A chip off the old block: teenager clears 6ft7in with one stirrup to win puissance

Maisy Williams, the teenage daughter of big-wall aficionado Guy Williams, proved herself a chip off the old block when she was the sole rider to clear the big wall at 2.05m (6ft 7in) to win the Dodson & Horrell puissance at the ALX Horseboxes Major Showjumping Championships (18-24 September) at Arena UK, Lincolnshire.

It was only 17-year-old Maisy’s second attempt at tackling the big wall, having also jumped the puissance at Arena UK last December, where she finished fourth. She triumphed this time, again riding the 14-year-old Dalton D’Hoyo (Kashmir Van Schuttershof x Parco).

“He’s a small horse — about 16.2hh — but with a massive heart, so you can trust him to jump whatever you put in front of him,” Maisy said. “He can jump a massive fence, you just need to see the right stride, and he’s really easy and straight.”

Puissance tips: ‘My dad told me to grab some mane!’

“For the first three rounds my dad told me to keep travelling so he gets brave, but for the last two rounds, to come round the corner, wait and hold and let him jump it,” added Maisy, who was part of Great Britain’s bronze medal-winning junior team at the European Showjumping Championships in the summer.

Maisy lost a stirrup on her final trip over the wall, but stayed skillfully in the plate.

“My dad told me to grab the mane! I thought he’d just pop it but he jumped it really well,” she added.

Dalton D’Hoyo has been with the Williams family for nearly seven years and has previously jumped grands prix with Guy, although Maisy has ridden him more in recent years.

“I took him away to France and jumped a few rankings classes on him. He is kind of like a family horse — my mum rides him and my brother even had a go on him, he’s so easy,” explained Maisy.

“Dad will be taking him to Horse of the Year Show [HOYS] this year while I take a few others to Vilamoura. I’d love to jump the HOYS or London International Horse Show puissance on him but you have to be 18 — so I’ll have to wait til next year, but I’ll be taking my top horse to London for the young riders,” she said.

You may also like to read…

‘I nearly got someone else to ride him’: top rider won’t let bad back stand in the way of Bolesworth puissance win

From £8,000 ‘gangly’ youngster to puissance horse with Derby ambitions

‘Terrifying – I tried not to hear how high it was’: puissance first-timer is thrilled to jump 7ft wall

‘I’m not a convert yet but we’ll see!’ how puissance winner came back barefoot to reclaim his crown

Meet the 15.1hh speed horse who turned his hand to puissance – and won

Duo clear massive 7’4” Olympia Puissance wall to equal modern record

Britain and France shared the spoils in Olympia’s Cayenne Puissance class

Subscribe to Horse & Hound magazine today – and enjoy unlimited website access all year round

Horse & Hound magazine, out every Thursday, is packed with all the latest news and reports, as well as interviews, specials, nostalgia, vet and training advice. Find how you can enjoy the magazine delivered to your door every week, plus options to upgrade your subscription to access our online service that brings you breaking news and reports as well as other benefits.

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now