The Point-to-Point Authority (PPA) has secured title sponsorship deals for its three new series ahead of the 2019/2020 season.
PPA chief executive Peter Wright outlined plans for the new series among a host of other updates this summer (news, 22 August), while the specifics of these including the sponsorship deals have recently been revealed to the public.
The aim is to boost the sport by giving more opportunities to some of the smaller core groups within pointing.
The Jockey Club and Retraining of Racehorses are jointly sponsoring the veteran horse 15-race series. This will be open to horses aged 10 and over, which make up around 30% of the point-to-point horse population, and it is hoped it will provide opportunities for those who now find open races a bit too competitive.
The final will be at the Melton Hunt Club fixture at Garthorpe in May.
The Oriental Club, a London private members’ club, has been revealed as the title sponsor of the owner-trainer series.
This 16-race series is specifically targeting trainers with limited numbers of horses, who are looking for good chances to run their horses once they are out of restricted or intermediate races. The series final will be held at Godstone, also in May.
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Tattersalls Cheltenham and Goffs UK are joining forces to sponsor the 13-race maiden series for four- and five-year-olds.
The idea behind this series is to give the growing number of young horses to compete at higher weights, putting them on a more equal pairing with Ireland and allowing more jockeys to take part.
Charlie Watkins Foundation
Stratford Hills Horse Trials (SHHT) has announced that the foundation will be its charity of the year in 2020.
The Charlie Watkins Foundation supports the provision of mental health services to young people in the UK. It raises funds to support young people struggling with mental health issues, encourages them to talk and aims to remove the stigma surrounding mental health.
Charlie took his own life in 2017 aged 22 and the foundation was set up by his twin brother Harry in September that year.
“The SHHT committee all have children and are very aware of the mental health issues surrounding young people today. We therefore welcome the chance to support a local charity which is offering a chat line to anyone who is suffering from anxiety or any other problems,” said organiser Gillie Cranfield.
World champion Ros Canter has signed a sponsorship deal with the online site, which is part of animal health company Zoetis Inc.
The deal involves Ros presenting a series of practical videos on riding and horse care. Penny McCann, equine product manager at Zoetis said: “It is a privilege to sponsor Ros and we very much hope people will enjoy watching these videos as much as we all did making them.”
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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.
