news Save The Date – RoR National Championships

• Watch this space entries opening soon
• Classes to suit all levels from newcomers to restricted classes.

Retraining of Racehorses (RoR) is delighted to announce the dates for the annual The Jockey Club RoR National Championships, held at Aintree Equestrian Centre on Wednesday 23^rd to Saturday 26^th August, featuring classes for showing, dressage, arena eventing and showjumping, culminating with the crowning of The RoR Elite Performance Award for Dressage and The Tattersalls RoR Ridden Showing Series Supreme Champion during Saturday’s evening performance.

The four-day event, kindly sponsored by The Jockey Club, is one of the most prestigious events for former racehorses to be held in Great Britain. It showcases the versatility of the thoroughbred, as well as highlighting the many different second career options available to racehorses, once their racing days come to an end.

We all recognise that it is a tough economic climate and this year you will see a number of minor changes to the format of the classes to help streamline the show and ensure a more sustainable model is set for the future. We are also delighted to be increasing our collaboration with associate equestrian partners, such as British Showjumping, to make the National Championships a great success and continue to grow in the years to come.

The event incorporates classes to suit all levels from newcomer classes that require no pre-qualification to restricted classes open to all former racehorses registered with RoR. This year we are delighted that our showjumping classes will be run under British Showjumping Club structure, with no additional fees to pay for RoR members, as we look to build our partnerships and provide RoR riders with even more opportunities to compete.

RoR Managing Director David Catlow looks forward to his first National Championship and adds: "The work that goes into preparing these horses for the championships demonstrates how well they are cared for in this country. If we are to protect the welfare of retired racehorses, then building a pyramid of classes and competitions to encourage participation is just as important as building an equine welfare safety net that provides expert care to horses in need."

The full schedule is to be released in the upcoming weeks.