Supercob and home-bred mare lead coloured field as 2023 Royal International gets underway

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RIHS supreme skewbald and piebald ridden
Janay Atherden is crowned 2023 RIHS coloured supreme on Red Rock III.
(Image credit: Elli Birch/Boots and Hooves)

After a mammoth day of judging in the Roger Stack Arena on day one of the 2023 Royal International Horse Show (RIHS), only one combination could be pulled forward to take the overall RIHS supreme skewbald and piebald ridden championship title as well as the coveted Indian Trail trophy.

Stars of the show were last year’s reserve supreme champions, Janay Atherden and her own and her mother Lisha Leeman’s supercob Red Rock III, who kept their cool to win their class, the horse championship and the overall title. Janay and home-produced 11-year-old Red, reserve coloured champions at last year’s Horse of the Year Show (HOYS) final, have been the pair to beat this year; in May they made history by becoming dual coloured and cob champions at Royal Windsor, and they’re already booked in to return to the NEC in a few months in both cob and coloured ranks.

Alex Robinson
Alex Robinson
Former H&H showing editor and deputy features editor

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.