First held in 2021, the All England Dressage Festival at Hickstead grew from being a three-day Premier League competition to a six-day CDI3* and CPEDI. However, the decision has been made not to run the event next year.
“Regrettably, we’ve made the difficult decision to end our running of our dressage fixture, but we would like to thank all our sponsors, especially I.C.E Horseboxes, as well as organiser David Crockford, and all the riders and owners who supported the fixture over the past four years,” said Hickstead Director Lizzie Bunn.
“The timing of the event in May made things challenging due to the weather, but the main reason is that we cannot make it economically viable. The costs – particularly of judges and officials – at over £50,000 are exorbitant and, despite our best efforts, the event still ran at a loss.”
The All England Dressage Festival at Hickstead has been significant for Australian dressage recently, with Jayden Brown securing Paris Olympic qualifying scores there earlier this year.
Hickstead has recently invested in a brand-new £1.5 million stabling complex, including hard standing for up to 40 horseboxes, to complement its extensive range of all-weather and grass facilities. This allows for year-round use of the showground for external hires, clinics and camps.
“It is essential that any additional events are financially sound,” added Lizzie. “This year we added the British Young Horse Jumping Championships to our fixture list in August. This was a huge success, and we are looking forward to developing this event even further for next year.”
Source: Event press release
