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Sasha was born in 1975 in Northern Ireland and grew up with her 4
brothers and sisters on an egg farm. Summers were spent at pony club
and it was here that Sasha first caught the horse bug and fell in
love with riding. She took up eventing when she was 15 and her first
horse was called Ginger Diamond. He was so clever, he and Sasha were
selected for numerous junior and young rider European Championships
and Sasha readily admits it was this very special horse that taught
her so much and gave her such confidence. He even won her a gold medal
at the young rider European Champ’s!
Having been on countless teams and been a previous winner of the
coveted Badminton Horse Trials title, Rodney Powell (a British squad
member) has all the knowledge, experience and advice to help Sasha
on her way to winning! Basing in England allows Sasha to compete
against the best in the world on a regular basis and enables her
to benefit from other top international trainers like Pammy Hutton.
The yard manager is our resident Kiwi, Greg Smith. He helps to
compete “Imagine Me” as well as his own horse “Wally”.
Greg keeps things running
smoothly on the yard, organises entries and travel arrangements,
drives everywhere, picks up grooming awards wherever he goes, and
generally keeps Sasha’s life running to plan. Without him,
the whole thing just wouldn’t happen. He has become part of
the family, and one of Sasha’s very closest friends.
Despite being one of the youngest members of the Irish team, Sasha
has already proved she is capable of coping with the pressure and
standard required at world class level. She has already been selected
for World Championships, numerous Europeans and 2 Olympics and remains
dedicated, determined and ambitious to achieve her very best! Despite
a strict routine, tough training and a highly professional outlook,
Sasha maintains that it is important to remember that there is a
fun aspect to the sport and that a happy string of horses is the
key to success!
Sasha’s hobbies include shopping, cooking, people watching
and holidaying. She will not travel to any competition without her
trusty mascot ‘piglit’, and would be nowhere near where
she is today without the fabulous support from her parents Derek
and Pat (Del and Freedom), and her gorgeous husband Andrew. This
portable fan club travel to as many events as they can, to cheer
Sasha on!
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