Robert Walker

Robert Walker and View Point are supreme at HOYS 2022

Robert Walker, born in 1975, is one of Britain’s top show horse producers with countless wins with hunters, cobs, hacks and riding horses to his name.

He has been a regular face in the show ring since his childhood, competing in lead rein and show pony classes before making the successful transition to horses.

Robert left school aged 16 to work on his father’s livery yard in Yorkshire. Four years later he set up his own yard with his childhood sweetheart Sarah, who is now his wife and business partner. They have a son, Sam, and a daughter, Izzy.

Robert is now based in Cheshire and is the joint-master for the Cheshire hunt.

Robert has won the supreme ridden horse championship at the Royal International Horse Show (RIHS) twice. His first victory was in 2007 riding Monseratt Sport Horses’ Sleeve Nambon Mist. In 2022, he won the crown with Jill Day’s View Point, who went onto take the overall horse supreme title at the Horse of the Year Show (HOYS) later in the year for the second time in a row before the horse was retired from the show ring. Robert has won the supreme at HOYS twice before his success with View Point; he took the 2007 title with Broadstone Doulton and in 2006 he won it with So Smart II.

Robert’s successful career could have been brought to a premature end in 2010 when he fell seriously ill with a mystery illness. Hospital doctors initially thought he had suffered a stroke, as he completely lost the movement in the right hand side of his body, but this was later ruled out. Two-and-a-half-weeks later Robert was discharged from hospital and returned to the saddle.

Following his comeback at Moreton-in-Marsh show, Robert claimed an emotional victory at the British Show Horse Association National Show where he received a standing ovation from spectators. He went on to be voted the Showing Council/Showing World show rider of the year.

Robert is also a regular Horse & Hound columnist.