Mumford named Tattersalls Retraining of Racehorses Elite Champion

On Sunday June 27, the cream of the current crop of former racehorses now plying their trade in the show ring gathered at Hickstead for the final of the Tattersalls RoR Show Series to see who would be crowned Tattersalls Elite Champion 2021.

The judges’ top four selections from the respective Flat and National Hunt divisions contested earlier in the day then headed into the main arena to compete for one of the most prestigious and competitive awards in the calendar for former racehorses.

After much deliberation among the judges, Mumford ridden by Collette McGoldrick was crowned Tattersalls RoR Elite Champion 2021. The nine-year-old gelding was completing a rare double having also been Supreme Champion at the RoR National Championships in 2019.

Mumford ran eight times on the Flat in a racing career that spanned four years. Initially trained by Richard Hannon, his final five races were under the care of Geoff Harker with his final race being in July 2018 after which he was retired, still a maiden. Just thirteen months later he was a champion in the show ring at the RoR National Championships and now he has added Tattersalls RoR Elite Champion to his growing list of honours. The Reserve Champion was Tikkskinned, a ten-year-old mare ridden by Will Morton.

Meanwhile, the winner of the Tattersalls RoR Amateur Ridden Series was First Fandango ridden by Hannah Chisman. This was the first occasion that the amateur series has culminated at Hickstead. Included among those who qualified for Sunday’s finals but were not winners on the day were former Cheltenham Gold Cup winner Coneygree and popular chaser Monkerty Tunkerty.

The crowning of this year’s Tattersalls Elite Champion comes hot on the heels of a new sponsorship deal agreed by Retraining of Racehorses (RoR) and Tattersalls, Europe’s leading bloodstock auctioneer. Under the terms of the new sponsorship arrangement, Tattersalls have expanded their support of former racehorses to all six categories of the showing series staged by RoR.

Going forward the Tattersalls RoR Showing Series will incorporate over 170 showing qualifiers held annually in Great Britain, with a geographical spread from Aberdeenshire to Cornwall. Qualifying classes are held at county and royal shows, including Royal Windsor and the Royal Welsh Show, as well as at smaller venues, such the Blakesley Show and Wincanton Horse Show.

The individual winners of the Tattersalls RoR Showing Series and their respective divisions were as follows:

·   Tattersalls RoR Elite Champion 2021: Mumford, 9-year-old bay gelding, ridden by Collette McGoldrick;

·   Tattersalls RoR Show Series, National Hunt Final, Winner: Tikkskinned, 10-year-old bay mare, ridden by Will Morton;

·   Tattersalls RoR Show Series, Flat Final, Winner: Mumford, 9-year-old bay gelding, ridden by Collette McGoldrick.

·   Tattersalls RoR Amateur Ridden Show Series – Champion: First Fandango, 14-year-old bay gelding, ridden by Hannah Chisman;

·   Tattersalls RoR Amateur Ridden Show Series, National Hunt Final, Winner: Knocklong, 13-year-old bay gelding, ridden by Sophie Clements;

·   Tattersalls RoR Amateur Ridden Show Series, Flat Final, Winner: Shift The Blame,  8-year-old bay mare, ridden by Louisa Simpson.