With perfectly manicured grounds nestled at the base of the mountains, the Oliver Road Queenstown Show Jumping Classic provided some epic competition with breath taking views to kick start 2026.
Recently back on home soil after many years in Australia, Hayley Morris was on fine form as she took out the Oliver Road Luxury Real Estate Queenstown Classic 1.40m Grand Prix. Riding On the Point Laurent Perrier, she cleared all the obstacles, picking up four time faults along the way, which was good enough for the win.
Ashleigh Smail was the fastest of three double clears in The Brave Pants Company Pro Am, locally supported by The Martin Family. Riding PL Diamond in the Rough, she stopped the clock in 41.25, ahead of Lauren Buckley riding Valrhona GNZ whose time of 42.69 slotted her into second place. It was nice to see Rose Alfeld back on the podium after having her son just six months ago, she finished in third place riding Copabella Camouflage.
Zara Hazeldine jumped the only clear round on McMillans Swipe Right to win the Mainland Coachwork Junior Rider, locally supported by Multiline Construction, and Sacha Holm-Smith rode Windermere Lion Heart to victory in the Dunstan Horsefeeds Amateur Rider, locally supported by Equus Elite.
Sacha Holm-Smith and Windermere Lion Heart. Winners of the Dunstan Horsefeeds Amateur Rider Series in Conjunction with Equus Elite 1.10-1.20m. Copyright Photo: Libby Law Photography
At the Hawkeswood Mining Otago Championships Jumping Show, Amy McMullan had a dream start to the year when she took the quinella in The Brave Pants Company Pro Am. She jumped the only two clear first rounds on both her mounts, electing to win the class on her nominated ride, Haupouri Chantilly NZPH, and second place going to Wallingford Casino.
The FMG Young Rider just saw the one clear in the first round, with the top honours going to Jessica Hore aboard Beaumont Cassanova. In a similar fashion, Talia Allison took out the TiES Futurity class, jumping the only clear on Mustang Belle Amour.
Two combinations went in to the Mainland Coachwork jump off, that saw Maygen Gubb emerge as the winner. Riding PL Fox D’Amour, she left all the rails standing, and the four time faults she picked up along the way saw her take the win after Amy Brenssell aboard Calypso Xtreme dropped a couple of rails.
Sacha Holm-Smith and Windermere Lion Heart backed up last week’s win with another in the Dunstan Horsefeeds Amateur Rider.
For full results go to:
14 January 2026
The Jumping Team