Tameside College student wins ‘gold’ at Crufts

Charlotte Pattinson, an animal management student at Tameside College, claimed top prizes in the prestigious dog show, Crufts recently.

Charlotte was even featured in Channel 4’s coverage of Crufts, with her team being interviewed by presenter Claire Balding.

Charlotte, a former Rayner Stephens High School student, won first place in the Young Kennel Club flyball competition and second place in the adult flyball competition.

Flyball is a relay competition which pits two teams of dogs and handlers against one another. Each dog has to jump four hurdles and retrieve a ball. Charlotte and her team broke the competition record with a time of 16.96 seconds.

Crufts is the largest dog show and competition in the world, hosted each year at the National Exhibition Centre in Birmingham. The four day event includes a wide range of competitions and trade shows and is hosted by the British Kennel Club.

Philip Pownall, animal management teacher at Tameside College, said:

“Charlotte has done an incredible job to take first prize in her debut competition at Crufts. Her focus, determination and care for animals has led her to success and I hope that she will go on to enjoy many more victories.

“At Tameside College we actively encourage students to take part in extracurricular activities to boost their career prospects and help them with their course.”