Hobby horsing competitor hits back at critics with dramatic video of her ‘whole body burning in pain’ after routine: ‘This is reality’
A hobby horse competitor has posted a dramatic video of herself writhing in pain after completing her round in the unusual tournament.
The 40 second clip that was posted TikTok shows nothing of the actual routine, but the rider, Anna, can be seen convulsing on the ground after the climax of her performance.
The teenager from the Czech Republic appears to be completely out of breath as she is seen gasping for breath on the floor of a sports hall.
In part of the video, she can be seen coughing and hyperventilating, as if she were about to throw up.
“This is me after my dressage routine… I passed out, couldn’t breathe, almost threw up, got dizzy, was shaking, my whole body was burning in pain…” 16-year-old Anna captioned the video.
A hobby horse competitor has posted a dramatic video of herself writhing in pain after completing her round in the unusual tournament
Anna, 16, from the Czech Republic, was gasping for air and appeared to be in pain
She refuted the claim that horse riding is easy, highlighting the intense physical exertion involved with riders trotting around like horses.
‘Hobbyhorsing is not a sport, it’s easy and anyone can do it’. . . Oh yes?’, asks Anna on her TikTok, in one fell swoop back at critics.
“Yes, it seems easy, but this is the reality :)” she responds.
Anna has posted a series of videos of herself pottering around as a hobby over the past week, one of which appeared to show her winning a ‘national championship’ – but the response hasn’t been kind.
“I think this says more about your endurance than it does about hobby horses,” one TikTok user wrote.
‘Hobby horses is NOT easy. It takes years of dedication to believe it’s a real sport,” a second scoffed.
‘Hobby horses? When I was a kid we called it play,” another added.
Anna has been posting a series of videos over the past week of her dabbling as a hobby, one of which appeared to show her winning a ‘national championship’
The hobby horse craze has been around for a number of years and mainly sees teenage girls riding around on fake animals and participating in competitions.
The tournaments have coaches and judges and the participants are required to adhere to the rules of horse riding competitions.
Just like a real horse and its rider, the hobby horse and its master form a team and become attached to each other. The sport also simulates traditional equestrian events such as dressage and show jumping.
Some real equestrians may view hobby horses as a childish pastime and not suitable for anyone over the age of 10, but Fred Sundwall, the secretary general of the Equestrian Federation of Finland, disagrees.
“We just think it’s great that hobby horses have become such a phenomenon and so popular,” Sundwall said during a 2017 interview.
A girl jumps during training at a hobby horse competition in Russia in April
The hobby horse craze has been around for a number of years and mainly sees teenage girls riding around on fake animals and participating in competitions. Photos, an April contest
Dozens of hobby horses ready to be ridden at a Hobby Horse Championship in Finland (archive photo from 2019)
‘It gives children and teenagers who do not own horses the opportunity to come into contact with them outside the stables and riding schools.’
The discipline comes from Finland and is still more of a grassroots movement than a professional sport.
Finland has more than 10,000 hobbyhorse enthusiasts – by far the largest number in any country.
But the sport is gradually gaining momentum in a number of other European countries such as Sweden, Germany, the Netherlands and Switzerland, all hotbeds for equestrian sports.
The vast majority of hobbyhorses are homemade – traded by owners and sold at events and via social media.
