Lancashire woman' joy following Kennel Club Olympia Stakes success

Nicola Wildman, 26, and two year-old Zest qualified in the medium dog competition at the prestigious Kennel Club Olympia Stakes.

After coming second in the semi-finals and fifth in the final, Nicola said: “She was second in the semi-final in the morning which meant she got through to the final in the evening and she came fifth in the second fastest time.

“I’m really, really pleased with that considering she’s only done full agility courses for seven months. Next time she will have to qualify for the senior.”

Nicola said she thoroughly enjoyed the whole occasion.

“It was really, really good, there were big crowds and the dogs feed off it,” she said.

Zest qualified in the heats this year and went on to get the fastest time in the quarter finals. Zest’s Kennel Club name is Devongem Freekin Awesome.

Nicola, who runs her own agility club Wild Paws Agility and is also a member of Wyre (Lancs) Agility Club who train at Myerscough College, got Zest at eight weeks old.

Alongside her agility training, Nicola works as an architectural assistant in Blackpool.

Nicola said: “With one of my parents’ dogs I have previously been on Team GB and competed at Crufts many times.

“Zest is a border collie who loves life to the max. She is a crazy, quirky dog who loves nothing more than chasing a squirrel or doing agility.”

“She has been a challenging dog and in her days as a puppy I wasn’t ever sure if she would get the focus to run in the ring but we worked hard and she is now a super star.

“We hope in the future to go on to run for team GB, though that is a huge goal for us.”