RISING equestrian star Libby Grota capped another memorable 12 months with a big success at the year-ending Olympia Horse Show.

The 13-year-old Cardigan School pupil from Cilgerran came second out of 45 entries in the British Show Pony Final at the prestigious London event.

And what made her achievement even more remarkable was that she was the only junior to make it to the final on her own pony and just lost out on the very top prize by the smallest of margins.

Libby and her nine-year-old pony Cadlanvalley Buzby had the best mark for riding as they impressed the four judges but ultimately were edged out in the confirmation section.

“We are all very proud of her. She was the only child to qualify her own pony for the final and they performed amazingly well,” said mum Hayley, who works at John Francis estate agent in Cardigan and spends most of her spare time travelling the length and breadth of the country with Libby, entering competitions.

“Libby has been riding since virtually the day she was born and has been competing since she was just three years old.”

Horse-mad Libby is already looking forward to another successful campaign in 2019 but Hayley is also keen for her to do well at school.

“She could end up riding professionally but we want Libby to also concentrate on her school work and then that will always be there as a fallback,” added Hayley.