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Horseytalk.net Special Interview
Grace Walker
Getting started - Grace Walker, aged 14.
I have always loved horses and started riding when I was two. I then bought a pony from a friend. She was into eventing so I decided to keep the pony and do the same thing. I started eventing properly at the age of ten, and started eventing for the British team two years ago.
During term time, the evenings are taken up with training, but during the holidays I will spend virtually the whole day at the yard, except for one day a week when the pony gets a well-earned rest.
If Spring, my horse, is going in the indoor riding school, it will involve a lot of repetitive circles and practising for a long time until the routine is perfect, and for me this does sometimes get a little bit boring, but it all pays off in the long run.
But competing is where you get the real buzz and excitement. It is where all the hours and dedication you have put in really pays off and hopefully ends in success.
This year I took part in the Charles Owen British
Pony Eventing trials, and for me it was a dream just to get
selected. I am only 14 and it's my first year doing trials
on Spring, so I wasn't sure how I would even get on. But
after they started and I had some good results, I started
to believe I had a chance of getting on the team.
The championships were a bonus and I never expected to do that well. I knew the team had done well in the past, so to get gold and be part of that again was absolutely amazing. We were all extremely close and had a surreal time; it still hasn't sunk in. To win individual silver was unimaginable and I am so proud of my pony and all the hard work everyone put in to make it possible.
My only downside was getting so nervous. Although I am fairly confident and I have a fantastic pony, I always get nervous, especially right at the start before dressage. But that soon goes when the adrenaline kicks in. As long as I can say I gave my best and haven't let the horse or anyone down, then I am happy.
The main thing I get from training is spending time with
Spring and working together as partners. The more time I
spend with him, the better we are as a team. I have complete
trust and faith in him and hopefully he has the same in me!
I have great fun with all the other riders and enjoy matching myself against them, and then spending time with them in the evenings and talking about all things horses!
We help each other as a team and therefore I believe we win and lose together. We took team gold and individual silver and Germany won team silver and individual gold, but I wouldn't swap the medals around for anything. But next year, the aim is to have two gold medals!
My ultimate dream is to be selected for the Great British Olympic team and win double gold. I would like to look back in 20 years time and see lots of medals hanging on the wall!
I want to work my way up through the various levels of British
teams and end up on the senior team, but having fun is the
main thing. As long as I can say I have had a great time
I will be happy.
If someone wanted to try eventing, I would say that you have to want to do it and have fun. Winning is what you compete for, but if it's not making you happy or you have something you'd rather be doing, then do that. If it is really what you want, then dedication and training is paramount and you have to keep working hard.
Being an athlete and wanting to be the best obviously carries certain sacrifices. Most people my age when not at school will be out shopping, going to the cinema or parties etc. For me I rarely get the chance to do this and it's hard to come back from the yard to go on Facebook and see what a great time they have all had.
However I have a wonderful life and can't complain too much, it is what I have chosen and want to do.