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

Alex Morgan from Ravensden, Bedfordshire and her dog, Countryways Calypso (Pepper) won the Starters Cup final for Medium 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, Alex said: “It just feels incredible. We are both new to agility and I almost didn’t run the semi-final (held at The Kennel Club International Agility Festival) when I realised how many were entered. Winning was not on our radar at all!

“Anyone who was there will attest to the fact that Pepper is the steadiest spaniel in the world, but she was totally paw perfect on the day. It never crossed my mind in a million years that we would get this outcome! Nothing is impossible! We had the best day, everyone was so kind and friendly and the courses were lovely.” 

Vanessa McAlpine, Events 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 Pepper and Alex 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, please 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.