British Open Show Jumping Championships Blog

It is not every day you see a horse jumping in the centre of Birmingham! However, today, for the first time in history, a life size, specially commissioned piece of equestrian art was installed in Centenary Square to celebrate Birmingham hosting the 8th British Open Show Jumping Championships which is held at the NEC’s LG Arena during this Easter holiday, from 7th- 10th April. The British Open Beauty, aka “Bob”, will be on display alongside the Birmingham Wheel until 22nd February 2010.

A selection of copyright-free images are available for press use. Please see the images below. If you would like high-res versions of the images or a quote from the Organisers or Sculptor please contact the Grandstand Press Office:

British Open Press Office
Grandstand Event Management
Tel: 01582 711411
Email: press@grandstand.co.uk

After fighting off fierce competition at the Addington Manor Equestrian Centre British Open wild card qualifier last week (27th-30th January), Tina Fletcher and Paul Barker will now join leading British and foreign riders at the British Open Show Jumping Championships (7th -10th April 2010 at Birmingham’s NEC). 

Tina Fletcher and Paul Barker are in flying form and sealed the deal on their qualification finishing only one point ahead of third placed Lynne Bevan. Riding Hallo Sailor and Amadeus V respectively, Tina and Paul thrive on this intense competition and are becoming experts at securing these sought after wild card places having both also qualified for HOYS last year through the wild card system. Both riders are very consistent at this level of competition and The British Open organisers, Grandstand Event Management Ltd, are looking forward to welcoming them to this year’s show.

The wild card qualifier brought out all the big guns and many top combinations were fighting for their chance to qualify, including last year’s winner, Helen Tredwell who finished 5th overall. Tina and Paul jumped fluently throughout the weekend to secure the top spots in the overall points table to qualify them for the British Open this Easter (7th-10th April). 

Addington Manor Equestrian Centre is hosting a feast of British Open qualifiers this year and not to be missed are the Baileys JAS British Eventing Final on the 27th February and the Indoor Cross Country Wild Card competition on the 5th March. New to the 2010 Show, competitors from the Baileys JAS British Eventing series will have the chance to compete at the British Open. The top two placed competitors from the intermediate level of the British Eventing JAS 2010 Final will be invited to go on and compete at the British Open Indoor Cross Country Championship. For more information about the Baileys JAS Eventing series visit www.britisheventing.com.

The Indoor Cross Country Championship wild card on the 5th will be an exciting evening of competition. The class is open to any combination qualified for a 2* or above and the first three places will go through to compete at the British Open! For further information visit www.addingtonmanor.co.uk.

Tickets are still available for the British Open. To book tickets call the NEC Box Office on 0844 581 1301 or click here.

Visitors to the 2010 British Open Show Jumping Championships at the NEC, Birmingham will now have the opportunity to book their hotel accommodation, hospitality tickets, Championship packages and season tickets online!  The brand new e-commerce system has been designed specifically with the user in mind and promises to be a hassle free and convenient way of booking these extras for the show. The British Open takes place from 7th – 10th April 2010 and promises to provide a fantastic action-packed programme of equestrian competition and entertainment.

Helena Pettit, Managing Director of Grandstand Group, commented ‘We are thrilled to launch our new online booking system and really feel we are offering the user a fast and efficient way of securing their reservations with us. The system has been carefully designed and will be of real value to people limited to making bookings in the evenings and weekends as with this process we are now able to operate a 24 hour booking system!’

To book Hotel Accommodation, Season Tickets, Packages or Hospitality for the British Open please click here. If you would prefer to make your booking over the phone, please call 01582 711 411 and our reservations team will be happy to help.

The British Open Show Jumping Championships takes place at the NEC, Birmingham from Wednesday 7th – Saturday 10th April 2010. For further information visit the official website at www.britishopenshowjumping.com.

Visitors to the 2010 British Open Show Jumping Championships at the NEC, Birmingham will have the opportunity to see the world’s leading show jumpers competing at the four-day show.  The British Open takes place from 7th – 10th April 2010 and promises to provide a fantastic action-packed programme of equestrian competition and entertainment.

Britain’s top ten international show jumpers, alongside prominent riders from abroad, will be invited to contest the prestigious British Open title, with a Championship round on each of the first three days culminating in the Final on Saturday afternoon.

