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At 17, Great Britain’s Georgia Tame landed her dream job with Shane Breen. Fast forward five years and Georgia has a team silver medal from the 2018 European Championships for young riders, she has made her first FEI Nations Cup appearances and is currently climbing up the U25 rankings. 

While Georgia likes to win – “everybody does,” she laughs – she more than anything aims for consistency. “Right now, being consistent is the most important for me,” Georgia says. “My main goal right now would be to get to a level where I can jump double clears in five-star Grand Prix classes and Nations Cups. I want to be going in the ring at that level and know I can jump a clear round.”

With Breen as her mentor, Georgia is well underway to reach that goal. Last year, she won her first world ranking class and jumped to victory in the U25 Les Talents Hermès team competition at the Saut Hermès in Paris where she also finished second in the U25 Grand Prix with Cash Up. “That was amazing,” Georgia says. “It’s just one of the most beautiful shows in the world!”

Her senior Nations Cup debut came a year earlier though, in 2018 in Lisbon. “It’s tough to make the team in Great Britain, we have a lot of good horses and riders,” Georgia says. “Shane was also holding me back and would not let me go until he was sure I was ready, he wanted me to be at a level where I could do well. When I got the chance, it was a special feeling – it’s just something about wearing the Team GB numnah and jacket!”

Georgia was riding before she could walk, so it is perhaps no surprise that she already as a 14-year-old decided to leave school and ride full-time. “I was young, but I knew it was what I wanted and I had my parents support. When I left school, I started to work for Charlotte Platt and Ronnie Healy. At that time, I had a few 6- and 7-year-olds of my own and also jumped a few younger ones for Charlotte and Ronnie. It was a big yard, with a lot of horses so it was a great experience for me. Charlotte has also done the big sport herself, and was a great teacher. And I really learned how to stay on a naughty one!” Georgia laughs. 

After two years with Charlotte and Ronnie, Georgia was ready for new adventures. At the Sunshine Tour in 2015, she got to talk with Shane through a friend who was grooming for the Irish rider. “I always admired Shane’s riding,” she says. “I think he is one of the best and most stylish riders in the world. I managed to get him to watch a few of my rounds while we were there and got a bit input from him. When we returned home, I went over to his yard for a day – also to ride some of his horses. When I got offered a job I did not have to think twice!”

“For a long time, Shane – as well as Michael Quirk – were really working on my riding, also polishing my style,” Georgia tells. “For the first two years, I mostly did national shows – when I got better and more competitive I was allowed to go abroad. In 2016, I went back to the Sunshine Tour with a load of horses. During those six weeks, Michael and Shane helped me every single day and finally it felt as if I really managed to connect the flatwork to the jumping. From there on, I started to step up.”

“What I have really learned while I have been with Shane is the value of hard work,” Georgia says. “You can’t just go sit on the horse for 20 minutes and expect to do well. The key to success is in the preparation. You need to have everything right, even before you get on.”

“The best part of the job is getting to work with so many different horses, to get to know their characters and build relationships with them,” Georgia says. “I could never think of a job that would be better. Of course, it can be difficult at times – because the days are long and it’s hard work, but I still love every minute of it!”

When Shane joined Team Z7 in 2017, that was also a turning point for Georgia. “I got to ride some really amazing horses, and that abled me to step up a level. I got horses that could teach me a lot, so I could focus even more on myself and my own riding,” she tells.

One of the horses Georgia got to ride from Team Z7 was Z7 Caretina, that brought the young British rider her first world ranking win last year in Dubai. “That was fantastic, I never expected to beat riders like Henrik von Eckermann and Philipp Weishaupt,” she says.  

“Z7 Caretina is the sassiest horse I ever met, but she is a trier and she always gives everything,” Georgia tells. “I have had her since she was six, she was with Mikey Pender before she came to me and he had done a great job with her. It’s been a great journey with her, we have been stepping up together and building a real relationship on the way.”

Next to Caretina, Z7 Ascot and Clyde VA are currently Georgia’s two best horses. “Z7 Ascot is another horse I have had since he was six, and I have been sharing him a bit with Shane. He’s a horse we have taken our time with – he needed to grow into himself. This year, in Abu Dhabi, he jumped his first Grand Prix,” she tells. 

“My most experienced horse at the moment is probably Clyde VA though,” Georgia says. “He was with Shane and Trevor for a long time, before he went to Michael Jung. In January he returned to our yard. Because Shane was away in Dubai, he asked me to ride him. I had been riding him on previous occasions, so I knew him and it just clicked straight away between us. At our first show together this year, we were placed in the Grand Prix. Clyde is a bit of a stallion and can be quite cheeky; he loves to play around. I think he is a really special horse!”

Georgia is all about her horses, and more than anything she enjoys getting to know their different personalities. “The great thing about our sport is that eventually it’s about the relationship you manage to develop with your horses,” she says. “And I love to spend time with them, because once you have that bond they will always try their best for you and give that little extra from their hearts!”

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