14-year-old young equestrian, Tichy in Form 3, has recently returned to school after having the incredible opportunity to compete at the prestigious Badminton Grassroots 2024 Championships on Sparhanger Velvet, owned by Camilla Albery.
Tichy secured her place at Badminton last year, beating 105 competitors (mostly adults!) in her BE90 class at Bicton and even making the national press with an article in Horse and Hound magazine! To compete at the Grassroots Championships (an event which takes place each year at Badminton House ahead of the main five-star Badminton Horse Trials) is quite a feat, especially if you’re just 14 years old!
‘I couldn’t quite believe it when I found out I had a place!’ said Tichy, who is currently in Year 9 and will be starting her GCSEs next year. ‘I didn’t quite think it was true to be honest, it was only when I was driving up the road to Badminton and standing outside the estate that it really hit me.’
‘The atmosphere at Badminton was incredible! At the Cross Country there were so many people watching, and it was just amazing! My most memorable moment has to be galloping in front of the house with everyone cheering – but seeing William Fox-Pitt and Ros Canter was also a highlight!
Velvet really enjoyed herself too and I am so proud of her. We didn’t have the best dressage, but she loves the cross country, like me, and she definitely felt like the main character in the back of the lorry on the way home!’
‘Everyone has just been so supportive, it’s been incredible’ said Tichy, who hopes to qualify on Sparhanger Velvet again, ‘Hopefully we’ll qualify for the BE100 soon!’
Tichy is a member of the Shebbear College NSEA (National Schools Equestrian Association) team, who have gone from strength to strength this year, celebrating some fantastic results at the regional Arena Eventing and Show Jumping NSEA competitions and qualifying for the national championships at Hickstead, which take place next week.
NSEA team manager and teacher, Marie Webber, is one of Tichy’s biggest supporters. ‘Tichy is just such an inspiration to everyone in the equestrian team at Shebbear. We’re all so proud of her and were cheering her on from school – we spent all day clicking ‘update’ on the live scoring system and a group of us gave a big cheer when the result of the clear round cross country came through!
Watching the video of her round after the event brought a tear to my eye. The talent, skill and trust between Tichy and her horse Velvet was beautiful to watch and to have an experience like this at such a young age is something she’ll remember forever. I know she’s going to continue going from strength to strength with her riding and I’m excited to see what’s in store for her next!’
'In the meantime, I am looking forward to taking the equestrian team to Hickstead next week – it’s been an exciting year for the girls and it’s been really rewarding seeing the team develop their skills and gain some fantastic results at the various competitions leading up to the national finals.’
