HOYS crowds delighted as Pippa Funnell wins newcomers title

Eventer Pippa Funnell took the spotlight at Horse of the Year Show (HOYS) on Wednesday when winning the Equestrianclearance.com newcomers championship in fine style on Carol Toliver’s six-year-old bay gelding Billy Balou (pictured right).

“I almost got William to ride Billy Balou here because I’ve been so busy eventing,” said a delighted Pippa.

Aileen Craig made the long journey from Ayrshire worthwhile when she took top spot in the British Showjumping amateur classic with the fantastically consistent 13-year-old Quiberon D.

There were also two young horse championships on day two in Birmingham — the seven-year-old championship and the Addington Manor eight-year-old championship. The former went to Trevor Breen with Oldtown KC, by Cruising, with the older age group being won by Sammie-Jo Coffin and Willem De Lux, who won the grand prix at Solihull as a warm-up.

Sixteen-year-old Charlotte Jose headed the Squibb Demolition pony Foxhunter with Edenside Blue Eyes.

“it’s still not quite sunk in yet,” said Charlotte, who was 4sec quicker than her nearest rival. “I am struggling to stop myself from crying!”

Stay in touch with all the action from HOYS on Horseandhound.co.uk and enjoy over 20 pages of reports in next Thursday’s magazine

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