A clear mind and bravery help Paula Duggan become the Gauteng eventing champion

Paula Duggan was the calmest rider of the lot at the Gauteng Eventing Championships, which is why she became the overall winner.

The 19-year-old Fourways Gardens resident had only competed in one two-star event before this – a qualifier at Northern Farm in May where she finished second.

But when the weekend of 11 August arrived, Duggan did not let the scale of the event affect her nerves.

“The trick was to not think too hard and not get caught up in everything,” she said while training a five-year-old horse, El Classico, at Aintree Farm.

“I was confident in my horse and took one jump at a time.”

Duggan rode Voigts Kirch Camillo at the championships and plans to take the Namibian warmblood to the South African Eventing Championships in Kurland, Western Province, in late September.

“The best thing about horse riding is the horses. They are all unique with different talents and personalities. Voigts is honest and brave. He can jump high and is my best competitor, though I sometimes compete with El Classico.”

She added that Voigts needed to be brave because of the jumps in cross-country (her favourite discipline) that are designed to deter less-experienced horses. “Cross-country is the most fun because it is fast and has the most exciting jumps.”

Duggan said her own strengths as a rider lay in her bravery, and it was hard to disagree. She matriculated last year and is currently doing A-levels at St John’s College.

She plans on studying Bachelors of Science at the University of Cape Town next year and may have to take a break from riding.

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