A BE80 title, and the youth pathway behind it

The facts

Where and when

Chillington Hall, weekend of 12–13 September 2026

Champion

Pippa Tierney with Doe Bertie, finishing on 27.5

Runners-up

Delilah Germeney and Abbeywoods Opium on 27.9; Merci Duffy and Zanzibars Rebel on 32.1

Teams

Four regional teams took part. Combined U18 won on 98.7, from East Midlands, then Scotland U18

Awards

Rugs to the first three, a sash for the champion, individual rosettes down to tenth and team rosettes to eighth

Pippa Tierney and Doe Bertie won the 2026 BE80 under-18 youth championship at Chillington Hall. She led the dressage on 27.5 and added nothing over either jumping phase, so that mark became her finishing score. Doe Bertie is 18. She has said she would like to aim at the Badminton grassroots championships next year, though nothing about qualifying for that is settled in this result.

The class ran on the same weekend as the qualifier sections for the regional championships and the Aspen Cooling BE80 championships. That is worth understanding if you are reading a schedule for the first time. A regional championship weekend usually carries two different things at once: the qualifier classes that feed the team competition, and open sections for riders who would rather compete outside a team, or who have brought a second horse. Entering the wrong one is an easy mistake.

Four regions fielded teams here, and the combined under-18 side won on 98.7 from East Midlands and Scotland under-18. Team places are organised regionally, so the person who can tell you whether your child is in contention is usually a regional contact rather than head office.

Behind the day sits the BE regional youth programme. Training and development is open to riders from 12 to 21. Competition for under-18s runs from BE80 up through BE90 and BE100 to novice, pointing towards the regional youth championships, and there is separate support for riders moving on to under-21 open intermediate. BE's head of youth singled out the standard of horse and pony care on show, which is a fair reminder that these championships are judged on more than the scoreboard.

What this means for you

Families with a 12 to 18 year old at BE80

There is a championship route that stops at 80cm. You do not have to move up a level to have something to aim at.

Riders aged 18 to 21

You are past under-18 team eligibility, but the training side of the programme still covers you, and there is a stated path towards under-21 open intermediate.

Anyone entering a regional championship weekend

Check whether you are entering a qualifier class or an open section. They run alongside each other and do not do the same job.

Owners of older horses

The winning horse is 18. Experience counted for more here than youth, provided the horse is sound and happy in the work.

What to do

1. Find your BE region's youth contact and ask what the selection process for a team place actually involves

   Before 2027 entries open

2. Read next year's regional championship schedule carefully and identify which class is the qualifier and which is the open section

   At entry stage

3. Confirm age eligibility for the under-18 classes against your rider's birthday, not their school year

   Now

4. If a grassroots championship is the goal, ask British Eventing directly what qualifying requires rather than assuming a good result is enough

   Early season

5. For an older horse taking on a championship, book a soundness and fitness check before the season builds

   Pre-season