A HORSE rider from Sampford Courtenay has secured sponsorship and a national prize after finishing the latest dressage season strongly.

Rowan van Houben and his horse King's Silver have spent the year competing in British Dressage affiliated competitions.

Rowan celebrated an excellent end of season with the news that he has secured sponsorship from Blue Chip Feed Ltd, and has been placed second with King's Silver in the SEIB sponsored Retraining of Racehorses Elite Dressage Horse Award.

The national competition is for the ex-racehorse which wins the most British Dressage points from January 1 to October 31.

Rowan and King's Silver collected 122 points in novice and elementary classes to take second place.

Rowan will now attend the British Breeders Awards dinner in London in the new year to collect his prize of £500. Gaining sponsorship will help Rowan and King's Silver progress even further.

Rowan said: 'I am very fortunate to be sponsored by Blue Chip, who produce feed balancers which give my horses a competitive edge.

'Sponsorship is very hard to come by, so I am extremely grateful that I have some assistance when the cost of competing continues to rise.'