Have you ever wondered what goes on behind the scenes at both shows and at home? Our interview series is all about catching up with various individuals in this exciting sport and getting the low down on their lives. The ups, the downs, and everything in between!
This week we are extremely fortunate to be able to share an interview we conducted with Irish international showjumper, Alex Duffy, for our "10 Questions" interview series!
Could you start by telling us about your job?
My job is to produce horses to highest level possible for resale
What do you love most about producing horses?
I love the challenge of figuring out each individual horse and what works best for them
And what do you like least about your job?
The only part of my job I don’t like is when the horse gets sold. We often spend many years producing a horse to the top level and sometimes it’s quite hard to let them go just when they performing at a high level
What do you do to unwind or relax?
Well, I’m a very laid back person so I generally have to find ways to wind myself up as opposed to unwind!
What horses are on your team this season?
I have a great string of young horses at them moment but a stand out horse for me is Killosery Konfusion. He is a 10yo Irish sport horse owned by Niall Talbot and Nicola Fitzgibbon, he has just stepped up to the 1.50 / 1.55 level comfortably and we really believe this is a horse that can go all the way.
Do you have a coach you work with at home?
Yes, I’m lucky enough to have Niall Talbot keeping an eye on me
Do you believe attitude is a key factor/motivation for longevity in the sport?
Absolutely, your attitude is everything. John Whitaker once told me that the fact is we will have more bad days than good in this sport, so don’t take the bad days personally. Always just take the positive and the lesson to be learned from every day and move on to the next.
Tell us about the horse that taught you the most.
Without a doubt, it was Antello z. He was an amazing jumper and had every quality needed, but he was very tricky to ride. He like to come sideways around the turns and sometimes see monsters that were not there, you always had to improvise when riding Antello in the ring because the plan always went out the window. On a normal 7 stride distance he could run sideways half way down the line and you might end up doing 10 strides. He was very unpredictable. He taught me to think fast and stay calm, he also taught me to be confident because to ride this horse you had to be very sure of yourself. He was a top class showjumper and went on to jump at the European and world championships and win 5* Grand Prixs with Cameron Hanley.
Who has been an inspiration to you?
Cameron Hanley, there is no such thing as giving up with Cameron and he always pushes himself to be better.
And, finally, who do you currently admire in the sport?
All the Irish ☘️ I love to follow the results of all the Irish around the world every weekend.
Thank you, Alex, for taking the time to speak to us!
Keep an eye on our website and social media pages for several more interviews which will be published in the next few days!
Anyone interested in featuring in our interview series, please contact andrea@jackdoddfoundation.org
