Showjumping is trying to update its stuffy image - by persuading two of its young female riders to strip off for a photoshoot.....
Forgotten your jodhpurs, girls? Showjumping makes a desperate bid to find a new 21st Century image
By Ian Stafford
20th July 2008
Daily Mail
It's not a pose that you can easily imagine David Broome striking.
But in a desperate attempt to update the stuffy image of showjumping, the sport’s bosses have persuaded two of the top young female riders to strip off for a photoshoot.
Gone are the traditional red tunic, white top and jodhpurs familiar from the Seventies when millions would watch the action on TV, with commentary from the gentlemanly Raymond Brooks-Ward.
Showy jumpers: Laura Renwick, left, and Georgie Strutton pose in one of the racy new promotional shots
Instead, Laura Renwick and Georgie Strutton pose in tight polo tops, knee-high black boots and not a lot else.
Laura, 33, is ranked 12th in the UK with many senior wins to her credit, while Georgie, 21, is a European Young Rider Team gold medallist.
As well as this photo with a horse outside a stable, they are pictured holding whips and lying in the hay.
Horsing around: Laura and Georgie pose in tight tops and knee-high black boots
The pictures are to publicise the Barclays Wealth British Masters International at Chester Racecourse.
Maria Clayton, the British Show Jumping Association’s head of communications, said: ‘People kept saying to me that to raise the profile of our sport to the level it was in the Seventies I should showcase some of the girls who compete in it.
‘With Laura and Georgie we’ve done just that. Not only are they extremely beautiful but also exceptionally talented with both of them competing in Britain with considerable success.
Pole position: Georgie gives new meaning to mucking out
‘Hopefully these photos will prove that the misconception people have about showjumping being “stuffy” is just that, a misconception that couldn’t be further from the truth.’
Such is the association’s fervour to do away with that dreaded stuffiness that at the Chester event in a fortnight’s time 100 years of tradition will be swept away.
Riding jackets will be replaced by different coloured polo shirts with the riders’ names on the back.
Roll in the hay: The well-groomed pair clasp their whips as they have a lie-down
The riders will be interviewed both before and after they complete their rounds, and they will enter the arena to their favourite piece of music played from the Tannoy system – at which point the crowd will be encouraged to sing, clap and even dance in the stands.
In between competitions the spectators will be entertained by dancers.
The opportunity to bet, previously a minimal part of showjumping events, will suddenly become a major feature as well.
Chester, which has a capacity of 10,000 in its grandstand alone, has been chosen partly because of its betting facilities.
Riding high: Georgie in more familiar mode
dailymail.co.uk
Forgotten your jodhpurs, girls? Showjumping makes a desperate bid to find a new 21st Century image
By Ian Stafford
20th July 2008
Daily Mail
It's not a pose that you can easily imagine David Broome striking.
But in a desperate attempt to update the stuffy image of showjumping, the sport’s bosses have persuaded two of the top young female riders to strip off for a photoshoot.
Gone are the traditional red tunic, white top and jodhpurs familiar from the Seventies when millions would watch the action on TV, with commentary from the gentlemanly Raymond Brooks-Ward.
Showy jumpers: Laura Renwick, left, and Georgie Strutton pose in one of the racy new promotional shots
Instead, Laura Renwick and Georgie Strutton pose in tight polo tops, knee-high black boots and not a lot else.
Laura, 33, is ranked 12th in the UK with many senior wins to her credit, while Georgie, 21, is a European Young Rider Team gold medallist.
As well as this photo with a horse outside a stable, they are pictured holding whips and lying in the hay.
Horsing around: Laura and Georgie pose in tight tops and knee-high black boots
The pictures are to publicise the Barclays Wealth British Masters International at Chester Racecourse.
Maria Clayton, the British Show Jumping Association’s head of communications, said: ‘People kept saying to me that to raise the profile of our sport to the level it was in the Seventies I should showcase some of the girls who compete in it.
‘With Laura and Georgie we’ve done just that. Not only are they extremely beautiful but also exceptionally talented with both of them competing in Britain with considerable success.
Pole position: Georgie gives new meaning to mucking out
‘Hopefully these photos will prove that the misconception people have about showjumping being “stuffy” is just that, a misconception that couldn’t be further from the truth.’
Such is the association’s fervour to do away with that dreaded stuffiness that at the Chester event in a fortnight’s time 100 years of tradition will be swept away.
Riding jackets will be replaced by different coloured polo shirts with the riders’ names on the back.
Roll in the hay: The well-groomed pair clasp their whips as they have a lie-down
The riders will be interviewed both before and after they complete their rounds, and they will enter the arena to their favourite piece of music played from the Tannoy system – at which point the crowd will be encouraged to sing, clap and even dance in the stands.
In between competitions the spectators will be entertained by dancers.
The opportunity to bet, previously a minimal part of showjumping events, will suddenly become a major feature as well.
Chester, which has a capacity of 10,000 in its grandstand alone, has been chosen partly because of its betting facilities.
Riding high: Georgie in more familiar mode
dailymail.co.uk
