Hickstead secures major title sponsor for Royal International, plus the latest equestrian sponsorship news
Longines has extended its support of Hickstead to take on the title sponsorship of the Royal International Horse Show for three years.
The luxury watch brand already sponsors the entire Longines FEI jumping Nations Cup series, of which Hickstead hosts the British leg at the Royal International (23 to 28 July).
It has now taken on sponsorship of the entire show from 2019 to 2021, plus naming rights to Hickstead’s iconic main arena, which becomes the Longines International Arena.
“We are extremely fortunate to have a longstanding sponsorship agreement with Longines, a prestigious company and the biggest supporter of international equestrian sport,” said Hickstead director Lizzie Bunn.
“Our sport simply could not exist without such sponsors, and we are delighted to have signed with Longines for a further three years.”
The scheduling of the international showjumping classes has been altered for this year, with the Nations Cup class moving back to its traditional slot on Friday afternoon, while the Longines BHS King George V Gold Cup returns to Sunday afternoon.
“After a revised timetable last year, we have returned to the previous show format with the Nations Cup on Friday,” added Ms Bunn.
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“This allows selected riders to focus their attentions on representing their country on the Friday while also allowing them to make the decision whether to ride the same horse in Sunday’s grand prix or to compete one of their other top rides.”
WH Bond
Bicton Arena has signed a major new sponsorship deal with WH Bond, its most significant yet under the tenure of the venue’s manager Helen West.
The family-owned company has several divisions including timber sales, plant hire, machinery sales, earthmoving and most recently tractor and equipment sales and hire. The business operates throughout the southwest where it farms 2,000 acres.
WH Bond will sponsor classes at Bicton Arena’s international horse trials in April and October, and take title sponsorship of both a national class at its May Spectacular showjumping show and the amateur showjumping festival in August.
As well as title sponsorships, timber from its sawmill near Saltash will be used extensively across the site. The newly named WH Bond arena has been re-fenced using WH Bond’s award-winning fence posts that are accredited by the Wood Protection Association to last 30 years.
Some fencing along the main driveway has also been replaced and timber will be supplied to build a new feature fence on the cross-country course and to build a new set of arena eventing fences.
Excavators from part of its fleet of 400 plant machines have also been used in the building of arenas.
“The passion and drive behind [Bicton Arena] is infectious and we look forward to supporting Helen West, Beccy Barrett and the team,” said a spokesman for WH Bond.
Helen added: “This is a significant sponsorship for Bicton Arena and we’re delighted to be working very closely with the team at WH Bond & Sons Ltd. It is a long established company with a first class reputation that is cemented across the west country.”
Saracen
The feed company has joined British Eventing as title sponsor for the young rider programme, including the under-21 national championships and European Championship squad.
Saracen Horse Feeds’ sales and marketing director Michael Bacon said the company is “incredibly proud” to be supporting the next generation of world-class eventers.
“The British Eventing young rider programme and championship are a great way to support young riders with serious aspirations for the sport,” said Mr Bacon.
“It’s a great achievement for all the riders selected for the programme who are ultimately aiming for tomorrow’s podium positions — 2019 will be an exciting year with many emerging riders who Saracen Horse Feeds will enjoy supporting.”
The national under-21 championships will take place at Houghton International Horse Trials (23 to 26 May), with the young rider Europeans held at Maasbergen in the Netherlands (11 to 14 July).
Connolly’s Red Mills
Showing rider and producer Kirsty Aird has joined the feed company’s team as a supported rider.
Red Mills’ UK head of equine, Louise Jones, said she is “delighted” Kirsty is joining the team.
“She uses our ‘Horse Care’ range, which contains our unique care package to ensure her horses get the ultimate nutritional support,” said Ms Jones.
“As a long-term user of the feed the results Kirsty has had over the years speak for themselves and we’re looking forward to continue working with her in 2019 and beyond.”
Kirsty added: “Having such a variety of horses, from Connemaras to Clydesdales, it can be challenging to design a feed programme to suit their individual breed and workload. All my horses are fed Connolly’s Red Mills Horse Care 10 Cubes and they all look and feel fantastic, it is a very versatile product.
“How the horses look and behave is vital in showing and for their performance, which all starts at home with the feed. We’re really looking forward to 2019, fingers crossed for a great year!”
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Jump 4 Joy
The showjump manufacturer has welcomed three new up-and-coming riders to its ambassador programme.
Showjumper Paul Gaff and eventers Millie Dumas and Georgie Spence have all signed deals with the company.
Managing director Nigel Underwood said: “It is really important to us to be supporting the next generation of riders coming through the ranks.
“In their own way, all three of our sponsored riders have shown their potential for world class success and we believe they are destined to be stars of the future so we are really looking forward to supporting them and sharing in their successes.
He added: “It is a great testament to our product that all three of our sponsored riders, as well as our ambassadors Ros Canter and William Fox Pitt have all chosen to train with our jumps and we are thrilled that through providing first class jumps we can help contribute towards their future achievements.”
Leucillin
Leucillin Antiseptic Skincare will be sponsoring the TREC GB summer league in 2019.
The league runs from 1 April to 30 September, with points awarded for placings and prizes awarded at the end of the season.
The antiseptic skincare range is for use on animals to provide protection against infection.
Zebra Products
The distributor of equestrian products has signed up to support British Showjumping’s (BS) business partnership for a fourth year.
Managing director Simon Middleton said Zebra Products is “delighted” to be continuing its partnership with BS.
“We are dedicated to supporting the association and recognise the importance of this relationship,” he added.
BS head of communications Maria Haig added: “Following three successful terms, we are very pleased to be announcing Zebra Products’ fourth year of alignment with the business partnership.
“Their longstanding commitment has proved crucial in supporting our performance pathway programme and we are happy that they have once again chosen British Showjumping as a platform for promoting their brand portfolio.”
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Lucy is an experienced news journalist, reporter and presenter. Since joining the Horse & Hound team in 2015, Lucy has reported from major global sporting events including the Tokyo Paralympic Games and multiple European Championships, as well as Badminton, Burghley and London, to name a few. She has covered current affairs and sports news across the full spectrum of equestrian disciplines and racing, as well as human and equine welfare, industry news and court cases.