Hickstead’s Queen’s Cup gets £9,000 prize pot

Prize-money for Hickstead’s Queen Elizabeth II Cup competition will be £9,000 this year, thanks to a new sponsor of the class — the Old Lodge Stud in Sussex.

The Queen’s Cup was the UK’s only international women’s jumping class.

But in February (news, 14 February) Hickstead sparked controversy when they announced that, after 59 years, it would be downgraded to a national class and would also be open to male riders.

The class is now open to the top 20 riders on the British Show Jumping Association’s international trials points list.

Old Lodge already sponsors classes at Addington and the young riders class and young horse breeding championships at the Royal International Horse Show.

Its spokesman Corinna Duncan said the stud was “very excited” to be involved with the Queen’s Cup.

She also said the stud has designs on winning this year’s Queen’s Cup with Geoff Luckett already qualified for the class. He will ride one of two of Old Lodge’s horses — Brickfield Boy or Little Lefanie.

The winner of the first Queen’s Cup (then the Princess Elizabeth Cup) in 1949, Iris Kellett, took home the princely sum of £30.

The final winner of the cup in its old format — Tina Fletcher in 2007 — landed £6,000.

Hickstead owner Douglas Bunn has welcomed news of the sponsorship deal, saying: “We are happy Old Lodge has seen the enormous potential of this competition in its new format and decided to add it to the formidable list of classes that have its support.”

This news story was first published in Horse & Hound (1 May, ’08)

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