Record royal run for Walker

The hunter of the circuit achieves a rare hat-trick, a seasoned mare tops the riding horses and top cobs do battle for the overall championship

- TRICIA JOHNSON

Royal Windsor, Berks FORM followers may well have bet on Team Walker having another successful Royal Windsor, but when Robert partnered Jill Day’s magnificent lightweight View Point (Sean) to stand hunter champion for the third consecutive time, he became the first rider since Robert Oliver in 1993 – and only the fourth ever – to do so with the same horse.

Sean was champion and ultimately supreme here in 2018 and section champion again in 2019, the last time the show was held. This year, he again floated round the Castle Arena as if on air. Every stride at every pace looked smooth, purposeful and effortless, and his low, raking gallops were a masterclass.

Ride judge Jill Wormall confirmed: “He rides as good as he looks – a perfect picture.”

An approving roar from the crowd endorsed the judges’ decision when he was called forward as champion.

Robert’s feat put him even more firmly among the hunter “greats.” Robert Oliver scored four years in a row with the legendary Kings Warrior, and only two further horses – Mighty Atom and His Grand Excellency – have been champion three years running, both back in the 1950s.

“I always feel the pressure here with Sean as I want him to do well. He means so much to all of us and is my horse of a lifetime,” said a beaming Robert of the 10-year-old twice Horse of the Year Show (HOYS) and Royal International (RIHS) champion, who has somehow managed to up his game a little more each year. “I was quietly hopeful because after a year off due to lockdown, he felt better than ever when he came back this year, but obviously you never know.”