Meet Amy Inglis - the star showjumper whose boyfriend could ruin her Olympic dream
By Ellie Kelly 26 July 2019 • 9:00am
Amy Inglis will compete in the Nations Cup at Hickstead on Friday - and against her boyfriend
For most sportspeople, the notion of having your partner by your side on your biggest outing of the year would be a source of comfort. For Amy Inglis, however, it is a double-edged prospect - her boyfriend, Michael Duffy, happens to be a fellow competitor.
Inglis, 22, laughs at the notion that their sporting duel - which will be one of the main talking points at Friday's Longines FEI Jumping Nations Cup at Hickstead - might disturb their domestic bliss. She has been going out with Duffy, from Ireland, for five years and insists their relationship is one of mutual support, rather than rivalry.
"I guess we are a little bit competitive but it's definitely more supportive than competitive," Inglis says. "Michael helps me a lot and I probably wouldn't be here without him."
The pair met when Duffy, 24, came to work at Hickstead as a stable jockey. "I remember watching him jump and thought he was such a good rider," Inglis recalls. "Then I was at Hickstead so much that we kept bumping into each other and got on so well. When it was time to leave his job, he came here whilst he looked for another one but he never left. He didn't need to get another job because he was so good that people were sending him horses to ride."
Not that Duffy is the only love of Inglis's life. The other is the hot-tempered 'Wishes', the distinctive chestnut mare which has propelled Inglis into the showjumping stratosphere. Inglis saw her the day she was born. Wishes was bred and produced by the family and Amy's father, Duncan, a former international showjumper and British team rider, competed Wishes' mother to a high level. Duffy started competing her as a young horse before handing the reins over. "I didn't ask for her but Michael gave her to me three years ago because he had too many horses to ride."
Michael Duffy is Amy Inglis's rival as well as her partner Credit: AFP
Inglis smiles again, knowing that it is a decision her boyfriend may still be ruing. If showjumping is the ultimate expression of the relationship between horse and human, then Inglis and Wishes are among its most articulate performers - both young, talented and fearless with enormous trust and respect for each other.
"Wishes gives me so much confidence when I ride her," Inglis says. "It is like nothing fazes her and no jump is too big. You have to be very patient with her and you definitely can't tell her off so she wouldn't be for everyone but we get on so well as long as I let her think that everything is her idea. She is sharp and often has too much energy but she has this massive heart."
Inglis and Duffy live and work together alongside her mother, a few miles from Hickstead. Claire Inglis is the linchpin of the operation and breeds and owns a number of her daughter's horses. In a world where top horses have become worth millions and are mostly owned and funded by patrons, riders are at risk of losing their best mounts when these owners are approached by prospective buyers.
"We are lucky that Wishes belongs to us so she is not going to be sold underneath me," explains Inglis. "But it is hard to know what to do sometimes because we have to make a living and showjumping is a very expensive sport."
That is no trifling concern. Duncan left the family four years ago and the Inglis yard has to be run commercially to keep the wheels turning. "Mum and I work very hard with maybe just a couple of days off a year. We have horses in for livery and training and often have to sell good horses to pay for the others," she explains. "Dad was very involved in the business as well as training me, so it was difficult when he left. He has a new family now so I don't see so much of him. Although I have been getting help from Michael, which is obviously working."
Wishes placing 3rd in the U23's at Olympia 🎉 pic.twitter.com/EpxT5GXhHB
— Amy Inglis (@_InglisAmy) December 17, 2017
Her father will be walking the course with her at Hickstead, although the venue itself is familiar enough. Inglis was five when she first competed there, riding her pony Pepsi over tiny jumps, led by Claire. Today she will be soaring over 1m60 jumps on the hallowed turf of the international arena. If she continues to impress, do not rule out a shot at the Tokyo Olympics.
A good performance today is pivotal for the British team, who are not yet qualified for Tokyo - surprising given their team gold in London and individual gold in Rio. Their final opportunity will be the Nations Cup Final in October but first they have to qualify, with top three finishes at both Hickstead and Dublin.
It is a time of high-stress, but also great opportunity - and Inglis is ready for both. "It is a tough sport. You work so hard and don't always get the results for it. Horses are not machines, they have bad days and they can suffer injuries that can end their career. But I have always known this was going to be my career and I wouldn't change it for anything."
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