After sitting on my first pony at the age of seven, my life started to take on a single focus: riding. The more I rode, the more I began to feel a strong connection with my ponies and horses that gave me confidence, excitement and great enjoyment, which meant all other sports took a back seat. Even though I was in a gymnastics club and I played in a soccer league, my passion was riding and I rode whenever I could, often begging my parents to take me to the barn. I loved the sense of accomplishment that came with practice, as I learned, became disciplined, improved my skills, met with success and overcame challenges.
Over the last ten years I have been dedicated to training and competing in both Canada and the United States. I began showing ponies with multiple wins on the Canadian circuit, including a tie for Reserve Champion at the Royal Horse Show, Canada’s national indoor finals, plus numerous championships at U.S. shows where I qualified ponies for USEF Pony Finals and the Pony Medal Finals in Lexington, Kentucky. When I moved up to horses, I qualified for the USEF Junior Hunter National Championships in Devon, PA, where I placed 6th overall out of 47 competitors. At home in Canada I have competed in the Big Equitation classes, the Junior Hunters and Jumper classes with top placings.
Each year I have spent more and more time competing in the United States. I have shown with top placings at WEF, Tryon, the Hampton Classic, Upperville, Syracuse, Ohio and Tennessee. I have been very fortunate to spend many winters training in Wellington and this year will be my second season training with Victoria Colvin, gaining experience in the equitation, hunter and jumper rings.
Academics and good grades are also very important to me. I am currently a junior at North Toronto Collegiate Institute where I hold a 4.0 GPA. At the end of the semester I will switch to online learning so I can train in Florida.
My goal is to ride for an NCAA Division I Equestrian Team and to bring my passion for riding to the collegiate level. I am fortunate to be a part of equestrian sports because this sport has taught me so much – sportsmanship, dedication and confidence, and shown me that hard work truly pays off. I am looking forward to committing myself to my future team and school!
~ Ella McHardy