Equestrienne ascending

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This article was published 20/11/2024 (488 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Brooke Mancusi is quickly becoming a certainty in a world that can be unpredictable.

The Winnipeg-born equestrienne has ascended to the position of top-ranked Canadian — 65th in the world — in the Fédération Equestre Internationale’s under-25 ranking after finding unlikely success with a brand new horse in Grand Prix dressage this year.

Mancusi, 22, acquired 15-year-old DeJohn Ymas, affectionately known as Johnny, in February, and the pair seamlessly formed a dynamic tandem.

“It was a very new, green partnership. We needed to learn each other pretty quick,” Mancusi said by phone Wednesday. “With him, it was just getting more confident with each other in the ring and getting the scores when needed, and we did that.”

Just weeks after becoming acquainted, Mancusi and Johnny qualified to represent Team Canada at the North American Youth Championships in Michigan, where they won a bronze medal and recorded two fourth-place finishes in August. The next month, they won a pair of gold medals in a Concours de Dressage International event in Bromont, Que., marking the end of a successful first campaign.

Mancusi was recognized for her strong showings earlier this month when she received the prestigious Orion Cup Award, presented by Equestrian Canada to a promising Canadian in the process of transitioning from the Young Rider level to Grand Prix, the highest form of dressage.

It was a reminder of just how far she and Johnny had come in such a short amount of time.

“It’s another accolade to put under your belt, which is always really nice, and that’s what sometimes sponsors look for,” said Mancusi, who moved to Chambly, Que. in 2020 to work with Olympian Brittany Fraser-Beaulieu and trains in Wellington, Fla., with her horses during the winter months.

“It’s also a big thing because most of the people who win the Orion Cup go on to be on teams (for) Pan Ams and Olympics and everything like that. It also just… shows how hard you’ve worked to achieve this goal. And by winning it, not that it means you’re the best, but you’re like, ‘I’ve worked this hard, and I’ve proven myself to everybody that I can do it,’ especially with this horse.

“He was new. It was special because he was so new to me, and we still got it.”

Mancusi, who owns three horses, said her relationship with each animal is akin to family dog. The bond is solid and the trust needs to be high for them both to perform at the highest level.

Even when the ties are strong, though, there is still an element of fragility that comes in equine. Injuries are expected, and even the most veteran horses can spook easily during competition.

It takes experience and plenty of patience to navigate the inevitable dark days.

“There’s gonna be highs and lows, especially with horses, because they’re so unpredictable. It’s an animal. You never know what they’re gonna do,” said Mancusi, noting the unattainable pursuit of perfection as the reason why she loves the sport.

“I’ve gone through a lot of the lows in my career so far, which I think has helped me kind of be a little bit stronger, and I’ve gained a lot of knowledge on even the bedside of horses and how to properly take care of them.”

The hours are long and the work can feel never-ending at points, but Mancusi has learned to find the beauty in that grind. With every ride, she grows stronger and more independent as an athlete.

She expects that her career path will align with her middle horse, Kalisto, a nine-year-old who appears destined for the bright lights on an international stage. He may be the future, but Johnny is just as important to Mancusi’s development, which has been on an upward trajectory for years.

While Kalisto gains more experience in the ring next year, Mancusi and Johnny will try to repeat an impressive first season together. Her sights are on a higher placing at the North American Youth Championships and qualifying for the Nations Cup.

“I think it’s been pretty successful. I mean, with Johnny, it was nice because every test we did, it got better throughout the season and the summer and the fall,” she said.

“There’s always room for improvement… but it was more for us as a partnership, proving that every time we went in the ring, it got a little bit better.”

joshua.frey-sam@freepress.mb.ca