If young Eve McCoy is anything like her 20-time champion jockey father Tony “AP” McCoy, the mini major showjumping class at Liverpool International Horse Show in December is set to be a high-octane affair.
The 11-year-old, who is already a keen showjumper, is to line up alongside 13 rivals, each of whom will be paired with one of the top riders in the country — John Whitaker, Laura Renwick and Matt Sampson to name a few — to compete in a relay race over the coloured fences, all riding in fancy dress. The class is undoubtedly one of the highlights of the show.
“I was told I had to be in Liverpool by 30 December — it just shows you how things change in your life when you start getting bossed around by your 11-year-old daughter!” said AP McCoy, who retired from racing in 2015 and now finds himself “being dragged to shows and mucking out ponies”.
AP rode a record 4,358 winners in his career and was crowned champion jockey 20 consecutive times, winning the BBC Sports Personality of the Year award in 2010. He was knighted in 2016.
AP, his wife Chanelle and son Archie will all be in Liverpool on the Sunday to cheer home the family’s new superstar.
“We’ve planned Christmas around it,” said Chanelle. “We have no expectations — Eve does, of course. But I think it’s a brilliant experience for kids to feel the pressure of the big day when they are young. It really prepares you for later in life and when you do go into the working world, it helps if you know these emotions already.”
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![Harry Clarke Tomlinson and Shane Breen during of Class 13 (Mini Major) at the Equestrian.com Liverpool International Horse Show at Echo Arena, Liverpool, UK; on 1st January December 2016](https://keyassets.timeincuk.net/inspirewp/live/wp-content/uploads/sites/14/2017/01/Harry-Clarke-Tomlinson_Liverpool_PN17_14409-2.jpg)
Bouncing puddings and flying turkeys: Liverpool mini major fancy dress
Here are some of our absolute festive fancy dress outfits from the mini major showjumping competition at Liverpool International
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![Graham Gillespie and Amelia Tedinnick during the invitational Mini Major Relay during the Equerry Bolesworth International Horse Show at Bolesworth Castle near Chester in Cheshire in the UK on 17th June 2018](https://keyassets.timeincuk.net/inspirewp/live/wp-content/uploads/sites/14/2018/06/Gillespie_and_Tedinnick_Bolesworth_PN18_36099.jpg)
Bananaman, Batman, and wait, is that a flying chicken…?
Last weekend Bolesworth’s very own superheroes took some time out of their busy schedules fighting crime to team up with
This year’s Liverpool International Horse Show runs at the Echo Arena from 28-31 December. Visit the show’s website for further information.
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