Pony Club branch support at five-star rider’s wedding
Five-star eventer Rosie Thomas, who finishing 13th at Burghley in 2008 riding crowd-favourite Barry’s Best, married Andrew Willmett on 29 September in St Michael’s Church, Bockleton. Rosie is also chief instructor of the Ludlow Hunt branch of the Pony Club, and when she came out of the church she was met by a surprise guard of honour – 21 of her young riders dressed in their best jodhpurs and Pony Club sweatshirts, whips decorated with pink and white ribbon. Rosie said: “It was a shock to see them, I think I said ‘what are you lot doing here?’! I think the boys had a few sword fights beforehand – but I didn’t see it! It really was a great day.”
Rosemary Herbert, the respected dressage judge and mentor, died peacefully on 20 September 2024, aged 96. Rosemary was involved in pony, junior, young rider and senior teams, travelling Europe as a chef d’équipe or selector for Britain. Some of her proudest moments were when Great Britain won a young rider silver medal in 1986 and a senior European silver medal in 1993. She enjoyed mentoring up-and-coming judges, many of whom have become respected judges themselves. She was hugely respected in the equestrian world, priding herself on her integrity and always willing to share her knowledge and great wealth of experience with others.
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Sarah has worked at an equestrian journalist and editor since 2004 and has held the position of Horse & Hound Editor-in-Chief since 2014. She has reported for Horse & Hound from major championships including Europeans and World Equestrian Games. She has co-written books on horses and horse sport including The Complete Illustrated Encyclopedia of Horses & Ponies. She has owned and ridden horses since 1993, and worked for and trained with Olympic gold medallist event rider Leslie Law prior to going to university. While studying for a BSc at London School of Economics Sarah also worked for top British dressage rider Louise Spate.
