Wendy and Koyuna Sun Shine on their way to third in Adelaide in 2010
Wendy Schaeffer is no stranger to breaking bones shortly before a major event – in 1996 she broke her leg only nine weeks before the Atlanta Olympic Games however, despite this, she went on to win gold. Now, having flown back from the UK where she now lives with husband Nigel Macdonald, especially for her ‘local’ event in Adelaide she has broken her tibia only three weeks before the Australian International 3 Day Event.
“This isn’t quite as traumatic as breaking my leg leading up to Atlanta” says Wendy “But it certainly isn’t good timing!”
Wendy had Sun Showers entered in the CCI 4*, the highest level event in Australia which Wendy has won twice; in 2002 on Koyuna Sun Glow and in 2010 on Koyuna Sun Dancer when she was also third on Koyuna Sun Shine. Wendy’s bad luck has proved fortunate for Fiona Guthrie however who has picked up the ride on Sun Showers, who Fiona will now ride in the CCI 2*
“She’s done a lot of hard work with the horse and it’s great that she can take it on at such short notice” said Wendy
As she told us in an interview at Blenheim, Wendy has been doing a lot of show jumping in the UK recently and had been hoping for a wild card to compete at Olympia in December but that is now also off the schedule.
“It is really bad luck – I was simply doing some dressage training at a squad training clinic on Sunday morning and it just happened. Unfortunately here is nothing I can do about it and realistically it looks like three months out of the saddle”
Wendy, who married Nigel in the UK in July, had flown back home to Adelaide to prepare and qualify her horses for Australia’s big event. Although the timing is terrible, one good thing is that Wendy is getting the best of care thanks to her doctors and surgeons who have fixed her up a few times. As a qualified physiotherapist, she appreciates how important it is to get the medical care to try and speed up recovery. For now however she is resigned to catching up on her paperwork!
“I will definitely be at the Australian International 3 Day Event, even though I can’t ride” she says “I’ll be watching Fiona and Showers compete and I wouldn’t miss my home event for the world”
So, if you’re coming to Adelaide and see Wendy, she’ll have plenty of time for a chat so say hello!
