British Eventing’s Junior and Young Rider squads rounded off a memorable week of championship competition at the FEI Eventing European Championships for Juniors and Young Riders in Segersjö, Sweden, with Juniors taking the Team Bronze and Young Riders claiming Team and Individual Silver.
The championships, which took place from 26–30 August, brought together some of Europe’s most talented young event riders, with the British teams producing a series of impressive performances across the dressage, cross-country and showjumping phases.
The week began with both teams proudly waving the British flag in the opening ceremony which took place on Wednesday night, this was after all horses had past inspection in the first of their trot ups.
Dressage
Thursday and Friday saw the riders take on the opening phase of competition, the dressage.
Junior Championship
Arabella Henderson and Ex Cavalier’s Law were the first British combination into the white boards, producing a lovely test to score 30.1 and sit fourth.
Tara Moore and Tir Na Nog Shadow followed with a score of 32.0, before Annabelle Ridgway and Emerald Katie produced a beautiful test to sit second overnight on 27.9.
The performances of Henderson and Moore put Great Britain in second place on 62.1, behind Germany.
The remaining team members completed their tests on Friday, with Florence Drewitt and EG Michealangelo scoring 28.0 to sit seventh, while Ella Howard and Marchwood scored 27.9 to move into the top five. Their performances kept Great Britain in second place on a combined score of 86.0.
Competing individually, Zara Head and DHI Purple Rain produced a rhythmic test to score 29.3 and sit 11th ahead of the cross-country phase.
Young Rider Championship
Thursday saw all but one of the Young Rider combinations complete their dressage tests.
Jago Jackson and Kinda Brunette made a strong start for the British team, scoring 31.6 to sit 12th overnight.
Individual combination Ivy Fisher and Balief de Reve scored 33.3 for 20th, while team member Sarah Farnsworth and The Ridge Cardento followed closely with 33.8 in 21st.
The next two British combinations secured places inside the top ten. Individual rider Elizabeth Barratt and Ride For Thais Chaman Dumontceau scored an impressive 24.8 to sit third overnight, while Joshua Levett and This One’s On You finished the day ninth on 30.9.
The British team, comprising Jackson, Levett, Farnsworth and Isabelle Cook, initially sat third on a combined score of 96.3. However, Cook and Mexican Law scored 29.0 on Friday to move Great Britain into second on 91.5 ahead of cross-country.
Darrell Scaife, Chef d’Équipe and Head of Youth for British Eventing, commented after the dressage phase: “I was delighted that all 12 combinations performed well and did us proud in the dressage phase. There were challenges ahead, but I was confident that this mighty army of young people would deliver!”
Cross-country
Saturday saw the riders tackle a brilliant cross-country course designed by Eric Winter, which asked fair but challenging questions throughout.
Junior Championship
Arabella Henderson and Ex Cavalier’s Law were first out for the British team and set the standard with a brilliant clear inside the time. They remained on their dressage score of 30.1, sitting 10th heading into showjumping.
Tara Moore and Tir Na Nog Shadow added 29.2 penalties to their dressage score to finish on 61.2.
The remaining team members, Florence Drewitt and Ella Howard, both produced strong clears with only time penalties. Ella and Marchwood added 1.2 to finish on 29.1 in seventh, while Florence and EG Michealangelo added 2.4 to sit 12th on 30.4.
This performance kept the team in second place (89.6) ahead of the final phase on Sunday.
Individual riders Zara Head and Annabelle Ridgway both delivered brilliant clears inside the time. Annabelle and Emerald Katie remained on 27.9 in fifth, while Zara and DHI Purple Rain stayed on 29.3 in eighth.
Young Rider Championship
Jago Jackson and Kinda Brunette were the British team pathfinders. Later on course, they activated a frangible pin and incurred 11 jumping penalties, along with time penalties, to finish on 46.2.
Joshua Levett and This One’s On You added 2.4 time penalties to finish on 33.3 in 10th place.
Sarah Farnsworth and The Ridge Cardento produced a confident clear inside the time to remain on their dressage score of 33.8 and sit in 11th place.
Final team member Isabelle Cook and Mexican Law jumped a fabulous clear round, just slightly over the time and added 3.2 time to finish on 32.2 to sit in eighth place.
Individually, Ivy Fisher and Elizabeth Barratt added only time penalties to their dressage scores. Elizabeth and Ride For Thais Chaman Dumontceau retained third place after adding 0.8 to finish on 25.6, while Ivy and Balief de Reve added 3.2 to finish on 36.5 were in 21st place.
The Young Rider team remained in second place on 99.3, behind the Germans, going into the showjumping phase.
