Text © World of Showjumping

Riding the 15-year-old mare Bibisi (Calato Kama x Marcus), Bronwyn Meredith Dos Santos has impressed at the Longines FEI Jumping World Cup™ Final 2025 in Basel, Switzerland. The 40-year-old mother of two from South Africa is one of the 25 riders qualified for Sunday’s third and final competition in Basel after two solid days of jumping.

“I'm an amateur and I'm not a talented rider; but I work very hard,” Bronwyn tells World of Showjumping. “However, if you have a horse like Bibisi, you can jump courses like these. This type of competition is not just for any rider; it’s for an incredible horse like her.”

Bronwyn’s road to Basel has been exceptional. The winner of the South African League qualifies for the World Cup™ Final, but due to quarantine rules, competes during the following season. In Bronwyn’s case, she qualified during the 2023/2024 season and now competes at the 2025 final. “We normally jump between four and six qualifiers in South Africa, depending on how many we are able to put on,” Bronwyn explains. “We have very strict quarantine protocols and therefore it takes a long time to get our horses into Europe.”

While Bronwyn qualified at the end of 2023, her horse only arrived in Europe in September last year. “It is a very difficult process and in hindsight, if I had really known how difficult it was, I might have thought twice about it. In order to even move into the zone of quarantine in South Africa, you have to pass through different internal quarantine facilities, which sometimes are not very convenient. I have a family with two children and a husband back in South Africa, and they have stayed home for most of this campaign. I have got a horse property in Kwazulu Natal, where I breed a few horses from my mares that I've jumped.”

Leading up to the final in Basel, Bronwyn has been based in the Netherlands – at Steelhead Stables, training with Brian Walker. “When my horse arrived and had been out of work, we spent quite a lot of time just slowly getting her fit day by day,” she tells. “However, she was feeling good so we've managed to get in shape in a fairly limited time. She only started competing in Europe in December last year, and we did not do a lot of competitions because obviously you can't overdo it for the horses. What has limited us as well is the fact that in South Africa, we don't have the correct level of shows to get any ranking points, so we can't get into the bigger events here in Europe. We had to beg and find whichever venues would help us and give me entries.”

Bronwyn bought Bibisi when the mare was eight. “She is bred in Poland and I bought her from Mathijs van Asten and Oliver Lazarus,” she explains. “They found her for me and I've been riding her properly since 2020. She has taken me right from the bottom to where we are now. I struggled to learn to ride her, because she is a real quality horse. Now, I find she's the easiest horse in the world to ride, but it was a challenge in the beginning and I had to put a lot of work in. It took me a long time and a lot of patience and improving. I love her. Now, she's like putting on an old pair of jeans; she fits me perfectly. I'm very short and small, and she's not very big, but she has a very big heart and she wants to fight for me. She's just incredible.”

Having a bit of home with her in Basel has made all the difference, Bronwyn tells about her week so far. “I have my husband and my daughter here, my son is at home. He does his own sports there; he's doing a rugby and cricket tour in South Africa so he couldn't come. And then obviously, Brian, my coach and some friends from South Africa that have flown across the world and got themselves here and arrived to support me – which is incredible. My groom in South Africa, Thomas Mbalula, has come out to Europe to help during my campaign, but he doesn't have a work visa so he's supporting from home this week. My groom here is Amanda Edwards, and she has helped me beyond words. She knows the system and she's calm. My horse loves her and vice versa. That has made a big impact.”

However, stepping on to one of the biggest stages in the sport has been nerve wracking. “I was terrified,” Bronwyn tells about her feelings ahead of the first day of competition. “I was very nervous. I had never jumped a 1.60m track in my life, and only ever done one four-star show. I didn't know what to expect. Coming here, my plan was to take it step by step and if at some point I feel it's too much, then we'll respect the horse. On the first day, I didn't ride as well as I wanted to, but then yesterday it was much better. Yesterday’s course was about very disciplined riding: If you had a plan and you rode and stuck to it, you could pull it off.”  

“These riders are the people I've seen on television,” Bronwyn says about her competitors in Basel. “They are my heroes from when I was a child and it's overwhelming and quite intimidating to ride alongside them. However, every single rider has been friendly. When they saw that I was a little bit nervous – and the best people in the world can see that – they told me I can do it. They've been really kind to me and that has made it feel easier. To be able to just be in the arena or in the course walk with these people is an honour. They've worked a lot harder than I have; their qualification is a lot more difficult than ours and at a much higher level. However, they are supportive of me and it’s very encouraging.”

Bronwyn is one of the 25 riders qualified to compete in Sunday’s third and final competition which is jumped over two rounds. Ahead of another huge challenge, she is feeling calm. “My horse went through the vet check really well, she's trotting beautifully,” Bronwyn tells about her feeling ahead of Sunday. “We had a stretch and she feels good. She always has a lot of energy and she's very athletic, so I'm feeling good. We take it step by step and if at some point we're worried, then we will take a step back. Right now, we are thrilled with her performance and are looking forward to tomorrow." 

5.4.2025 No reproduction of any of the content in this article will be accepted without a written permission, all rights reserved © World of Showjumping.com. If copyright violations occur, a penalty fee will apply.