Boots, Banners & Big Leaps: Balmoral 2025 Kicks Off

Balmoral Show returns this week for its 156th edition, running from Wednesday 15th to Saturday 18th May at Balmoral Park in Lisburn. Organised by the Royal Ulster Agricultural Society, Balmoral is one of Northern Ireland’s largest and longest-standing agricultural shows, drawing competitors, breeders, producers and spectators from across the country and beyond. With more than 750 trade stands and an extensive programme of livestock, equestrian, and agricultural competitions, the scale of the show speaks for itself.

But this year, we’re not just reporting on results—we’re listening for the stories behind them.

Equitas is focusing on the women riding, mucking out, leading in hand, and quietly making history in their own corners of the showgrounds. From those returning after decades away, to first-time competitors bringing green horses or long-held dreams, Balmoral is full of women showing up in bold, brave, and deeply personal ways. These are the stories we want to tell. Not polished profiles or PR spins—real accounts of what it takes to walk through the gate and into the arena.

Because Balmoral may be a fixture in the calendar, but for many women, each year marks a first. A first time competing in open company. A first time producing their own horse and making it into the line-up. A first time getting a second chance after injury, burnout, or time away to raise children, build businesses, or just survive. And for some, it’s a first time ever stepping into the showring—fuelled not by sponsorship or spotlight, but sheer determination.

The 2025 schedule includes an extensive equestrian programme: national and international show jumping, working hunter, Connemara and Irish Draught classes, and the ‘Balmoral Star of the Future’ championship. The international CSI2* jumping will feature six competitions over three days with a prize pot exceeding €55,000. For the seasoned professional and the ambitious amateur alike, Balmoral offers serious ground to cover—literally and figuratively.

But no class list or scoreboard can show you what someone overcame to get there.

That’s why this piece isn’t just a preview. It’s an open call.

If you’re a woman heading to Balmoral with a horse you’ve backed yourself, or a reason that hasn’t been told before—Equitas wants to hear from you. Maybe it’s your first time qualifying. Maybe it’s your mother’s old show coat you’re riding in. Maybe it’s your first time back after years in the background. Whatever the story is, it counts.

Because in an industry that often filters its coverage through glossy wins and marketable champions, we know there’s more to show season than rosettes. There’s resilience. There’s responsibility. There’s joy, anxiety, graft, and grit. And there’s a whole network of women holding each other up behind the scenes, even if they’re competing in the same class.

So while the press releases roll out and the camera crews follow the headliners, we’ll be doing what we do best—listening between the lines. Asking better questions. Making room for the voices that might otherwise go unheard.

If that’s you—or someone you know—get in touch.

You don’t have to win to matter.

You just have to turn up. And at Balmoral, turning up is no small thing.

If you’ve got a story to tell—or you know a woman who deserves to be seen—drop us a line.
📩 Email: muireann@equitas.ie
💬 Our DMs are always open.

We’ll listen. And we’ll make sure it’s heard.