“HORSES GALLOP THROUGH MY VEINS AND NO LOSS OF SIGHT WILL ALLOW ME TO GIVE UP THE FREEDOM THEY AFFORD MY SPIRIT"
Visual description: Short video filmed in a beautiful setting in the southern French country side. Verity, her horse Szekit and her guide dog Uffa are working together. Verity is riding her horse in a beautiful napoleonic indoor arena. She is also walking with her guide dog Uffa through the French countryside.
When I was told at the age of eight that I was going blind and would never be able to drive a car, I replied, “That’s ok my horse can see for me’’. So it was, as the world faded from my eyes, horses solidified in my heart, enabling me to ride the storm of my disability.
Verity is competing and winning at the highest level ever achieved by any blind rider in the World at Elite Able Bodied competition. Her Golden Vision is to represent her country as a member of both Para Olympic and Olympic Dressage Teams.
Verity ‘s equestrian career and achievements have attracted much global media attention.
Verity’s ride has not always been smooth. Having represented Para Team GB in the world championships in Denmark at the age of 18 and trained in Sweden, UK, Denmark and France with some of Europe's top trainers, Verity's hopes to represent Great Britain again in the London 2012 games were dashed by the death of her horse in 2011. A car crash in that same year, took Verity out of the saddle for a year. She was back on the horse in 2013, astride Szekit, the most beautiful Oldenburg gelding.
Verity trained hard for the 2016 Rio Olympics with amazing trainers Sandy Philips (Olympic rider and Grade 1 listed International Judge) and Laura Tomlinson (Olympic gold medalist), only to have their dreams, once again derailed by the 'Blindfold Rule'. This dangerous rule made the wearing of a blindfold obligatory for all medically classified blind riders. So Verity created the global 'Beat the Blindfold' campaign and although she did not win a medal, she won the campaign and in November 2016 the rule was overturned.
01/05/2021 Verity then partnered with the incredible black Hanoverian mare “Daisy”. With Verity’s dual nationality and the support of French trainer Alain Francqueville, their goal was to represent France in the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Whilst training with the French para team, disaster struck - due to an injury sustained by daisy in 2023 Verity and Daisy were unable to compete for the games in Paris 2024.
More determined and focused than ever, Verity’s goal is to represent France in Los Angeles 2028 as a member of the Able Bodied Olympic Team. Another global first.
The Scoobies
Verity counts her horse's strides but her competition success is also helped by her amazing team of Scoobies. As a blind dressage rider Verity has the right (granted by the International Federation) to have up to 9 callers positioned at each letter around the dressage arena during her dressage performance. Accuracy is an essential part of dressage tests. This dedicated group of volunteers, whom Verity affectionately calls her Scoobies “as like ScoobyGang they help to unravel the “mystery” of the arena” by providing an audio rather than a visual reference to the letter markers.
To watch the Scoobies in action click here.
Verity created the nonprofit organisation “Equipe Verity” in order to provide speeches for schools and entreprises about “ability in disability” and equitherapy for handicapped children and adults. Verity’s motivation to create this organisation is to introduce and share with people the magic and sanctuary that horses have provided for her.
