A 14,000km journey is gifting two trotting teens a life-changing experience that will fuel their harness racing careers.
Linnea Hollander, 18 of Jarvso, and Nathalie Sandberg (pictured right), 18 of Enkoping, landed in Melbourne from Sweden on Monday on a month-long internship, which had them join Matt Craven’s Terang stable yesterday for a two-week stay.
The students from Travskolan Wangen, a Swedish trotting high school, were selected for the opportunity, the third time the school’s internship scheme has sent students to Victoria.
“I am looking forward to seeing the difference between Australian trotters and Swedish trotters, and also see the pacers, which we don’t have in Sweden,” Sandberg said.
“I am looking forward to going to the stables and follow the grooming of the horses to see how they work.”
The duo will follow their stint at Craven’s stable with two weeks with David Aiken’s Avenel team.
Hollander (pictured below) said it was “a life experience to be here and hopefully I will learn something I can use back home”.
“I feel I have already grown as a person,” Hollander said. “It’s my first time to fly.”
Both plan to begin their careers as stablehands or groomers, and wish to one day become trainers heading their own European stables.
Their high school program is specially designed to provide skills required in training stables, including horse biology and health, feeding, riding and training.
Sandberg said her passion for the sport blossomed from riding her sister’s horse.
“I got practicing and then started to learn about trotting,” she said. “I like the trotting, but it’s the horses that I am here for.”
Hollander’s interest was sparked by her neighbours, who manage trotting horses, which she started to ride.
“Lately they got more younger horses and I have been helping to drive them,” she said.
They are experiences that will only be fast-tracked with time spent at two of Victoria’s leading stables.
Harness Racing Victoria general manager – operations Vaughn Lynch said the venture was a continuation of international knowledge-sharing, which helped to boost the sport at home and abroad.
Media enquiries:
MICHAEL HOWARD
MEDIA & COMMUNICATIONS CO-ORDINATOR
HARNESS RACING VICTORIA
PO BOX 184, MOONEE PONDS, VIC 3039
400 EPSOM ROAD, FLEMINGTON, VIC 3031
t: 03 8378 0286 | f: 03 9214 0699 | e: mhoward@hrv.org.au
www.hrv.org.au
