Coventry star crowned winner of Starters Cup final class at Discover Dogs in London

Jo Gleed from Coventry, West Midlands and her dog, Devongem Ready To Steal (Stealie) won the Starters Cup final for Large dogs at London’s biggest dog event, Discover Dogs, supported by Royal Canin, at ExCeL London at the weekend.

The Starters Cup, The Kennel Club’s premier agility competition for dogs new to agility, was created for dogs in grades 1 and 2 of the discipline. The top six large dogs together with the top six intermediate, six medium and six small dogs, who qualified at The Kennel Club International Agility Festival at Rutland Showground in August, took part in the exciting final but only one was crowned winner in each height.

Delighted owner, Jo said: “I’m thrilled to have won the Starters Cup! Stealie is my young dog that started competing in the middle of the year, she has grown in confidence as the season has progressed and she is really starting to show her potential. She is a dream to work with and I’m really looking forward to our future together.”

Vanessa McAlpine, Events and Youth Development Executive at The Kennel Club said: “The Starters Cup is a fantastic competition for those handlers and their dogs who are fairly new to agility. It’s inspiring to see potential agility stars of the future getting the opportunity to compete in front of big crowds at Discover Dogs and we congratulate Stealie and Jo for winning their final against so many other talented competitors.”

Discover Dogs, sponsored by Royal Canin, took place on 20 and 21 November at ExCeL London. For further information visit the Discover Dogs website.

To find out more about getting started in dog agility, visit The Kennel Club website and to enter the Starters Cup next year, please attend The Kennel Club International Agility Festival next year between 11 – 14 August 2022.