Phoebe Peters

The former European pony champion tells Polly Bryan about life at the Van Olsts, learning from Lottie Fry and how taking a break from dressage led to success she never imagined

- Polly Bryan

ALMOST 10 years to the day that Britain's Phoebe Peters won her first individual gold medal at the pony Europeans, she found herself back in a high-stakes arena, fulfilling another childhood dream.

Now a rider at the prestigious Van Olst Horses in the Netherlands, it was a major career goal for Phoebe when she made her debut at the World Breeding Championships this summer, riding the Van Olsts' striking grey stallion Everest. It was an experience that Phoebe says is "hard to put into words", and it marks a successful transition back into top dressage sport for the 24-year-old.

Always a high achiever, Phoebe made waves as a pony rider, partnering the prolific SL Lucci to become European pony champion in 2013 and 2015, setting new world records along the way and elevating British youth dressage to new standards.

She went on to ride at the 2016 junior Europeans, too, with Denford Surprise. But as for so many successful youth riders, making the leap up to the higher levels proved difficult, especially without the finances available for the family to buy Phoebe another world-class ride. Instead, Phoebe threw herself into her studies and has now emerged with a first-class degree in modern languages and the sort of job in dressage she admits she never dared to believe might come to pass.

"I took a real break from riding and competing to spend four years reading French, German and Russian at Warwick University, and it felt like a part of me was missing during that time," says Phoebe. "After I graduated two summers ago, I had two options. I could go after my passion dressage - or continue down the language route. I seriously considered becoming a language teacher at a secondary school.