News
Discovering the Future Stars of Dressage with the KBIS Young Dressage Horse series
- Written By: British Dressage
- Published: Fri, 14 Mar 2025 16:30
The first KBIS Young Horse and Pony classes of 2025 took place this week at Myerscough College Premier League, and with our first qualifier taking place at Parwood Equestrian Centre tomorrow (15 March) the search for our 2025 champions has began.
Supported by BD Official Insurance Partner KBIS, the British Young Dressage Horse Championships are the annual aim for many young horse producers, breeders, owners and riders. The series has opportunities for four, five, six and seven year old horses and four, five and six year old ponies, so there is a class to suit all the young equine talent at different stages of their development.
With the aim to help produce and educate the future stars of the sport with health, happiness and the career longevity of each equine athlete in mind, the qualifiers take place from March to mid-June. Four, five and six year-old horses and ponies ride a commanded route plan that is designed to showcase age-appropriate scales of training. Seven year-old horses ride the National Test for Seven Year-Olds. The top placed horses from these events head to two semi-final competitions to decide entries for the Championship final, taking place at the LeMieux National Dressage Championships in September. The top placed ponies will qualify for the Young Dressage Pony Championships at Hartpury Festival of Dressage.
The Young Dressage Horse classes have an alternative format to standard BD classes, designed to give each age group maximum confidence and security in the arena. The first round of qualifiers sees combinations in the four, five and six year-old classes ride a route plan in pairs and the top two from each age group, with scores over 7.0 will go forward to the semi-final. Seven year-old horses ride the National Test for Seven Year-Olds. At the semi-finals, the BD National Tests for each age group are used to determine the National final places, with the top three horses (achieving the required score) in each age group given direct qualification. The KBIS Young Dressage Horse Championships follow the same format as the semi-finals, with the top placed combinations in the Five and Six year-old Championship going forward to final judging where rider judge testing contributes to the ultimate results.
Membership
A minimum of Club membership for both horse and rider is required to participate in KBIS Young Dressage Horse and Young Dressage Pony qualifiers. If a combination qualifies for a subsequent semi-final or championship, an upgrade to a Full (competing) membership and horse registration is necessary.
Riders can take part in young horse and pony classes from the start of the year of their 12th birthday. If you are an owner, you will need either Full (non-competing) or Full (competing) membership.
2025 dates for Young Horse and Pony Classes
With opportunities for horses and ponies at different stages of development early in their career, the KBIS Young Dressage Horse Championships allows the younger generation of equine athletes to gain competition experience in a low-pressure atmosphere, as a part of their education. If you are a young horse producer, breeder, owner or rider, these competitions exist to help produce the future high-flyers of our sport, the upcoming qualifier dates are listed below.
|
Venue |
County |
Date |
| Myerscough College |
Lancashire |
11-12 March |
| Parwood Equestrian Centre | Surrey |
15 March |
| Chard Equestrian |
Somerset |
4-5 April |
| Weston Lawns Equestrian Centre | Warwickshire |
12 April |
| Kings Sedgemoor Equestrian Centre |
Somerset |
2 May |
| Sheepgate Equestrian | Lincoln |
9 May |
| Addington Equestrian |
Buckinghamshire |
14 May |
| Stourport Riding Centre | Worcestershire | 16 May |
| Rockrose Equestrian Centre | East Lothian |
18 May |
| Somerford Park | Cheshire | 25 May |
| Beechwood Equestrian | Essex | 1 June |
| Wellington Riding |
Hampshire |
4 June |
| Little Mill Equestrian | Carmarthenshire | 8 June |
| Kingswood Equestrian Centre | Staffordshire | 13 June |
| Aster Academy Dressage | Kent | 14 June |
| Alnwick Ford Equestrian | Northumberland | 15 June |
| KBIS Young Dressage Horse Semi-Finals | ||
| Hartpury University & Hartpury College |
Gloucestershire |
3 July |
| Northallerton Equestrian Centre | North Yorkshire | 25 July |
| KBIS Young Dressage Pony Championships | ||
| Hartpury University & Hartpury College |
Gloucestershire |
4 July |
| KBIS Young Dressage Horse Championships | ||
| Somerford Park |
Cheshire |
11 - 14 September |
2024 KBIS Young Dressage Horse/Pony Champions
Last year our three Young Dressage Pony champions showcased their talent at The Hartpury Festival of Dressage in July and our 2024 Young Dressage Pony Champions were crowned. The final judging of the Young Dressage Horse championship took place at the LeMieux National Dressage Championships in 2024, where the top four from each category went before impressing Christine Prip, trainer judge Gareth Hughes and riding judge Alexander Harrison, who selected our incredible winners.
KBIS Young Dressage Horse 4-year-old Champion 2024
Jezz Palmer with Premier
KBIS Young Dressage Horse 5-year-old Champion 2024
Ashley Jenkins with Game On I
KBIS Young Dressage Horse 6-year-old Champion 2024
Alicia Lee with Della Ballerina
KBIS Young Dressage Horse 7-year-old Champion 2024
Becky Moody with Magic Dream
KBIS Young Dressage Pony 4-year-old Champion 2024
Sofia Jankiewicz with Wonder Boy III
KBIS Young Dressage Pony 5-year-old Champion 2024
Shelley Reeve Smith with MM Sweet Pea
KBIS Young Dressage Pony 6-year-old Champion 2024
Charlotte Thomas with My Beauty CTD
