The teen rider juggling school with Olympic dreams

Ella smile at the camera in front of a stable door. She has blonde hair and wears a gold medal around her neck. She is also wearing a navy puffer coat. Spice the horse rests his head over the stable door and nuzzles her hand. He is a chestnut coloured horse with a speck of white at the top of his head. — Image caption,
Ella, 17, from Hadleigh recently won a gold medal in the Junior Eventing Championships with horse Spice

Alice Cunningham

BBC News, Suffolk

Connor Bennett

BBC News, Suffolk

4 September 2025

A 17-year-old equestrian rider says she has dreams of going to the Olympics as she balances sixth form with the sport.

Ella,from Hadleigh in Suffolk, recently took gold for Great Britain at the Junior Eventing Championships in Poland with her horse Spice.

She said it had been difficult balancing her studies with her training but she now wanted to make a career in the sport.

Her mother and coach Zannie Howard, 55, said all the early mornings and late nights had been worth it for the gold medal and she was proud of her daughter.

Ella is just going into Year 13 - the final year at sixth form.

During term time her days start just before 06:00 and she is immediately outside attending to the horses.

Ella rides Spice the horse in a training outdoor school. She wears a navy helmet, puffer coat, globes and black riding boots. — Image caption,
Ella said she enjoyed balancing her sport with her studies

"I'll ride a couple [of horses] before school, leave for school at about quarter to eight, get home at five and then ride one or two in the evening," she explained.

"It's difficult doing both; they both require a lot of time.

"I really enjoy riding the horses, and going to school is a nice break for a few hours then I get back straight to it.

"That's all I do and think about at home pretty much."

Ella rides Spice in the outdoor arena. She rides past her mother who is sitting on an upside down blue bucket in the school. A yellow cone rests in between them as well as a pole. — Image caption,
The teenager is trained and supported by her mother

Ella started riding 11 years ago when her mother got her into it.

The pressure of competing and studying could be a lot for any teenager, but Ella said she tried to "forget about it and just try to ride my best" during competitions.

"In the long term I'd love to do this professionally in the senior teams, the Olympics, world championships, that's definitely a big goal of mine," she added.

Zannie Howard smiles as she sits inside an outdoor equestrian school. She has blonde hair that has been tied back. She wears a navy knitted jumper. — Image caption,
Zannie Howard said she was extremely proud of her daughter

Her mother added: "She's seriously hard working and totally dedicated, absolutely loves what she does... we just follow suit and support her as much as we can."

She added the family had been celebrating since Ella's gold medal and it had been a "dream come true" for them all.