A colt by Malinas out of the Presenting mare Annie’s Gift was crowned supreme champion at the inaugural TBA National Hunt ‘Stars of Tomorrow’ Foal Show at Bangor Racecourse on Tuesday.

Owned and bred by Peter and Ann Nelson, the foal’s dam is a homebred half-sister to their former top-class steeplechaser According To Pete. Mare and foal were presented at the show by David and Teresa Futter’s Yorton Farm, which is home to the colt’s sire.

“We never expected this but David told us he was a lovely foal. We can’t quite believe it really. We only saw him for the first time last night,” said Yorkshire-based Peter Nelson after receiving the Lord Oaksey Perpetual Challenge Trophy, presented by Lady Oaksey.

Aiden Murphy’s Yeats colt out of Maiden Voyage, who had earlier won his class in the younger colts’ division, was judged to be reserve champion by an international panel which consisted of Pascal Noue of Haras de la Hetraie, Rathbarry Stud’s Frannie Woods, bloodstock agent and farrier Grant Lewis and trainers Ian Ferguson, Malcolm Jefferson and Will Kinsey.

“I’m chuffed to bits,” said Murphy, who entered the foal under his Warren Chase Stud banner. The late April colt is out of a Slip Anchor half-sister to the very useful trio of jumpers Rule The World, Venalmar and One Gulp.

“He’ll go to one of the sales later this year but I think there were at least 20 foals here who would stand their ground in any sale. This show is a great idea – it encourages people to take an interest in breeding and if it brought, say, even six more breeders into the industry it would be fantastic. I can see this flourishing.”

The show was the first of its kind on British soil but such events are popular among French breeders of AQPS jumpers.

David Futter, a member of the TBA National Hunt Committee and the driving force behind getting the show off the ground, said: “I’m just really pleased that breeders in this country supported the show and got together to present a good selection of foals – I’ve never been to an AQPS show with such a good selection of pedigrees and conformation.”

For a full report and pictures from the day, please see the forthcoming September issue of Thoroughbred Owner & Breeder magazine.