The next generation...
Ryan Hennessy is a Winner
Dog loving young adult Ryan Hennessy from Chipstead, Surrey was chosen as the
Young Kennel Club (YKC) Young Person of the Year at Crufts 2020 on Sunday, March
8th.
Ryan Hennessy (24) co-founded the organisation
Forever Agility last year in memory of his mum, Ann who passed away from cancer
in March 2019. Ryan wanted to replicate the love and support shown by the
agility community following Ann’s diagnosis, with the aim to be there for those
who need help whilst facing life-limiting or long-term illnesses.
Forever Agility has helped others in a
range of ways, from vet’s bills to travel costs, palliative care retreats to
state-of-the-art medical equipment and mobility aids. The organisation is
currently trying to find a specialist lawyer who can help them be legally
ratified as a charity with the Charity Commission.
Ryan, who will take over as chief judge
for YKC agility events in 2020, has competed for a decade in YKC agility, helped
and encouraged by his mother during that time.
Proud Ryan said: 'I wasn’t even aware
that a friend had nominated me until the Kennel Club contacted me. I won
that round and then found out I had been entered into a public vote for the
main award. To think that the public voted for me to win is really nice and
gives us the kind of boost we need to move what we hope to soon be calling
our charity forward.'
The YKC was inundated with nominations for
one of five categories in the prestigious award which celebrates the
hardworking, inspirational and selfless actions of young dog lovers. Each
category winner was invited to Crufts 2020 for the award ceremony following a
public vote to decide the overall YKC Young Person of the Year award.
The category winners were:
- Community Award – Ryan Hennessy (24)
- Volunteering Award – Jamie Smith (14)
- Personal Achievement Award – Georgina
Kent (15)
- Sporting Talent Award – Taylor Lyon
(11)
- Inspiring Others Award – Jodie Forbes
(23)
The YKC Young Person of the Year award is
one of the highest levels of achievement for young dog lovers. For over thirty
years Ed and Cindy McAlpine have presented the Shaun McAlpine Trophy to the
winner of the award at Crufts, in memory of their son, Shaun. The trophy is
awarded annually to encourage young dog lovers to become more involved in dog
activities, as Shaun himself had achieved considerable success as a dog handler.
Previous winners of the competition have
been selected for their volunteering and fundraising for dog charities, helping
organise dog activities in the local community, and assisting others through
training, stewarding and mentoring.
Vanessa McAlpine, Crufts Show Manager,
commented, 'Congratulations to Ryan for winning this year’s YKC Young Person
of the Year award. He is a well-deserved winner and is a real inspiration to
many other young dog lovers around the UK.
'Well done to our other finalists and
to all of our other YKC members who were nominated this year. They truly
deserve the recognition for all of their hard work, time and dedication that
they put into helping the lives of dogs.'
The category winners were each invited to
Crufts 2020 on Sunday 8th March for a special presentation ceremony in the YKC
ring where they each received an exclusive ambassador’s badge and award.
For further information about Crufts visit
www.crufts.org.uk. If you would like to
find out more about the Young Kennel Club and how to join please contact the YKC
team by emailing
ykc@thekennelclub.org.uk or visit
www.ykc.org.uk.
Crufts took place
from 5th – 8th March 2020 at the NEC, Birmingham. For more
information, visit
www.crufts.org.uk.
YKC summer Camp Back with a Bark
The Young
Kennel Club (YKC) has announced the dates for its YKC Summer Camp, returning for
the first time in six years.
Open exclusively to YKC members aged from
8-15, the camp is a perfect opportunity for children and teenagers to enjoy a
holiday with their four-legged friends, whilst also keeping active, joining in
with social events and taking part in plenty of training activities with their
dog.
 This
year's camp will be held at Rutland Showground in Oakham from Wednesday 12th
August – Monday 17th August and will include the opportunity to practise a range
of canine activities including agility, scent work, obedience and heelwork to
music, as well as a full social schedule with team-building games, barbeques, a
quiz night and a sports evening.
YKC members must have a parent or guardian
on-site at all times, but all the family are welcome to enjoy the fun.
Vanessa McAlpine, Events Executive
said, 'YKC Summer Camp has previously been a real highlight in the Young
Kennel Club calendar so we are delighted to see it return this year.Kids and
their dogs are in for a really varied week of fun and games, with invaluable
opportunities to socialise, train and compete alongside like-minded
friends.'
Young dog lovers who are interested in
attending summer camp should visit
www.ykc.org.uk to find out about becoming a member, whilst visitors to
Crufts 2020 can join the Young Kennel Club at a discounted rate of £12 by
visiting the YKC stand.
The price for one member and family
attending, including camping pitch, is £250. If another YKC member who is a
sibling wishes to attend their cost of training and team activities will be
£200. YKC members wishing to attend the camp can reserve a place by visiting
www.ykc.org.uk/content/for-members/ykc-summer-camp/.
