We’ve already talked about Luciana’s awesome opening win at Spruce Meadows this week, and after this interview, we might be pulling to see her win some more.
You couldn’t ask for a more passionate or ferocious ambassador for show jumping than Luciana, and her one minute interview with Spruce Meadows is chock full of motivational, inspirational, go-out-there-and-get-it-done goodness.
Here’s our three favorite excepts and what we gleaned from it:
“I do this because I love it, and she [Fit For Fun] also jumps because she loves it. Always with fun. She jumps for fun, she’s fit for fun, and also gives me really good feeling about going in the ring with her. I feel this confidence, I feel this love she gives back to me and she’s amazing.”
Luciana has absolute cinema-worthy magic with her two top horses, Fit For Fun and Winningmood. Her dedication to them is unmatched on the European circuit, and the evidence is on full display when you see a glossy 18-year-old Winny tearing around a 1.60 meter course like a feisty 7-year-old. Only horses with the best care and attention in the world can go like that at his age.
Her love for both horses shines in the ring, and that love of the sport and the horse is really a powerful model for riders at any level. Luciana is a competitor, but she’s in it for the partnerships, and that’s an incredibly beautiful expression to see at the top of the sport.
“I say if you don’t have big dreams in life, you don’t go anywhere.”
There’s always a delicate balance in sports psychology between engaging that ultra-competitive part of ourselves that wants to win, and engaging the part of ourselves seeking balance, equilibrium, and indifference to the way the chips fall. For Luciana, dreaming big is first part of the tightrope – it’s not about beating others as much as visualizing the best outcome. There is a huge difference, and she captures it perfectly, with plenty of fire behind it.
“I promise I will do my best every day here. It’s day by day here, but we will do our best.”
So much of a successful five-star week is wrapped up in perfect setup and execution: This is the counterweight to dreaming big. You must have high goals, but those goals have to include every step of planning, preparation, discipline, and composure.
I’ve seen enough to know that not all the FEI riders take their job as seriously as this. Sometimes the guy partying at night and flying by the seat of his pants in the day is going to beat the guy who has put in all the sweat equity and optimized their week for the perfect round. That’s just how the sport goes, sometimes. But for Luciana, doing her best is the ONLY way to do it. Win or lose, she knows she executed at her maximum.
Go Luciana, and Go Jumping!
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