'It's just not fair': Boy in wheelchair brought to tears over cruel horse ban

A young boy was left sobbing on live TV after a cruel rule was put in place to stop him from competing with his beloved horse, Ruby.

For the past year, 12-year-old Brodie Pankhurst has been taking the Western Sydney show horse circuit by storm, bringing home ribbon after ribbon for he and Ruby's skill on the field.

But a rule change by the authorities who oversee the industry means Brodie can no longer compete - with a push to stop him from even entering the paddock.

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Brodie uses a motorised wheelchair to move around and while there has never been an instance of Ruby or any other horse being spooked by his chair, his mum, Mel, told Today the NSW Society pushed for rule changes with the Agricultural Society that he must wear a helmet if he wants to compete.

"We were advised last year, at state titles, that he was unable to compete unless he wore a helmet, so of course we made him wear a helmet for that show," Mel told Today.

"But we've since had a lot of discrimination issues with him, because he's in a wheelchair, he must wear a helmet, now we've also had the local showground that holds a lot of the shows ban powerchairs and buggies, so even to try and get the helmet issue sorted, now chairs and buggies are banned."

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The situation is heartbreaking for Brodie and Mel, particularly since horse shows have helped him so much with his confidence.

"There's a whole lot of benefits, just him showing the horses has seen a big change in him," Mel said.

"Brodie suffered a trauma at day-care when he was two, so little things like singing happy birthday to him - he would just shut down.

"So being able to show the horses, mentally for him is huge, it's helped him a lot and given him things to look forward to."

With the helmet rule in place and the ban on buggies and powerchairs, Mel, who manages the Blacktown shows, said at least Brodie could still do what he loves at his home grounds.

But in a heartbreaking twist, she said the woman behind the NSW Society has now pushed for rule changes with the Agricultural Society and their insurances, meaning Brodie can't even spend time with the horses at his mum's grounds anymore.

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"That's hard to break to him like 'yeah, sorry mate, you can't even do mine anymore either' - it's definitely hard and it hurts, it's not fair," Mel said, tearing up.

The look on poor young Brodie's face was equally heartbreaking, as he wiped tears from his eyes in front of Today hosts, Karl and Sarah.

"We just want Brodie to be able to show again, I understand safety, I completely understand that, but Brodie is cautious around other competitors, so that's not an issue," Mel said.

"We just want him out showing again, we want him doing what he loves without being discriminated against and harassed - it's not too much to ask."

Do you think Brodie should be allowed to continue competing with horses? Let us know