Robert Whitaker, has already won the Championship three times and is scheduled to return to the NEC to defend his title. He will be joined by other members of his show jumping family (Michael, John and Ellen) and a host of the UK’s leading riders to compete for the esteemed title of British Open Champion 2010. The event offers the biggest single indoor show jumping prize in Britain and this year the total prize money on offer is in excess of £150,000 with the British Open Champion receiving over £25,000. Two further riders will win a place to compete at the British Open at the Addington PRO/AM championship next week (28th – 30th January 2010). 

Triple Olympian and the 2009 HOYS Equestrian of the Year, Richard Davison is set to entertain the crowds at the forthcoming British Open Show Jumping Championships (7th – 10th April at Birmingham’s NEC) with an insightful Dressage Masterclass on Friday 9th April.

Richard, will demonstrate a range of training tips to help get your horse on the right track for Dressage, no matter whether you compete or not. He will then look at how basic Dressage relates to what you see competitors doing across the levels up to Grand Prix.

Richard is a highly successful and internationally acclaimed dressage rider based in Combridge, Staffordshire. He has won two European medals, represented Great Britain at three Olympic Games and at two World Championships, as well as having been the British number one International Dressage Rider for six years.   He regularly competes up to Grand Prix level and has a horse aimed for the 2012 Olympics. As well as being the British Dressage Team Captain, Richard also trains with top show jumpers, helping them improve their dressage and flatwork.

Richard commented, “After hosting a dressage demo at HOYS in October, I am excited to be returning to the NEC for the British Open. The Masterclass will highlight the importance of dressage as a basis for all equestrian disciplines. I hope to demonstrate a range of training tips and show how dressage can be fun and need not be complicated.” 

The Dressage Masterclass will once again form part of the unique programme of world-class show jumping, bespoke competitions such as Indoor Cross Country and mesmerising equestrian displays at this innovative event.

The British Open Show Jumping Championships takes place at the NEC, Birmingham from Wednesday 7th – Sunday 10th April 2010. For tickets call the Box Office on 0844 581 1301 or click here.

Grandstand Group, the team behind Horse of the Year Show and the British Open Show Jumping Championships, is staging a search for a new voice in equestrian commentating. Grandstand Group is looking for someone who admires the work of world-renowned commentators such as Mike Tucker or Nick Brooks-Ward, the voices presenting the biggest equestrian national and international events for live audiences and television coverage, and who feel they have the perfect tone and personality to commentate on prestigious sporting equestrian events.

Grandstand Group is now taking entries for those who feel destined for the commentary box! For your chance to introduce world-class riders and famous displays at Horse of the Year Show and the British Open Show Jumping Championships, visit either shows’ websites (www.hoys.co.uk or www.britishopenshowjumping.com ) for details on how to enter and the competition terms and conditions. The finals will be held at the British Open 2010 in April and will be judged by three special guest judges. The winner will join the HOYS 2010 commentary team to be part of the world’s most famous horse show in October. Entries close on 3rd February 2010. 

The British Open Show Jumping Championships takes place at the NEC, Birmingham from Wednesday 7th – Saturday 10th April 2010. For tickets, call the Box Office on 0844 581 1301 or visit the official website by clicking here.

Scurry driving will return to form part of the exciting line-up of international show jumping and equestrian entertainment at this year’s British Open (7^th – 10^th April at Birmingham’s NEC). The thrilling Scurry competition sponsored by Osborne Refrigerators is one of the most exhilarating equestrian sports for both the competitors and spectators.

Pairs of ponies pull a scurry vehicle round a twisting course at break neck speed and the fastest pair wins. The aim of the competition is for the drivers to steer their ponies through a series of gates made up of between 12 to 14 pairs of cones. Each cone has a ball balanced on the top so that if a pony or scurry cart makes contact with the cone the ball will fall off.  For each ball knocked from a cone a penalty of 4 seconds will be incurred added to the competitor’s time. The winner is the team with the quickest overall time.

This year Osborne Refrigerators are celebrating 50 years of manufacturing refrigerators designed for the chilling and storage of wines, beers, cold beverages and foodstuffs. For half this time the company have been involved with scurry driving and have supported the sport at events across the country.

Managing Director of Osborne Refrigerators, Jeff Osborne, a keen scurry driver who will be one of those at Birmingham to contest the title, said, “Osborne Refrigerators is delighted to be involved with the British Open Scurry Challenge again this year. The Show gets bigger and better each year, the atmosphere is fantastic and the crowds really get behind their favourite competitors and ponies throughout the week.”

The British Open Show Jumping Championships takes place at the NEC, Birmingham from Wednesday 7^th – Saturday 10^th April 2010. For tickets, call the Box Office on 0844 581 1301 or click here.