Riders on show
Top prizemoney on offer at annual event
Darling Downs competitors brushed shoulders with riding royalty at the Australia Day Showjumping Championships at the weekend.
Hosted by the Toowoomba Jump Club, the annual event attracted almost 200 competitors including international rider Shane Davidson.
Davidson spent six years competing in Germany before returning to his home town of Toowoomba.
He and his wife Mattea now run Davidson Equestrian at Kings Siding.
“It’s always good to support our local club,” Davidson said.
“We always look forward to the first show of the year.”
Davidson has been competing in the Australia Day Championships since he was a junior.
“It’s timed well in the calendar because it’s a good lead in to the rest of the shows coming up,” he said.
The pair rode nine horses on Saturday and six yesterday to notch up a few top three placings.
“Some young horses who haven’t been out before have taken to the surroundings quite well so we’re very happy with that,” Davidson said.
Toowoomba Jump Club president Rachael Hollands said the competition was one of their biggest events of the year.
“There’s well over 200 horses doing about 900 rounds of showjumping over two days,” she said.
With big prizemoney up for grabs, riders from Brisbane, North and Central Queensland and New South Wales travelled to compete.
Hollands said riders from the region were right up there with the best riders in the country.
“We have a fair few top show and World Cup jumpers on the Darling Downs,” she said.
“The juniors do look to the bigger riders and they help out the juniors too.”