TAVISTOCK College horse riders have achieved their best ever finish in a prestigious show jumping competition.

Students Katie Spry, Verity Moorhouse, Rachel Ware and Lara Hopkins placed fourth in the Devon and Cornwall School team showjumping final – all jumping clear in the first round.

Caroline Yeo, who helped the girls at the competition at The Grange Equestrian Centre near Northlew, said: 'They were all fantastic and jumped brilliantly. As far as I know, it was our best performance yet.'

The students had to complete two rounds of show jumps, with the best three scores counting towards their final tally. The tense second round saw the girls battling against the clock to clear the jumps in the fastest time.

The team qualified for the final after coming fourth in the Devon Schools event. A second Tavistock College team made up of Kelly Hughes, Zoe Gooding and Georgie Dudden missed out on qualifying by just four penalties.  

Lara, Rachel and Katie also came fourth at the UK Schools Eventing Championships at Stonar School, beating top independent schools including Millfield and Wells Cathedral School.