When the first ever Youth Olympic Games kick off in Singapore this August, the small town of Kilcoy will be watching closely.

Nestled into South East Queensland’s countryside, Kilcoy is home to Glen Haven Park, a state of the art showjumping facility set on 400 hectares.

In 2009, Glen Haven Park was contracted to train and procure the horses for the equestrian program in the Youth Olympic Games. After seeing over 100 horses across Australia, 38 were chosen, securing their tickets to Singapore.

The facility is run by mother-daughter team of Paula and Olivia Hamood, both celebrated showjumpers.

“Olivia competed in the Australian Youth Olympic Festival in 2009 and it was that event that led us to the opportunity with the Singapore Games,” Paula explained.

“It was definitely a difficult process. We had only about 15 to 20 mins to put each horse through their paces and pick which ones would work.”

“Once we had them back at the Park and had recruited our team of trainers and grooms, the rest has just fallen into place.”

Twelve full time staff including four riders/trainers, five grooms and three managers are involved in the project and have dedicated the last 10 months to ensuring the horses are in pristine condition for their Youth Olympic debut.

The horses are currently in pre-export quarantine in the stables in Glen Haven Park, and will travel to Brisbane Airport on 15 July where they will be loaded onto a customised plane for the eight hour flight to Singapore.  

On arrival in Singapore the horses will spend time in quarantine before moving on to the brand new, state of the art equestrian facility, constructed just for the Youth Olympic Games in Singapore’s north.  

During the Games, equestrian will take place over four days with an individual and team jumping competition. A draw will take place to decide which horse and rider will be paired off and that partnership will remain together for the duration of the competition.

“Like any athletes, there will be a few standouts but for the most part they will be a great group of fit, evenly trained horses,” Paula said.

To read more about the journey of the horses, click here>>>

Alice Wheeler
AOC