show jumping and eventing are on Friday.

Fiona Carruthers, author of “The Horse in Australia”, will be on site for a book signing at 1pm.

On Saturday July 18, the Pas De Deux competition and associate mounted games competition take place, before the final presentation at 1pm.
www.ponyclubnationals.org.au