ANNABEL Carthy is gearing up for a crack at the Under-21 National and European Championships later this year but she also holds a dream of following her heroes into the Olympics.

She is one of the brightest rising stars in British equestrian and is on the comeback trail after suffering broken ribs and a collapsed lung from a fall in January.

Horses Indigo Mist, Bazaars Ghost and Renegade Marmalade are her principal hopes for this year and Carthy reckons jumping through the short-term hoops can haul her in the same Olympic direction as those Team GB heroes she watched win gold at Greenwich Park in London 2012.

“Over the next three or four years, I’d love to start doing some Nations Cups, which are all over Europe and America,” added Carthy, who hails from Wilmslow and is following in the SportsAid footsteps of Jessica Ennis-Hill and Dina Asher-Smith.

“That would be my shorter-term goal, to start getting my flags and representing senior teams. Then if that all goes well, you have to put stuff like the Olympics in your sights. It’s very exciting.”

Carthy and her mum, Alison, were lucky enough to get their hands on tickets to watch Scott Brash, Peter Charles, Ben Maher and Nick Skelton capture the hearts of the equestrian nation by scooping gold at London 2012.

And with under 100 days to go until the Tokyo Games this summer, Carthy, 21, said: “One of my fondest memories of the Olympics is that I was able to watch the GB team jumping win gold in London.

“I was lucky enough to be there. We were on the waiting list and didn’t get any tickets initially – but literally three hours before, we got a phone call saying someone’s just dropped out.

“We were like ‘absolutely!’ We just packed a bag, jumped on a train and went to London – and they won gold.

“It was incredible. I still think back to it now when I watch any videos on highlight reels and I go ‘wow, what a day for British equestrian.’ It was amazing.

“Great Britain is such a strong country in the sport – the Olympics in Rio were quite tough but I’ll be glued to the TV for Tokyo.”

Carthy’s riding career is powered by a partnership between Entain – owner of Ladbrokes and Coral – and SportsAid which provides vital funding for training, travel, equipment and access to mentoring.

The investment is supported by 11-time Paralympic gold medallist Baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson and Carthy has taken full advantage throughout the last few lockdowns.

She spent 12 weeks on an intensive training course with three-time Olympic medallist Andrew Nicholson in Marlborough, Wiltshire, before enjoying success at a three-star event in Bicton at the end of last year.

But after her fall three months ago and resulting injuries she is now back on the comeback trail ahead of a bumper 2021.

Horses Indigo Mist, Bazaars Ghost and Renegade Marmalade are her principal hopes for this year and Carthy reckons jumping through the short-term hoops can haul her in the same Olympic direction as those heroes of 2012.

“Over the next three or four years, I’d love to start doing some Nations Cups, which are all over Europe and America,” added Carthy, who is following in the SportsAid footsteps of Jessica Ennis-Hill and Dina Asher-Smith.

“That would be my shorter-term goal, to start getting my flags and representing senior teams.

“Then if that all goes well, the you have to put stuff like the Olympics in your sights. It’s very exciting.”

Entain, owner of Ladbrokes and Coral, is proud to be championing the next generation of British sporting heroes by providing talented young athletes with financial support and personal development opportunities in partnership with SportsAid. Visit entaingroup.com to find out more.