YKC Young Person of the Year Award
The Kennel Club has revealed the names of the five
inspirational young people who have been nominated for the prestigious YKC Young
Person of the Year including two of our own agility Juniors - Ryan Hennessey and
Taylor Lyon. The accolade celebrates the dedicated, inspirational and selfless
actions of young dog lovers, all of whom are members of the Young Kennel Club
(YKC). It is the highest achievement
for young people who are passionate about dogs and recognises those who are
going above and beyond to help transform the lives of others as well as
encouraging their peers to make a difference with the help of their canine
friends.
The winners of each category have been
chosen by the YKC team at the Kennel Club and will now face a public vote with
the overall winner to be announced at Crufts on Sunday 8th March. For over 30
years, Ed and Cindy McAlpine have presented the Shaun McAlpine Trophy to the
winner of the award at Crufts, in memory of their son who sadly died. Shaun had
himself achieved considerable success as a dog handler.
Previous winners of the annual competition
have been selected for their volunteering and fundraising for dog charities,
helping to organise dog activities in the local community and for assisting
others through training, stewarding and mentoring.
This year’s finalists are:-
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Community
Award winner
Celebrating young people who show commitment and passion through social
action – fundraising, campaigning, activities at school, college or community
for the welfare of dogs.
- Ryan Hennessey (24) set up the
organisation Forever Agility last year in memory of his mum, Ann, who passed
away from cancer in March 2019. Ryan wanted to replicate the love and
support shown by the agility community following Ann’s diagnosis, with the
aim to be there for those who need help whilst facing life-limiting or
long-term illnesses. Forever Agility has helped others in a range of ways,
from vet’s bills to travel costs, palliative care retreats to
state-of-the-art medical equipment and mobility aids.
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Sporting
Talent Award winner
Celebrating young people who show real passion and dedication for
competing or training their dog.
- Taylor Lyon (11) has been
taking part in agility since she was five years old and trained her own
working Cocker Spaniel puppy, Elliott, in agility since that same time.
Taylor has various accolades under her belt, including winning the Under 12
Medium YKC Jumping last year as well as coming third in the YKC Agility Dog
of the Year Final at Crufts. Taylor was also selected to represent Junior
Agility Team GB with both Elliott, and her friend’s Border Collie, Tariq, at
the European Open Junior Agility Championships in Switzerland, winning two
bronze medals.
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Volunteering
Award winner
Celebrating young people who dedicate their time to helping others and
gone over and above what would be expected of them.
- Jamie Smith (14) volunteers
his free time after school and at weekends to the national charity, the
Cinnamon Trust, which helps organise volunteers to walk dogs for the
elderly, terminally ill or housebound. Along with his mum, Jamie walks Sam,
a nine-year-old Dachshund, twice a week on behalf of Sam’s owner who is
unable to walk. Jamie lost his dad last year and experienced the effects of
terminal illness and not to be able to look after yourself, or a pet, so
finds the time he spends with Sam and her owner very rewarding.
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Personal
Achievement Award winner
Celebrating young people who have overcome personal challenges with their
dog as well as the skills they have developed to achieve success.
- Georgina Kent (15) has
recently completed a year of intensive treatment for lymphoma and has since
begun a further 18 months of maintenance treatment. Georgina’s diagnosis
came at the same time that their family had chosen a new Border Terrier
puppy, Dylan, and he joined the family at the same time that Georgina
returned from her first month’s stay in hospital. Georgina credits Dylan’s
beautiful nature with helping her to get better, and she has begun
practising agility in the garden with both Dylan and his brother, Boo, ready
to return to classes.
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Inspiring
Others Award winner
Celebrating young people and their dogs who through their positive
attitude and inspirational approach have proved to be a good role model.
- Jodie Forbes (23) counts
working with difficult and misunderstood dogs as the most important thing to
her and in 2019, set up a dog training and behaviour academy called Make
Your Mark, alongside her partner. Over the past year they have worked with
over 100 dogs in a variety of activities that they would normally be unable
to attend due to their behaviour problems. Jodie regularly visits schools to
teach and has also spoken publicly of her own struggles with mental health
disorders and acceptance of neurodiversity, and how there can be so much
more behind ‘problem behaviours’.
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Speaking about the finalists, Vanessa McAlpine, Kennel Club
Education Executive said: “These five young finalists are a credit to
themselves, their dogs and their communities. They demonstrate a level of
determination, passion, courage and selflessness that we are proud to see in our
Young Kennel Club members.
'We receive so many inspirational entries for young people
every year and it’s a tough task to select just five, but everyone who
received a nomination should be so proud of their achievements.
These stories prove how much a dog can
impact someone’s life and vice versa. We are looking forward to welcoming
our finalists to Crufts and seeing who the public have chosen as the winner
of the YKC Young Person of the Year award in March.'
