Emily King's End of 2025 Update

Let's catch up with our sponsored rider, Emily King for an update on the latter half of her 2025 event season, and find out how she’s now winding down for winter.

Discover insights into her top two horses, Val and Jackpot, and their two very different ends to the season. Plus, read all about how she juggled 4 horses at the same event!

All the best
Team Hiho x 

OVER TO EMILY...

It’s been an exciting second half of the season - full of highs, lows, and everything in between, as is always the case with horses, especially competition horses. What matters most is that every horse has continued on an upward trajectory in both learning and confidence, and each one has stayed happy and sound. The same can be said for our team of grooms and our close support network; everyone has been fantastic and has worked with such positivity and momentum throughout.

VALMY 

Starting with Valmy - to put it bluntly, he didn’t get the end to the season that he truly deserved. This is a horse I adore with all my heart. I owe him nothing, yet at the same time I feel I owe him the one thing I dream of giving him: a serious five-star result. We all know how incredibly tough top-level sport is, and how tiny the margins are, and for so long he has been knocking on the door of a big result - even a win. It remains one of my biggest drives, especially for his new owners, David and Paula Evans.

This autumn, unfortunately, we let that goal slip by. Don’t get me wrong - we gave it absolutely everything. When you step out aiming to be that competitive, you push your horse and yourself right to the limits of your partnership, where the line between brilliance and imperfection is razor-thin.

At Burghley he produced one of the best tests he’s ever done at five-star, and we set out cross-country completely in the zone with a clear game plan. He knows his way around this track now, so this year was about finishing as close to optimum time as possible. He was meeting the fences out of a gallop exactly as planned, but at the second water complex the out-combination - a step, to a bounce, to a shoulder brush - just didn’t come up as expected. In hindsight, I think I had him a touch too collected; his head dropped slightly, and when I attacked the step and up to the brush he was a little lost and didn’t quite read it. We came to a very anticlimactic stop.

This is so unlike him - he has never stopped with me. Usually, the opposite gets us into trouble: he’s too bold, too brave. So I take responsibility. Nothing mimics the intensity of these big events - the crowds, the atmosphere, the pressure. Horses face countless external factors we can’t control and they can’t explain. They’re not machines we can check over; all we can do is know them as deeply as possible and read every sign they give us. Still, there is always an element of the unknown. Val just wasn’t 100% himself that day, but he came home safe and sound, and that’s what matters.

Not finishing Burghley meant rerouting to Pau. He had a brilliant prep run at Little Downham, leading the 4*-S after a super test and a planned, steady cross-country to keep him fresh. 

At Pau he felt fantastic all week. He delivered what I thought was one of his best tests yet - though the judging didn’t quite align with how it felt, which is dressage for you! Cross-country day came, and I knew I needed to finish inside the time to take the lead. Having gone round earlier on Jackpot, I had a great feel for the track. In hindsight I set out on Val a bit too quickly… well, a little too quickly for him. He’s unbelievably fast and brave, but he lacks natural self-preservation early on. At fence two he misread it, knocked it, and I found myself very ungracefully catapulted out the front door. Far from the fairy-tale ending we hoped for - but horses have a magical way of keeping you humble.

The main thing is that Val is happy, fit, sound, and actually goes into next year with less wear and tear than expected, as he didn’t run a long-format competition due to our early cross-country mistake. You know me - I will always pull the positives out of any situation!!

JACKPOT

Jackpot had a hugely exciting end to his season for his owners, Vicky and Stuart Irlam. He stepped up to the 4*-L at the new venue at Scone Palace in Scotland, producing a superb double clear around a tough long track. I ran him at a mid-level speed - quick enough to test his fitness, but not so quick that I risked his legs or overall soundness.

Having gained his long-format qualification, he headed to Pau for his first ever five-star - such a special milestone for any horse and partnership. Producing a horse to five-star is such a balance: educating the mind and body, achieving qualifications, yet preserving them physically and mentally.

He had a great prep run at Little Downham and finished second in the Advanced. At Pau he was an absolute superstar. His flying changes are still a work in progress, but he managed all but one in his test. Across the country he was phenomenal, making the technical combinations feel effortless. Right near the end we had a small miscommunication which meant taking the long route, but the education he gained is invaluable. He finished his week by jumping one of only a handful of clear showjumping rounds - and to feel him so fresh on the final day of his first five-star was incredibly exciting for the future.

THE YOUNG HORSES AND OTHERS

The rest of the horses also ended their seasons brilliantly, with Cornbury a real highlight.

Our two five-year-olds - Rupert (owned by Alex Wilcox, Helen Morris and the JJ Performance Partnership) and Groovy (owned by Janice Edwards and the JJ Performance Partnership) - both competed in the National 5YO Championships. Sam piloted Groovy and I rode Rupert. They are still green in their flatwork, which we knew, but we took them for the exposure and the atmosphere. Both coped superbly, jumping brilliantly - Groovy just tapping the last showjumping fence before storming around the cross-country, and Rupert producing an easy double clear. They are now on their well-earned holidays to digest everything they’ve learned.

Angel’s Choice (owned by Jennifer Angel-James) was the star of the show at Cornbury, finishing third in a red-hot 3* section full of 4* and 5* horses. She is incredibly exciting, and I look forward to getting to know her better next season - hopefully with a step up to 4* when she’s ready.