Phillip Island’s new world champ

A love of all things equine since he was a small boy has seen 17-year-old Newhaven College student Gabe Smith crowned World Champion at the International Mounted Games (IMG) which were held at Werribee last week.

Gabe was one of a five member Under 18s team representing Australia over four days of competition, against teams from across the world.

For the first time in the history of the International Mounted Games, which have been run annually for the past 23 years, Australia was the winner, from the 15 international teams which competed here.

Gabe’s team took the gold ahead of England (second place) and New Zealand (third) 

This year marked the first time that the international event has been staged in Australia.

And in another huge honour for Gabe, he was voted by 13 of the 15 international coaches in Australia for the event, as “Most Outstanding Under 18 rider” throughout the four days of competition.

Gabe’s horse Blu was also named by the same international coaches as runner up champion horse in the Under 18 competition, out of the 140 horses competing.

In what has certainly been a hectic few months, Gabe also won the Australian Mounted Games Association National Individual U18 Champion title for the second year running.

Then on the weekend before the World Games, he won the Under 18 National Pairs Championship in partnership with Ryan Bissick, at Ballarat.

The International Mounted Games, originally the idea of His Royal Highness, Prince Philip over three decades ago, have a massive following across Europe, for both competitors and spectators, and is fast catching on here.

The sport is an equestrian discipline in its own right, similar to dressage, showjumping and eventing. Its origins can be traced back to the military in Europe and includes games that hark back to mediaeval times.

Played in three different formats: individual, teams and pairs, it is fast paced and showy, with athletic ability, agility, precision of riding and horsemanship, all coming into play.

Riders must navigate through various obstacles, often at full speed. A special bond is needed with their pony, with competitors, required to vault off and back on their mount, to pick up an obstacle, at speeds that can average 55 kmh.

Several relay-style races require riders to pick up objects from the ground (from the saddle), weave through a series of poles at high speeds, hand items off to teammates without slowing, and dunk objects into buckets. Jousting is also a discipline, and picking up rings with a sword while cantering at speed is another challenge.

Ponies are the preferred mount, as their shorter stature make several of the races easier to play.

Blu, a ten-year-old quarter horse and Gabe have trained and competed together for the past three years.

Future

Gabe has been riding since he was seven, and rides competitively, competes in showjumping, and describes mounted games as loads of fun.

The “fun” belies the skills and training one needs to become a world champion, however.

Gabe says the world games last week took competition for him up to a new level.

Used to winning, he jokes he was quite taken aback when an English competitor kept up with him in a game which in Australia he usually has a clean pair of heels.

The sport is as much for girls as boys, and younger sister Giselle Smith is this year’s U15 Australian Mounted Games champion.

Both Gabe and Giselle have been coached and mentored by their mother Tash Robinson, a teacher at Cowes Primary School.

Tash is a keen horsewoman who rode trackwork at the age of 14 and loved bush racing when growing up.

Gabe wants to see Mountain Games included as an Olympic Sport and wrote to the Olympic committee last year suggesting that.

Although the reply was no, he has not given up on the idea yet.

His immediate aim now is to defend his world championship title at the 2024 International Mountain Games in Italy next July.

It will certainly be a busy year in 2024 for this very focused young man.

Gabe will be studying in Year 12 for his VCE, and working to achieve a score that will get him into an equine science tertiary course. He will be training for the 2024 international mounted games in July. And he holds down a part time job breaking in and training horses after school and on weekends.

As part of this job, he has just taken delivery of a six-year-old to train for champion Victorian jockey Jamie Kah, who also loves Mountain Games competition.

And if that is not enough, he is looking forward to his interstate Australian teammates converging on Phillip Island with their horses for his 18th birthday celebrations early next year.

“Who knows,” says Gabe. “They are bringing their horses. We could put on quite a spectacular show for Phillip Island.”

Gabe is seeking sponsorship to pursue his dream of competing next year in Italy.