Former Orange local Amelia White is no pedestrian when it comes to the challenges of hardship and defying the odds that have been presented her way as an accomplished equestrian.
“For as long as I can remember, I was that weird kid obsessed with horses. I don’t come from a horse family at all,” Amelia said.
Now living in Germany for the past five years, successfully pursuing professional dressage while working in corporate law, Amelia is now representing Australia at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic which is a milestone that has been years in the making.
“It’s so unreal to think that this started 20 years ago, and now we are on our way to the Paralympics.”
Amelia’s many accolades within the sport of equestrian has earned her being officially long-listed for the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games and being named the Equestrian Australia High Performance Next Squad for both 2019 and 2020, which identifies rising talent within the sport.
Most significantly, Amelia placed 1st in the freestyle at CHI Al Shaqab in Doha, Qatar. Which qualified her for the Tokyo 2020 Paralympics. 
Turning the clock back to where it all started, Amelia’s journey began in Sydney where she was born and spent many years of her childhood living the city suburban lifestyle, far removed from the world of horses and the sport of equestrian.
She was involved in gymnastics during this earlier stage in her life, which Amelia stated, “I was heavily involved in gymnastics, and I remember just begging my parents for riding lessons when I was 8 years old.”
Amelia’s mother, Antje White said, “It was a bit of a surprise. She came home from school and told us she would like to learn how to ride. We didn’t come from an Equestrian background and were concerned that it would be a fad.
We told Amelia to learn everything she could about horses and riding to the point of being able to answer any question we might ask of her. 6 months later, she had done her research and calmly said ‘OK, I’m ready for questions. I held up my end of the bargain, when can I start riding?’
How can you say no, after she had showed us as parents that she was indeed interested and was able to answer all of the questions we’d asked her.”
After this point, Amelia would leave gymnastics entirely and dedicated herself to horse riding which she said it’s “the only sport for me.”
“I started to learn to ride relatively late at the age of 8. That was the first time I’d sat on a horse actually. It was simply something I had to do.”
Her family would end up moving to a property outside of Orange during her teen years where the world of equestrian, especially eventing, opened up to her.
Described by her parents as always being fiercely “driven, hardworking and astute student” in life. Amelia would go onto received her student pilot licence at the tender age of 15 and was aspiring to pursue an aviation career as a fighter pilot in the Australian Air Force during high school.
Continuing throughout her teen years, Amelia began competing in horse riding through Eventing, which she’d loved the most about equestrian.
Unfortunately, in 2010, Amelia was caught in the middle of a car accident which left her with permanent injuries to her upper body, spine, and legs. She was 18 years old at the time.
After many surgeries and rehabilitations over the years, Amelia was disappointed by the prospect of potentially not being able to competitively ride again in Eventing due to her injuries. As well, she was dishearten with forgoing her career aspirations as a fighter pilot.
However, there was a glimmer of hope after speaking with her training coach at the time, Olympian Megan Jones who suggested to Amelia in pursuing Para Equestrian side of the sport. Which Amelia pondered the idea for several years as she strongly focused on healing herself and training towards the goal of returning to Eventing.
Amelia would go on to keep herself busy outside of the equestrian world after the life-changing car accident.

 After graduating high school she completed her tertiary education with a Double Bachelor’s Degree in Law and Criminology, graduating with Honours. Following this, she obtained her Masters in Law and a Diploma of Legal Practice while continuing to train in riding across Australia and Germany when she moved there in 2015.
Now after all the years of setbacks and challenges, Amelia has truly embodied what it means to follow your dreams that’s fuelled by sheer determination, passion and self-belief.
She has achieved her ultimate goal as she explains all her hard work is coming full circle, “I always had the goal of a Games – I remember telling my parents after seeing the Sydney 2000 Games that I wanted to be there. I wanted to compete at the Olympics.

 I think a small part of you never really believes you’ll get there. So now, to be going, to have our Qantas plane ticket and our team uniform, it’s such an indescribable feeling.
In some way, I wish I could go back in time to tell my younger self to just keep going, that the hard days are worth it because you’ll make it.”

 Amelia currently sets her sights on the competing goal of qualifying for the freestyle once in Tokyo:
“Only the best eight from every grade go through, and if we can be up there with the best in the world, qualifying for the freestyle, I will be thrilled. Australia has a very strong team, and a team medal is certainly in our sights.
The competition is going to be very tough, especially against the Europeans, but I know we are all going to be doing our absolute best.”