Team Nissan riders share hopes for this year’s season

“My individual goal for the upcoming season is to win as many open classes as I can again this year. I would also really like to get back to number one on the rankings, I have not been [in top form] since 2011. I moved up five spots from seven to number two at the end of last year, but that’s not good enough,” Knowles-Taylor said.

Knowles-Taylor, who is currently ranked second in the country, said the shows she is mostly looking forward to competing in this year are the Nissan Easter Fest in Kyalami in April, the Reonet Revil WCQ in Polokwane in September, the SA Derby and the Nissan FEI WCQ show at Shongweni Club because there are always wonderful crowds at those shows.

“A loud cheer after a good round, even if it is not a win, makes all the hard work worthwhile,” she said.

Taylor, who is currently ranked fifth in the country, said his goals were to try and be successful in the major competitions such as the SA Derby, SA champs, SA Grand Prix and world cups, as well as to grow and make sure that team Nissan becomes successful. He said that Team Nissan’s success means developing the young riders to international levels, plus to grow the development initiatives.

“Last year was a building year for me. I have a strong group of young horses that I took the year getting used to competing. My more experienced horse Nissan Wanda was also handled very carefully as she was in recovery from an injury which occurred in 2014. I am exceptionally happy with how the season ended off for Nissan Wanda and me, and my other horses all finished strong,” Stevens said.

Stevens said that being part of Team Nissan was a privilege, an opportunity that not many riders are given, and said he is extremely grateful. “Being able to work so closely with the calibre of riders in the team is a great experience and being a teammate creates a new dynamic in an individual sport,” he said.

His advice to young showjumpers looking forward to this year’s season was to have a game plan and to stick to it, to decide where they want to be by the end of the year, and what they would want to have achieved. “Be positive and dedicated, you will reach your goals,” Stevens advised.

Ncube said that some of the challenges showjumping faces in South Africa as a sport is the recognition for how hard showjumpers practise and the lack of sponsorships on the scale of Nissan. “My goal for this year is to get my youngest horses into the bigger grades and also to win a few classes,” Ncube said.

“Being part of Team Nissan is a huge privilege, especially being sponsored by such a big brand, it has given me the opportunity to expand my riding career and all the team members are so supportive,” he said.

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