46 SIDELINES OCTOBER 2011
FOR HORSE PEOPLE • ABOUT HORSE PEOPLE
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On Course with Junior Rider
Christina Kelly
By Jan Westmark-Allan
Junior rider Christina Kelly has her sights set on being
the next Margie Engle, and it’s a goal Christina could easily
accomplish. While Christina rides for Ireland as a junior, the
18 year old currently lives in Nicholasville, Kentucky and
has trained with Margie for the past two years. Christina has
ridden in six Grand Prixs so far, winning two of them and
placing third in another, and is eager to follow in the footsteps
of her legendary trainer who has won over 200 Grand Prixs.
Currently leading the Show Jumping Hall of Fame High
Junior standings, Christina spent the summer in the winner’s
circle, dominating the high junior jumpers in Kentucky.
Christina took the Winter Equestrian Festival by storm earlier
this year, winning the High Junior Circuit Championship
with her mare Camirage, the Reserve High Junior Circuit
Championship with Creata van Ten Biesen and Medium
Junior Circuit Championship with her mare Ushaia Van De
Wolfsakker.
During WEF, Christina also won the frst Artisan Farms
Young Riders Grand Prix on Camirage and was on the
winning team for the Artisan Farms Young Riders Team
Event. To top it all off, she also won the Pin Oak Trophy for
top Junior Rider at WEF in both 2010 and 2011.
Christina also rides for Double H Farms and won the
$32,500 Grand Prix in Fairfeld, Connecticut earlier this
summer on HH Narcos Du Marais. Christina said she loves
a crowd cheering her on when she competes in a Grand
Prix, which was exactly what happened when she won her
frst Grand Prix at the tender age of 15 in Germany. Christina
certainly sounds like a young Margie Engle if ever there was
one!
Sidelines:
How did you start riding?
CK:
My dad used to hunt a lot growing up in Ireland and rode
as an amateur jockey and my mum was also an amateur
jockey. Before they met they both won the same race in
Leopardstown, Ireland, in consecutive years. I grew up with
horses because my father bred Thoroughbreds for racing.
Christina and Margie Engle, her trainer and idol
All Photos by Mancini Photos
We had a farm in England and I had a little Shetland Pony that I
loved to groom but refused to sit on! When we moved to Orlando
I played soccer and had no interest in riding. I used to play on
the girl’s team on the weekends and I thought it was so much fun
playing on a team, especially when you won!
When we moved to Sotogrande in Southern Spain we looked for
girl’s soccer but there really wasn’t anything. I don’t know who
was more disappointed, me or Dad. I took up riding when I was
10 years old because my best friend at school used to ride on
the weekends so I went along for fun and quickly got hooked!
Sidelines:
You started riding when you lived in Spain, what was
that like?
CK:
We moved to Spain when I was nine. When I started riding
my parents bought me a pony and I trained with Gonzalo Munoz
Escassi. It was really funny in the beginning because I spoke no
Spanish and he didn’t speak English. In Spain they don’t really
compete ponies so the kids all ride horses from a very early age.
My parents bought me two horses, a super kind stallion and a
17.2 hand mare that I took on the Sunshine tour in Spain. I had
to just sit and steer as my legs were so tiny. I would have long
loopy reins and it probably looked quite scary but we started to
win lots and there was no going back!
Sidelines:
You train with Margie Engle now, but when you frst
moved to the United States who did you train with?
CK:
I have been lucky enough to have had help and training
from a lot of great people. Kevin Babbington helped me when
we frst moved back to the United States. Unfortunately we lived
too far away for it to work long term but he was so kind and
made the whole experience of bringing my horses from Spain to
America easy and we went to some great shows with him and
learned a lot! I have also trained with Bob Kraut and Shane
Sweetnam, who were both a lot of fun, and Candice King whom
I love and feel like I am part of her family. Candice wasn’t going
to be at the same shows that I was going to so she introduced
me to Margie because she thought we would be a good “match”
-- and she was right!
Christina is all smiles after another win with Creata Van Ten
Biesen
Continued on page 48