Rand Park Primary School learner shines at Sanesa
Rider and horse combo go from strength to strength in prestigious tournaments.
Rand Park Primary School is proud of a learner who received her district colours for the second time for her success in the equestrian world.
She also holds her provincial colours in the sport.
Grade 5 learner Hannah Thomas competed in the South African National Equestrian Schools Association (Sanesa) in the West Gauteng district as part of the school’s team this year.
She and her pony, Ben-Hur Theodore aka Theo, competed in three of the four Sanesa qualifiers in the categories of dressage, performance riding, working riding and in-hand utility. She placed in the top four in all these disciplines and was selected for the Gauteng West A team for the Gauteng Primary School finals at the end of July.
In the finals, Hannah placed fourth in performance riding, seventh in the in-hand utility category, and finished in the top 15 for working riding and dressage. Performance riding and in-hand utility results have earned her a place on the Gauteng team for the nationals later in the year.
Hannah was awarded her district colours at the Sanesa awards dinner held recently and Rand Park Primary won the top performing school in their category for the year. During the year, Hannah and Theo won the Purebred Welsh Child’s First Working Hunter Pony and Champion Child’s Working Hunter Pony at the Horse of the Year show.
They also won the Child’s First Working Hunter Pony and Champion Child’s Working Hunter Pony at the Easter Festival. Recently they won Champion Welsh Purebred Gelding and Reserve Supreme Champion Gelding, as well as Purebred Welsh Child’s First Pony and Purebred Welsh Child’s Working Pony at the Autumn Gold Cup.
Hannah has been riding since she was three years old and started competing in Sanesa the following year when she was still in pre-school. In 2019, she enrolled in Grade 1 at Rand Park Primary and joined the school’s equestrian team, consistently placing in the top five in her chosen disciplines.
Hannah and Theo started their partnership in 2019. It was love at first sight for both of them. Hannah started training and competing with Theo under the guidance of her coach Czoye Crossman from Roly Stud and they have gone from strength to strength.
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