Articles
During a show as prestigious as the Longines FEI World Cup™ Final in Paris, much fuss is made over the horses and riders, their performance statistics, and the daily results. But what about the individual responsible for creating the challenge so gamely accepted by entrants?
For the World Cup Final and many other show jumping competitions around the world, including the Tokyo Olympics just two years hence, that person is Spanish show jumping course designer Santiago Varela, who has been designing since before he was legally old enough to drive a car.
ince finishing in the top 10 and being the best-placed British rider at the 2007 European Championships on The Holsteiner gelding Liebling II (who was later ridden by Carl Hester a the 2010 World Equestrian Games) Anna Ross has been busy. Between frequent trips to Brazil to coach their eventing team on the flat (and to see her Brazilian partner Marcelo Tosi - there are definite perks here), a packed teaching schedule, she’s been making moves. She’s ridden at the World Young Horse Championships twice, produced three more horses onto British Nations Cup teams, was reserve for the 2015 European Championships at Aachen, and long-listed for the Rio Olympics. For the past seven years, Anna has been based in the South-West of the United Kingdom at Cholderton Equestrian Centre - that is, when she’s not traveling. However, her latest move is a little closer to home, taking the plunge into purchasing her own place, and with that, carving out some very big plans for the future.
Cue: serious spirit fingers for Anna. From rider to business maven, it’s becoming pretty clear that she’s one to be watched.