British Dressage is proud to have three individuals, one team and two horses shortlisted for prestigious national accolades in the form of the Horse & Hound Awards 2017.
Debbie Poynter, winner of this year's Petplan Equine Area Festival Championship Inter I has been nominated for Pikeur Amateur of the Year; Spencer Wilton has been nominated for Professional Rider of the Year for his stellar results and performances over the past 12 months; two of our four-legged favourites are up for Cavalor Horse of the Year - Nip Tuck who with Carl Hester was oh-so-close to a medal at the FEI European Championships in Gothenburg and the gorgeous Abira who, with Suzanna Hext, won a trio of golds at the FEI Para Europeans, in Gothenburg too.
Then there's the Para Team, the fabulous four who won team gold at the Europeans - Suzanna Hext, Julie Payne, Erin Orford and Sophie Wells. The golden girls' triumph in Sweden has quite rightly been nominated for Charles Owen Moment of the Year.
South West BYRDS Rep Jo Lees is up for Horse & Hound Volunteer of the Year which recognises the sacrifices made by volunteers to enable countless others to enjoy their sport or profession week in, week out. Jo is the South-West BYRDS Rep, acting as Chef d’Equipe at inter-regional competitions and home internationals, and organising training camps and other activities.
Following the huge success of last year’s inaugural Horse & Hound Awards, for which 300 people attended a glittering, star-studded ceremony, Horse & Hound is delighted that this year’s awards will be even bigger and better. Nominated and voted for by you, the award winners will be revealed at the Horse & Hound Awards dinner on Thursday 2 November at Ascot Racecourse.
The stories of the shortlisted candidates in each category have been published in Horse & Hound magazine (28 September issue) as well as online. Online voting is now open and closes Sunday 8 October 2017. So please follow this link to show your support and getting voting!