British Jumping Derby
The British Jumping Derby meeting – known as the Al Shira'aa Hickstead Derby Meeting – is an annual showjumping event held since 1961 at the All England Jumping Course at Hickstead in June every year. It is considered one of the premier events in the equestrian calendar.
A highlight of the meeting is the Al Shira'aa Derby, a 1,195-metre course with tricky jumps including the aptly named Devil's Dyke – three fences in short succession with a water-filled ditch in the middle and the difficult Derby Bank, a jump with 3 ft 5in rails on top and a 10 ft 6in slope down the front.
Derby fences
The main arena is used for a number of classes throughout the meeting, but the main Derby class always follows the same class, consisting of the following fences of 21 jumping efforts:Fence name | Height | Width | Notes |
1. The Cornishman | Solid stone wall with a pole | ||
2. white oxer | |||
3. a.& b. double water ditches | & | ||
4. black gate | maximum height fence for the course, upright and falls easily | ||
5. wall | |||
6. privet hedge oxer | |||
7. a. & b. road jump | and | table fence with no exit except over jumps | |
8. Derby Bank | drop with high fence before | iconic obstacle of the course. fence 16ft from main drop which horses must slide down | |
9. white rails | two strides from bottom of bank | ||
10. a., b. & c. Devil's Dyke | ,, | closed obstacle, but sloping ground increases apparent fence height to near | |
11. open water | |||
12. Derby rails | |||
13. open ditch | |||
14. balustrades | |||
15. a. & b. double of gates | , | - | |
16. rustic spread |
Results
The results of the main British Jumping Derby class at the show are as follows:Year | Rider | Country | Horse | Ref |
1961 | Seamus Hayes | Goodbye III | ||
1962 | Pat Smythe | Flanagan | ||
1963 | Nelson Pessoa | Gran Geste | ||
1964 | Seamus Hayes | Goodbye III | ||
1965 | Nelson Pessoa | Gran Geste | ||
1966 | David Broome | Mister Softee | ||
1967 | Marion Coakes | Stroller | ||
1968 | Alison Westwood | The Maverick III | ||
1969 | Anneli Drummond-Hay | Xanthos II | ||
1970 | Harvey Smith | Mattie Brown | ||
1971 | Harvey Smith | Mattie Brown | ||
1972 | Hendrik Snoek | Shirokko | ||
1973 | Alison Dawes | Mr. Banbury | ||
1974 | Harvey Smith | Salvador | ||
1975 | Paul Darragh | Pele | ||
1976 | Eddie Macken | Boomerang | ||
1977 | Eddie Macken | Boomerang | ||
1978 | Eddie Macken | Boomerang | ||
1979 | Eddie Macken | Boomerang | ||
1980 | Michael Whitaker | Owen Gregory | ||
1981 | Harvey Smith | Sanyo Video | ||
1982 | Paul Schockemöhle | Deister | ||
1983 | John Whitaker | Ryan's Son | ||
1984 | John Ledingham | Gabhran | ||
1985 | Paul Schockemöhle | Lorenzo | ||
1986 | Paul Schockemöhle | Deister | ||
1987 | Nick Skelton | J Nick | ||
1988 | Nick Skelton | Apollo | ||
1989 | Nick Skelton | Apollo | ||
1990 | Jozsef Turi | Vital | ||
1991 | Michael Whitaker | Monsanta | ||
1992 | Michael Whitaker | Monsanta | ||
1993 | Michael Whitaker | Monsanta | ||
1994 | John Ledingham | Kilbaha | ||
1995 | John Ledingham | Kilbaha | ||
1996 | Nelson Pessoa | Loro Piana Vivaldi | ||
1997 | John Popely | Bluebird | ||
1998 | John Whitaker | Gammon | ||
1999 | Rob Hoekstra | Lionel II | ||
2000 | John Whitaker | Welham | ||
2001 | Peter Charles | Corrada | ||
2002 | Peter Charles | Corrada | ||
2003 | Peter Charles | Corrada | ||
2004 | John Whitaker | Buddy Bunn | ||
2005 | Ben Maher | Alfredo II | ||
2006 | William Funnell | Cortaflex Mondriaan | ||
2007 | Geoff Billington | Cassabachus | ||
2008 | William Funnell | Cortaflex Mondriaan | ||
2009 | William Funnell | Cortaflex Mondriaan | ||
2010 | Guy Williams | Skip Two Ramiro | ||
2011 | Tina Fletcher | Promised Land | ||
2012 | Paul Beecher | Loughnatousa WB | ||
2013 | Phillip Miller | Caritiar Z | ||
2014 | Trevor Breen | Adventure De Kannan | ||
2015 | Trevor Breen | Loughnatousa W B | ||
2016 | William Whitaker | Glenavadra Brilliant | ||
2017 | Nigel Coupe | Golvers Hill | ||
2018 | William Funnell | Billy Buckingham | ||
2019 | Michael Pender | Hearton Du Bois |
In 2019, Michael Pender became the youngest ever winner of the Hickstead Derby, taking the title from Marion Coakes when she won the Derby in 1967 on Stroller.