Queen’s delight as she heard of last ‘winner’
THE Queen is well fancied to be posthumously honoured with a coveted equestrian trophy.
One of her horses, a thoroughbred named First Receiver, is in line for the Horse Of The Year prize as part of the prestigious Equestrian Championship.
In the latter decades of her life, the late monarch became as successful in the world of horse showing as she was in horse racing. But the prestigious Horse Of The Year prize eluded her.
First Receiver’s rider Katie Jerram-Hunnable said: ‘The one thing Her Majesty wanted to do was win at the Horse Of The Year Show.’
The horse qualified four days before the Queen died. Ms Jerram-Hunnable reported the news to the Queen’s stable manager, Terry Pendry. ‘He called Her Majesty and she was so ecstatic he had won that class that day. It was my last win for Her Majesty, that makes me emotional.’
The Equestrian Championship, begins on Wednesday and is likened to ‘Crufts for horses’.
First Receiver, who is five, started life as a racehorse trained by Sir Michael Stoute.