The overall winner will be decided via an
online vote open to all, which can be found at
https://www.crufts.org.uk/dog-exhibitors/young-kennel-club/young-person-of-the-year-award/
The finalists in each category have been
invited to Crufts 2020 on Sunday 8th March for a special presentation ceremony
and each will receive an exclusive YKC ambassador’s badge and award. As well as
being crowned the YKC Young Person of the Year, there is a prize fund of up to
£750 which will be used towards helping the winner progress their love of dogs.
Juniors Chosen to Represent England at WAO 2020
It’s official! WAO Team England
has announced the four Junior Handlers who will be representing England at the
World Agility Open Championships in Ermelo in May.
They will be competing for the
inaugural title of World Agility Open Junior Champion at the 10th anniversary
event.
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300 height - Emma Stock with
Athena
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400 height - Harry Churchill
with Marley
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500 height - Mariann-Elvie
Bayliss with Ila
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600 height - Charlotte
Baker with Moley
Congratulations to them all. We
wish them the very best of luck to the Juniors who will be joining the big boys
and girls in The Netherlands.
SWAT Southwest Junior Challenge
2020
After
the success of 2019, the SWAT Junior Challenge is entering its 3rd year aiming
to promote agility and encourage Junior Handlers in the South West.
With
this in mind and after discussion with parents and juniors alike, SWAT has
decided that this year, Under 9 Handlers may run dogs also entered in Anysize or
Veteran class(s). This allows young Children just starting to compete with
retired dogs, a chance to compete with other junior handlers. It is hoped that
this will increase the entries in the Under 9 category to match those of the
Over 9s. Last year there were ad 16 dogs in the Final, watched by a large crowd
which created an electric atmosphere.
As
before, there will be a separate competition for Under 9s and 9 and over up to
16. The first and second placed handler and dog from each qualifier will be
invited to compete at the Final. If a handler and dog partnership has already
qualified in either age group, or is unable to attend, the invitation may be
given to the next placed pair (provided they have not been eliminated).
All
heats and the Final will consist of a Jumping Course for all heights and with
all heights competing against each other. The course will be a flowing Jumping
course aimed at building confidence for Junior handlers.
The
class will have two sets of awards. Under 9 Years old and 9 Years Old and Over
(up to 16 years.)
Heats are to be held at the following shows:
The
2020 Final will take place on Saturday, 1st August at SWAT while the 2021 Final
will take place on Saturday, 31st July at SWAT.
For
more information, go to the SWAT - Somerset West Agility Training
website
Classes for Juniors
+ One at Phase Purple Shows
At all Phase Purple shows, adults are
allowed adults in the ring with the younger
handlers.
The
UKA Junior Open Championship 2020
Sponsored by
The aim of this
competition is to encourage Junior handlers to compete against their peers in
the sport of Agility and prepare them for their future competitions.
General Rules
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Open to all
handlers who are under 18 on the 1st December 2020.
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Open to all
levels and all heights.
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There will be a
separate competition for each height.
Final
Qualification
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The way to qualify for the
Junior Open final is through a Junior league table taken from normal UK Agility
Class results. (10 spots per height).
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The
Final will be held at the UK Agility Grand
Finals and follow the Junior Masters Rules.
Junior League
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Agility, Jumping, Games and Steeplechase classes
held at UKA shows from 1st January 2020 until 27th
September 2020 will offer the opportunity for Juniors to gain points.
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Only
classes with UKA progression points will count with progression points being
used for the league.
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Junior handlers must include their Date of Birth on their records. The league will automatically include handlers with
eligible DOB.
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If a dog is run by two junior handlers and both achieve
points, the handler with the most points will qualify that dog.
Junior Masters (Final)
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The Junior Masters rules will adhere to
the standard rules of the regular Masters however course level should be UKA
Senior with course time also set using Senior course times.
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There will be a
maximum of 22 obstacles permitted.
Junior Bursary. Wendy
Jones has very kindly offered a bursary of £50 to each height winner at the
Grand Finals. The bursary must be spent on Dog agility training and will be
paid on submission of the receipt for training.
https://m.facebook.com/Agility-For-Juniors-144841152247337/
Juniors at UKA Shows
Very few UKA
shows now have specific classes for Junior but they do have a Juniors League where
all progression point class results go towards a league and the top ten in each
height get invited to compete at the UKA Grand Finals. In addition, the league
is one of the three qualifying events for Juniors to win a place onto the WAO
Team England.
In addition to this, WAO
is opening the event up to one Junior per height from each country next year. The Junior will compete in the same classes as the adults in all the events and
the most successful Junior overall will become World Champion. The selection
process for Team England is via a points system. Points are earned from the top
ten places of the Junior League, Junior Masters results at UKA Grand Finals and
the results from OJAC held in February next year.
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