Former Cheltenham Gold Cup winner reigns as a show horse in Burghley main arena
Tom Malone’s 2018 Cheltenham Gold Cup winner Native River has booked his second Horse of the Year Show (HOYS) ticket by winning the SEIB Racehorse to Riding Horse qualifier at the 2024 Defender Burghley Horse Trials.
Ridden by Jazmin Hosgood, the chestnut gelding headed a 20-strong qualifying class before a large crowd in the main arena on the final day of Burghley. He adds this ticket to a SEIB Search For A Star pass achieved at Stoneleigh Park in May.
Ride judge Michaela Bowling said: “He went amazingly. He was an out-an- out show horse to ride.”
Conformation judge Stuart Campbell added: “It was the presentation, movement, balance, rhythm and self-carriage of the winner that set him apart. It is wonderful to see ex-racehorses becoming truly multi-purpose horses.”
Tom bought Native River as a four-year-old from a yard in Ireland after he had unseated his jockey in a point-to-point. During his career on the track, he won over £1m and was ridden by champion jockey Richard Johnson in many of his races. The now 14-year-old was trained by Colin Tizzard in Somerset and retired to Tom’s yard nearby.
“I’m as proud as I could be of this horse,” Tom said. “I get more pleasure than I can tell you out of this success. We set out with HOYS as our goal and he’s gone and done it.”
Jazmin said: “I used to work for Tom and have ridden Native River lots at home and out hunting. He is absolutely Tom’s baby. It was a big atmosphere today and he was just amazing. We also went Moreton show the day before and he won there, too.”
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Jazmin rode at HOYS in 2012, when she won the SEIB Search For A Star riding horse and hack final.
“Native River goes out in the field every day and will do plenty of hacking before HOYS and hopefully a hunter trial,” she said. “He also won a big jockeys’ jumping competition with Harry Cobden a few weeks ago!”
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Born and raised in the Lake District, Alex has grown up on the showing scene. She has qualified and competed ponies at the Royal International, Horse of the Year Show and Olympia and has first-hand knowledge of the current issues in the showing world as well as the horses, ponies and riders who compete in the sport. Alex joined H&H in January 2018 as showing editor, cementing its place as the leading equestrian publication for both showing reports and current showing news in the UK. She moved on in October 2024 to pursue other opportunities, but continues to write for us on a freelance basis.