Valegro, the Olympic dressage champion, and his rider, Charlotte Dujardin CBE, made a rare appearance in Newent town centre on Monday, November 27th to mark the launch of a fundraising campaign to create a lasting tribute to the talented horse.

Crowds of local people, and Valegro’s fans from further afield, thronged the market place to welcome the talented pair. The gentle horse waited patiently, in the freezing cold, while dozens of local residents took ’selfies’ and the opportunity to pat him.

The Newent Initiative Trust is working to raise the funds needed to commission a life-sized bronze statue of Valegro, who is called the Dancing Horse, in order to attract more visitors to the town.

Chair of the Newent Initiative Trust, Keith Urch said that originally a plaque was planned but they hope that the statue will be a popular visitor attraction. The Mayor of Newent, June Davies presented Charlotte with a bouquet of flowers.

Charlotte said: ‘This is an exciting project for Valegro, myself and Carl Hester, Valegro’s owner. We can’t wait to see the finished sculpture which will transform the centre of Newent, commemorating Valegro’s achievements forever’.

The vision of the project is to commission a life size bronze sculpture of the horse, created by a specialist artist and cast in a local Gloucestershire foundry, with the aim of helping to regenerate Newent by providing a unique attraction to draw in Valegro’s supporters from all over the world. It is hoped that the unveiling will take place towards the end of 2018, accompanied by a community arts programme involving local schools.

The launch coincided with the opening of a crowdfunding campaign to raise £80,000 from private donations, which represents approximately half of the total funding needed for the project. Donations can be made at www.crowdfunder.co.uk/valegro-the-dancing-horse, and for any donation over £50 there is a range of exclusive benefits on offer.

It is hoped that the rest of the funding needed will come from applications to local trusts and other funders, such as Arts Council England. The Honourable Company of Gloucestershire has already donated £2000 to the project.