When you meet Sarah Slattery, you feel the positive energy radiate from her – her achievements in dressage in a short time are breathtaking.

Sarah spent her time as a youngster flying around on her pony but was dealt a bad hand that changed things for her forever.

“I got cancer when I was eight years old, so that put a stop to a lot of riding and work on the yard. I always had a pony in the stable though.

“When I recovered, I did a bit more with ponies, then went away to college and didn’t ride for six years.

“I moved in with my now-husband, and we had our daughter Harlow. It was only after I moved back to Galway five years ago that I was bitten by the horsey bug again.”

Sarah opted for dressage as her discipline on her return to riding.

“To be honest, I was never cut out for show jumping. I was too nervous for it, and I don’t have that ‘eye’ that the rest of the family is blessed with. I preferred dressage, but the looped reins I was using were not allowed in the dressage classes.

“I had a tumour in my left arm muscle, which resulted in the majority of the muscles and ligaments being removed from my lower left arm.

“I always used looped reins to help with the grip as I can’t close my fist; it also helps me hold onto the reins, but for able-bodied dressage, you must ride in plain reins, so I couldn’t compete. So I contacted Para Equestrian Ireland, who were amazing and went through the grading process with me.”

Following many tests, Sarah was certified as a grade V para dressage rider, first with the Para Ireland Council and then later the FEI. She was then allowed to use her looped reins again. Grade V in para dressage is the most able-bodied level, and the tests equate to that of an Advanced Medium dressage test.

“These tests have collections in all three movements as well as lateral movements like traverse and half pass in both trot and canter. You’re also allowed to incorporate flying changes and half pirouettes in canter in the freestyle. It is a very competitive grade with a lot of outstanding riders.”

Sarah Slattery with her horse Sam.

Sarah’s horse San Marino MR (Sam) is a handsome Oldenburger gelding by San Amour I, out of Weissena-Pur. If you are lucky enough to meet him, he’s one of those horses that can make you laugh and swoon at the same time, as all the best can!

“After putting my poor show jumper through many dressage tests, we started our search for a dressage horse in Denmark. My mom Linda is Danish and has a lot of connections in the dressage world over there. It wasn’t easy to find what I needed, a schoolmaster that wasn’t heavy in my hand. Dressage horses are typically ridden into the contact, they can feel heavy because of my disability, and I can’t ride a horse like that. They must be very light in the mouth. That’s not easy to find!

“We saw an advert for Sam online, and when his previous owner told us over the phone that he was nearly too light in front, we knew we had to go and try him straight away. It was love at first ride! He was such a gentleman, and we all knew he had to come home with me!

“He has the sweetest temperament, everyone that meets him falls instantly in love, and anyone that rides him doesn’t want to give him back. He is such a typical warmblood with lots of strange quirks but always wants to do his best.”

Before Sarah bought Sam, she had never done much sitting-trot and didn’t know how to do a single advanced movement.

“Sam is an amazing teacher with great patience but lazy enough to try and cut corners unless I give him the correct aid. I’m very determined and ambitious, so giving up is never an option for me. I’m great at gritting my teeth and working through pain, and I will stay practising until I have it right.

“So between us and of course with outside help, we went from learning to sit in trot for more than one round to competing successfully for Ireland at international 3*shows this summer, all in just two years!”

Sarah and Sam won the Para Championships at the Dressage Ireland Winter Championships in 2020 and then upped the ante by competing in Europe this summer.

“Unfortunately, Sam ran out of steam a little before we even went in for our test. It made it a bit difficult for me to hold it all together, but I was delighted with our first outing, scoring just over 64% on both days and placing 18th both days in two very strong classes.

“Looking back, it probably wasn’t the best choice of show for my first European as it was a final selection competition for Tokyo for many of the para riders, so the competition was hot!”

After two weeks of break and training, Sarah and Sam headed to another 3* show in Grote-Brogel where they did the FEI individual and team test, ending up 2nd in the team test and 4th in the individual test. This qualified them for the freestyle, and despite a few hiccups with music and timing, they scored over 71% in their first-ever freestyle to music. “I’m still beaming over it. To go from 18th to second competing against Paralympic riders, after just two weeks, was a dream come true and just showed what we could achieve once we settled ourselves.”

The dream for most riders are big championships, and Sarah has these firmly in her mind’s eye: “In dressage, you are always competing against yourself, trying to better your scores. Doing this is all part of the stepping stones to reach the likes of the Paris Paralympics.

“You need big goals, but you also need to figure out the smaller goals that will lead you to achieve those bigger goals. Next year, I would love to make it to the World Equestrian Games in Herning, Denmark. Sam’s old owners are there, so it would be amazing for them to see him and the progress we’ve made.”

Sarah’s dad is a five-time national champion show jumper Tom Slattery who won many a Grand Prix and Nations Cups for Ireland. She has inherited his dedication to horses and his work ethic: the horses and their welfare always come first. Dressage is a tricky sport, and the levels of fitness required of both horse and rider can be a hard ask, especially with a young daughter and a full-time job to contend with too.

“Dressage is a lot about core strength, and I learnt that the hard way,” Sarah admits. “I don’t have much strength in my arms, so I have to be strong in my legs and core. I try and run twice a week. I go spinning, and I try to get into the gym too. With Sam, I do a lot of hacking and hill work. People think you need this fabulous sand arena to ride a horse, it definitely helps, but I do a lot of lateral work on the road, leg yielding, always checking he’s listening to me – if you can go sideways because a cow pops her head up Sam, you can go sideways when I ask!”

In terms of downtime, there seems to be very little right now, but Sarah is smart, and she knows where to find her balance in the rare moments: “It’s always ‘go go go’ in our life which I like, but I also love going out to the stables in the morning when all is still quiet.

“There is something so perfect about the quietness of just you and a couple of horses chewing on their hay.”