‘She’s unbelievable’: rider who cheated death takes on national championships

A rider who suffered near-fatal injuries when a tractor sliced into her car and spent three months in a coma is being cheered on by her team of supporters at Bramham International Horse Trials.

Lucy Ohlson had to be resuscitated multiple times in the ambulance after her accident 14 years ago, and spent months in hospital. Seven years later, she smashed her pelvis in a rotational fall at home. But Lucy, described by her friend Jodine Milne-Reader as “one of the toughest, feistiest little beasties you’d ever meet”, has fought her way back to eventing.

She and her own Thomastown Chief (Fred) are contesting the Bramham BE80 championships this week.

“She’ll have her full cheerleading squad there,” Jodine told H&H. “She’s unbelievable; you forget sometimes what she’s done and it makes you emotional. I honestly think if it had happened to anyone else, they wouldn’t have got through it.

“Lucy’s hard work, determination and attitude to training is like nothing you’ve ever seen.”

Lucy was 27 when the tractor and plough cut open her car – and herself. She broke her neck and punctured a lung, as well as suffering a brain haemorrhage – and when she came round afterwards in hospital, she thought she must have fallen off a horse.

“I couldn’t walk,” she told H&H. “I was in the rehab centre for six months, then in a wheelchair, and in the end left there walking on sticks. But I never thought I wasn’t going to ride again.”

Gradually, Lucy recovered; horses had “been her life”, riding and teaching, and she was back at the yard, and in the saddle, as soon as possible.

She bought Irish-bred Fred as a youngster about 10 years ago and the pair have competed across the north of England, winning a fistful of unaffiliated events, then turning to British Eventing (BE) in 2019 – and qualifying for Bramham.

But their path together has not been a smooth one; in 2017 they had a rotational fall at home.

“I sent a photo of her pelvis to my nephew, who’s a doctor, and he said ‘She hasn’t just broken it, she’s smashed it to smithereens’,” said Jodine. “I remember her going to Bramham on a scooter, she was determined to go.”

Lucy said she was immobilised again “for a couple of months”, but was back in the saddle six to seven months after the fall. And although she now lives with pain as a result of her accidents, and issues such as asthma in the lungs that were punctured, she is determined to carry on.

“I love it; it’s my life,” she said. “It’s a lifestyle, I’ve got eight horses of my own on my farm. I’ve chosen this.”

She added that qualifying for Bramham had been her big goal since she started BE.

“I’d always had it in my sights so it was brilliant to get it,” she said.

Fred has to be managed carefully too, as he is prone to azoturia, or tying up, but the pair are going to give Bramham their best shot.

“He’s lovely,” said Lucy. “A really nice person who loves his job.”

And Jodine added: “This is a dream come true for Lucy – and all of us as her friends. We will all be there as the Fred and Lucy cheerleading team.

“They know each other inside out and will be going into this with as much chance as everyone.”

You might also be interested in:

Horse & Hound magazine, out every Thursday, is packed with all the latest news and reports, as well as interviews, specials, nostalgia, vet and training advice. Find how you can enjoy the magazine delivered to your door every week, plus options to upgrade your subscription to access our online service that brings you breaking news and reports as well as other benefits.