Darrell Scaife, Chef d’Équipe and Head of Youth for British Eventing, was thrilled with the performances of the British riders, commenting: ““It’s been a superb day of competition at Segersjö, with both squads demonstrating superb horsemanship and producing performances we can be very pleased with. It’s all to play for tomorrow!”
Showjumping
Sunday marked the final day of competition at the Agria FEI Eventing European Championships for Juniors and Young Riders. Following the final horse inspection, attention turned to the showjumping, where a technical track caused further changes to the leaderboards.
Tara Moore elected to save Tir Na Nog Shadow for another day and withdrew ahead of the final horse inspection.
Junior Championships
First into the arena was Florence Drewitt, who had an unfortunate pole down and picked up two time penalties, adding 4.8 penalties to her score. She finished on 35.2 to take 16th place.
Arabella Henderson produced a stylish round, just tipping one pole to add four penalties to her score. She finished on 34.1 to take tenth place.
Unfortunately, it was not to be for individual competitor Zara Head, who had a number of poles down to finish on a final score of 56.1 and in 39th place.
Penultimate to go for Great Britain, Ella Howard and Marchwood also had a pole down and added four time penalties to their score. The combination finished on 34.7 to take 15th place.
Last to go for the British Juniors, Annabel Ridgway and Emerald Katie maintained their fifth-place position. Emerald Katie jumped a brilliant clear, adding just 0.4 time penalties to their impressive dressage score of 27.9 to finish on 28.3.
The Junior Team, made up of Florence Drewitt, Tara Moore, Arabella Henderson and Ella Howard, secured the bronze medal for Great Britain on a final score of 104.0. Ireland took silver, while Germany maintained their lead to claim the gold medal.
Young Rider Championships
Competing in reverse order of the standings, Jago Jackson and Kinda Brunette were first into the arena for Great Britain. Despite an unfortunate pole and two time penalties, the combination steadily climbed the leaderboard to finish 24th after the showjumping phase proved influential.
The remaining British team members followed, with Ivy Fisher next to compete, finishing on 37.3 having just added 0.8 time penalties to her score, they finished in tenth. Sarah Farnsworth then took to the arena to finish on 40.2 having added a fence and six time penalties to drop down into 13th place. The final team member, Joshua Levett completed the British team effort with a score of 37.3 to sit in ninth.
The British Young Rider Team finished in silver medal position following strong performances across all three phases, completing on a final score of 117.7. They finished behind the Germans on a score of 86.9.
Competing as an individual, Isabelle Cook and Mexican Law entered the final phase in eighth place and went on to 14th having added two fences to their score to finish on 40.2.
The final Young Rider combination, Elizabeth Barratt and Ride For Thais Chaman Dumontceau, hoping to claim a medal, managed to produce a fabulous clear round with just 0.8 time penalties, finishing on an impressive 26.0, putting pressure on the two Germans ahead of her. After a nail biting finish, the lead German, had two fences which moved Elizabeth up into silver medal position.
A proud week for British Eventing Youth
The championships once again highlighted the depth of talent coming through the British Eventing Youth pathway, with riders gaining valuable experience competing at the highest level against their European counterparts.
Rosie Williams, Chief Executive of British Eventing, said:
“It has been a fantastic week for our Junior and Young Rider teams, and I am incredibly proud of the way every one of our riders has represented British Eventing and Great Britain.
“Championships are never straightforward and eventing asks so much of both horse and rider across the three phases. To see these young athletes step up, support one another and perform under that pressure is incredibly encouraging.
“Of course, we are delighted with Junior Team Bronze and Young Rider Team Silver and Individual Silver for Elizabeth alongside other outstanding placings too, but what is equally exciting is the experience these riders will take away from Segersjö. They are the future of our sport, and it is brilliant to see the talent, commitment and ambition coming through.”
Darrell Scaife, Chef d’Équipe and Head of Youth for British Eventing, said:
“A wonderful week of sport at the Junior and Young Rider European Championships, with some fantastic performances and the celebration of medal successes. Beyond the results it’s been wonderful to see so many young people from across Europe coming together through our sport – competing hard, supporting one another and creating friendships and memories that will last well beyond these Championships. A very special week to have been part of.”
British Eventing would like to congratulate all of the riders and their horses who represented Great Britain in Segersjö, as well as thanking the owners, parents, grooms, coaches and wider support teams who have played such an important part in their journey to the European Championships.
A special thank you also goes to the British Eventing Youth support team, officials and everyone working behind the scenes throughout the championships.
British Eventing also thanks Official Safety Partner Charles Owen for its generous support of all youth teams, providing each rider with a Kontor body protector and custom team cover and The Howden Way Rider Academy for its continued support of the Youth Programme.
Full results: https://rechenstelle.de/en/agenda/2026/sergersjo/
Images courtesy of: Stephen Drewitt