Hickstead unveils brand new facilities

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Thanks to a Hoof Capital Funding Award of £85,000 plus further investment from the Bunn Family, our world class venue now features all-weather competition and training facilities, enabling many more people to take part in variety of equestrian sport all year round.

Previously Hickstead has only been accessible through the summer months, with only the smallest range of activities offered here between September and April.

The developments include hard-standing for lorry and car parks, an orbital road around the site and the construction of Ring 4, which features the Andrews Bowen arena surface on which the British teams experienced huge success in Greenwich at the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

Hickstead Director, Lizzie Bunn, said: "The Hoof Capital Funding award will ensure that many more people will be able to benefit from access to these wonderful facilities and enjoy the enduring legacy left to the sport by my father, Douglas Bunn."

We aim to grow the range of activities beyond high-level competition to offer training opportunities and competitions for a variety of disciplines such as polocrosse, The Pony Club and British Riding Clubs, as well as hosting participation events for irregular riders, schools and university training days.

The works, made possible by the Sport England funded award, will also enable us to bid more strongly for major championships in dressage, para-equestrian dressage and showjumping, as well as for non-Olympic disciplines such as carriage driving.

"Hickstead is a world-class venue which supports riders of all levels. Whether it is a novice rider starting out, or a potential future champion, this facility can offer more opportunities to allow riders to develop their skills and participate on a more regular basis" said Alex Copeland, Head of Sports Development at the British Equestrian Federation (BEF).

"The improvements at Hickstead will provide the BEF with excellent facilities to support the development of athletes leading up to Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2020. The facility will also help the Federation meet its Sport England participation targets by getting more riders taking part in equestrian sport at least once a week. We look forward to continuing to work closely with Hickstead over future years," he continued.

To find out more about Hoof Capital Funding awards visitwww.hoofride.co.uk