JUBILANT Selby & District Riding Club are celebrating a national double.

The club were crowned open national champions at the Festival of the Horse in Aston Le Walls, while Selby rider Sharon Bayston won individual honours on her horse, Turbo.

Claire Foster, Selby’s chef d’equipe and chair, said: “I have been the club’s chef d’equipe for almost nine years now and, even though we’ve always done well at the qualifiers, we’ve never been in the ribbons at the championships so to go home with the double whammy was amazing.

“I would like to thank all my riders and their helpers, grooms, parents and partners for all their hard work.

“They truly deserved to win the national championship and I wish them good look for the next qualifier, the Horse Trials at Helen Bell’s, Thirsk, tomorrow.”

The victorious four-strong team was York’s Kim Richards riding Sonny, Michael Carnes, of York, riding Warrior, Selby’s Alix Upton riding Marley, and Bayston, of Pollington, riding Turbo. The competition included a showjumping course of ten jumps and a cross-country course of 17 jumps.

Richards was Selby’s first rider to tackle the course and although she had fences down in the showjumping, she had a clear cross-country round.

Carnes then came home with a double clear – a feat matched by Bayston.

Upton excelled on the showjumping round, but had a dismount on the cross-country course. Foster said: “After an hour or so, the results were out. All I heard over the tannoy was, ‘first place Selby & District Riding Club’. I screamed.

“Then the individual scores came out and there was another win for Selby, Sharon Bayston. Well, by this point I was in tears. Selby and District – open national champions.”

Selby’s open team had qualified for the nationals by finishing second in a showcross qualifier at Epworth Equestrian Centre.

Selby’s Ann Walker, riding Teddy, also scored an individual win at Epworth, but was unavailable to compete at the Festival of the Horse, so Upton stepped in as reserve.