The Horse of the Year Show award series is an established part of the show on Thursday evening, now in their eleventh year the Kellythorpe Leading Breeder and Kellythorpe Leading Sire awards celebrate some of the country’s most esteemed and successful horses and ponies within the showing world.
The awards provide an opportunity to reward the fantastic success of the animals bred by a person or stud in this country or elsewhere, as well as progeny on the ground, using a points system for all results in Horse of the Year Show qualifiers throughout the season.
The Leeman Family together with Grandstand Media, held a fabulous awards ceremony yesterday evening at Horse of the Year Show. Hosted by Beth Simons, the glamourous event provided the perfect celebration rewarding the success of the horses/ponies who have played their part in the showing Championships that we see today at this year’s event.
The winners with the highest points were awarded the Kellythorpe Leading Breeder and the Kellythorpe Leading Sire of the Year award for their relevant type/breed. The evening concluded with the revealing of the overall Leading Breeder of the Year and Leading Sire of the Year, where we saw the awards presented this evening by Lisha Leeman of the Kellythorpes Stud. The Kelythorpes Leading Breeder of the Year accolade went to Sandy Anderson of the Thistledown Stud, collecting the award on their behalf was Hayley Morrow, and the Kellythorpes Leading Sire of the Year Award went to Cusop Dimension, with owners Deborah Porter accepting this notable accolade.
The awards series which celebrates the importance of the breeders and owners behind the showing industry would not be possible without the generosity of the sponsors, Richard and Lisha Leeman. Together with the wider Leeman family, they have provided continued support for the HOYS Showing Awards Series, and they passionately champion showing and the breeding of horses and ponies.
The 2023 winners are:
Kellythorpe Leading Breeder of the Year Awards
| Section | Breeder | Prefix |
| COLOURED | JANET HINDLEY | WARDS PLACE |
| HUNTER | BRENDAN CORCORAN | TWINSHOCK |
| HUNTER PONY | MESDAMES J & V STEPHENS | ANNANDALE |
| SHOW HORSE | MARTIN COSGROVE | CHANTILLY |
| SHOW PONY | MRS E MANSFIELD | ROTHERWOOD |
| CONNEMARA | MR SEAN FLAHERTY | INVERIN |
| DALES | MRS J PENNELL | NIPNA |
| DARTMOOR | B SIMCOX | COPPINSHILL |
| EXMOOR | MRS J WEBB | BLACKTHORN |
| FELL | MRS I POTTER | GREENHOLME |
| HIGHLAND | ANNE MITCHELL | DUNEDIN |
| NEW FOREST | MR & MRS ALEX HUMBLE | LOVELYHILL |
| SHETLAND | MRS VIVIEN HAMPTON | BRIAR |
| WELSH A | MR SANDY ANDERSON | THISTLEDOWN |
| WELSH B | MR H.S & MRS Y DAVIES | CADLANVALLEY |
| WELSH C | MRS M A JONES | MENAI |
| WELSH D | MR & MRS L.E. BIGLEY | LLANARTH |
| ARABS | HUSTED ARABIANS DENMARK | HUSTED ARABIANS DENMARK |
| MINIATURE | LEONIE WROE | RIBBONS |
Kellythorpe Leading Sire of the Year Awards
| Section | Sire | Stud/Owner |
| COLOURED | BOSTON | |
| HUNTER | OBOS QUALITY | SHE EQUINE |
| HUNTER PONY | SOUDLEY TALIESIN | ANNANDALE STUD |
| SHOW HORSE | KILVINGTON SCOUNDREL | |
| SHOW PONY | CUSOP DIMENSION | WHITELEAZE & WYCROFT STUD |
| CONNEMARA | EASTLANDS HARLEYBRAE | |
| DARTMOOR | SPRINGWATER HAPPY DAYS | SPRINGWATER STUD |
| DALES | CARROCK BILLY BOY | TARBARL STUD |
| EXMOOR | BLACKTHORN SEA POACHER | BLACKTHORN STUD |
| FELL | HELTONDALE BONZO BOY | TOWNEND STUD |
| HIGHLAND | DUNEDIN MARKSMAN | DUNEDIN STUD |
| NEW FOREST | MOORTOWN NOBBY | |
| SHETLAND | BRIAR PICCOLO | BRIAR SHETLAND PONY STUD |
| WELSH A | BLACKHILL PICALO | LACY STUD |
| WELSH B | JANPETE TOM THUMB | JANPETE WELSH PONIES |
| WELSH C | WYKEN ROB ROY | WYKEN STUD |
| WELSH D | PENLANGRUG DEIO | LLANARTH |
| ARAB | EMERALD J | JADEM ARABIANS |
| MINATURE | SCOTT CREEK MONARCH RED GRAFFITI | RIBBONS STUD |
