All About Emily
Published :
17/12/2023 12:00:00
Categories :
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Emily King, daughter of former Badminton winner and six times Olympic rider Mary King, has been sponsored by Hiho for many years. She learnt to ride at a very young age and completed her first affiliated event at the age of 12 and represented GB when she was 15-years-old at the 2011 Junior European Championships.
Read more about Emily and what makes her tick below.
I'm very lucky to have a wonderful, wonderful Mum Mary King, (Olympic gold medallist event Rider), who has been hugely successful in the industry I have chosen to have a crack at. So, I have grown up around horses and Mum has been to several Olympics and was one of the best riders in the world of her time (and very much still in my eyes one of the best riders around).
Mum always said I very much rode before I walked, as when I was diddy she would hold me on the young horses backs to get them used to having something on their backs and I think that’s why I am so obsessed with it.
I left school when I was 16 to do the horses and earn a living and make a career out of it and I was part of the Junior team GB European championships. For my first Junior European championships, Mr Hiho was the horse and all thanks to Andrew and Hiho for their support, I was actually able to ride this horse as they helped towards the running costs. So directly Hiho helped me with my first big event!
When we have a couple of quieter months, sort of now through to the New Year, the horses have an an off season break, it's lovely because we're home more often. In the season, we’re away a lot travelling to the competitions with early mornings and late nights.
When we are at home, it’s getting the horses prepared for the next show and organising the business side of things. So although when in eventing season, I don't have much spare time, this time of year I am a really outdoorsy person. I have a lovely dog who I adore and I like running with him. I did actually run the London marathon this spring. We're very lucky to have Snowdon close to us, with the beautiful mountain ranges, so I love exploring stuff and being outdoors.
It's also definitely hard to keep in touch with friends that aren't so horsey, so in the off season I really try and catch up with everyone as much as possible to check in and make sure they know I am alive.
But really, I am literally obsessed with trying to become as good as a rider as possible, train my horses as well as possible and do the best job I can for my owners, so when I have a bit more time at home, the priority is to try and further my education as much as I can, I definitely say I am a bit of a workaholic!
But definitely, a good Badminton under the belt is one of the main things I am aiming and hoping for next year.
From my few times having experienced Badminton, because it falls in the Spring when the ground is wetter, it is the most challenging event I have ever done and I am yet to complete it!
I am just looking at my wrists and fingers now which are coated in Hiho jewellery. I work all day wearing them and then if I go out for dinner in the evening they all stay on.
My Cherry Roller bangle is just an amazing thing, I love that piece and it just stays on the whole time, really sturdy yet elegant. I also have some lovely stack rings including a ring that is like a horse’s leg that then loops around your finger and at the top of the finger two hooves touching together… It's very elegant and I love the design.
So I would say my Cherry Roller and my rings are the ones I adore.
And finally - what is the best piece of advice you have received when it comes to Eventing?
Personally the best piece of advice or motto I've been given is to "work hard until your idols become your rivals" and that’s something that’s really stuck with me.
When you’re getting up at stupid o’clock, when it’s raining and snowing and you're running on a couple of hours of sleep and things aren’t going to plan, you really have to pull the strength together.
Just visualising, keeping on going, until those people who you watch videos of and study how they ride are your rivals, you’re far from making it. For me personally, trying to reach the top, I find that was a really good piece of advice.
I also think for younger riders coming up (and it this might not seem so obvious), if things aren’t quite going to plan, just do not be afraid to step down a level and regain confidence with yourself and your horse. Down a level, two levels, three levels whatever it takes. I think the professional riders do it a lot and it’s something which maybe isn’t filtered down or emphasised enough to the lower levels.
It’s so easy to think right we’re at B100 or B90 and this is where we’re at, this is what we’re doing this season and things don’t quite go to plan - we have a run up, we have a stop, we have a tumble and we keep going because we, in our set our mind that we’re doing this B90 or B100.
With the pros, if we have one mistake at say at an advanced class, we straight away take them back down to say an intermediate level, to give them a nice run to calm any potential nerves or misunderstandings the horse has.
I had a horse that I ran at Badminton and then did an Open Novice at his next event because things didn’t go to plan. It's all about confidence building and it’s much easier to rebuild confidence when the question in hand is smaller. Then you're actually solving the problem so much quicker than keep trying to go at that one thing that is causing a few problems.
It's something that people are nearly a bit embarrassed about, but there is no shame in it whatsoever. We do it the whole time with all the horses, step them right down, build the confidence, and pop them back up to the next level.
So, for amateur riders, a good bit of advice, (well for every rider really) if things aren't going to plan, don’t feel ashamed or embarrassed to step down a level and get all your ducks in line, so you're breezing round it with your eyes closed and then step back up, because in the long run that will really help things!
