Sue-Ellen Lovett knows the day is coming when she will wake up and her sight will be gone.
She hopes that day comes long after the London Olympics.
The hereditary condition that’s been eating away at her vision since she was born has an unavoidable conclusion.
“I have no vision in my left eye and less than two percent vision in my right eye. Even that is foggy. On bright sunny days, the fog gets thicker,”Sue-Ellen said.
This is what makes her achievements all the more extraordinary.
Sue-Ellen is in a race against time - and very stiff competition to make her third Olympic games after doing her country proud in Atlanta and Sydney.
The best thing about the London Paralympics is, if Sue-Ellen qualifies she is able to take her own horse, Ko-Olina.
At Atlanta and Sydney Paralympics the horses for the dressage riders were drawn out of a hat and the horses were supplied by the country hosting the games.
Not only is she one of our most revered paralympians, Sue-Ellen is in the top six per cent of the country’s dressage riders.
She is the only rider competing at the top level with a disability, let alone something as debilitating as blindness.
The way Sue-Ellen describes it: “My condition is like living with a time bomb. I may not show it to the world, but it makes me very scared.”
Many Australians know the stories of Louise Sauvage and Kurt Fearnley. Our greatest wheelchair athletes have won multiple world championships and Olympic gold medals between them.
But even Louise and Kurt would admit they had only themselves to prepare, worry about and rely on. Having a sometimes wilful and unpredictable creature weighing half a tonne underneath you, adds an entirely different dimension to Sue-Ellen’s daily challenges.
Needless to say, with the many issues around Sue-Ellen’s condition, it takes a very special horse and an enormous amount of trust between animal and rider to perform.
Just a couple of years ago and without a suitable horse, it seemed Sue-Ellen’s time near the top of the dressage tree was coming to an end. The window was literally closing on her career.
Enter Ko-Olina, the now 22-year-old former (very average) racehorse. The pair have become inseparable partners. Sue-Ellen, her husband Matt and great friends Mel and Simone, along with the amazing guide dog Prada, now go by the name of “Team Ko-Olina.” Such is the difference the gentle old thoroughbred has made to their lives.
Maybe you can’t teach an old dog new tricks, but this horse continues to astound with his fancy footwork and capacity to learn. He’s the Fred Astaire of the equine world.
“I just love him, he really is the most special and giving horse,” said Sue-Ellen.
Team Ko-Olina would not be complete without the “torch bearers” who literally stand arena-side holding up LED lights during Sue-Ellen’s dressage tests.
Incredible to watch, she rides to the lights at the relevant markers as the big horse carries her along, putting his best feet forward.
Sue-Ellen says: “I am like a little white moth, I ride to the light.”
In Dubbo in March next year, Sue-Ellen Lovett and Ko-Olina will take their relationship to a whole new level for their biggest ever challenge, a Grand Prix dressage competition. Grand Prix is the pinnacle of international and Olympic standards for horse and rider, placing enormous technical demands on both.
Sue-Ellen’s wonderful Belgian coach Carlos DeCleemaeker will be steering the course for horse and rider on the road to try and qualify for London.
Team Ko-Olina are off to Melbourne for the last qualifier on December 8-11, at the Dressage Festival in Werribee Victoria.
Beyond her achievements in the dressage arena, Sue-Ellen is a passionate motivational speaker. She has taken her message of courage and tenacity in the face of adversity to audiences around the country and overseas.
Her pursuit of excellence and fulfillment in her own life has inspired thousands of people. She captivates everyone, from kids to corporates.
Along the way, Sue-Ellen has also been a prolific fundraiser. Over the years no less than 16,000 charity miles (nine long distance rides) in the saddle, including a ride from Cairns to the Gold Coast, have seen her raise more than $3 million for a range of wonderful causes.
Sue-Ellen’s remarkable mum, Mary, and sister Liz all live with the condition, retinitis pigmentosa. Mary is now totally blind and the condition may yet impact Sue-Ellen’s young niece as well.
The women in the Lovett family have never surrendered to self-pity, nor for a moment shied away from the hurdles placed in their paths.
Sue-Ellen Lovett’s story is a revealing insight into overcoming hurdles in our lives, whatever they may be. At its heart, it is much more than a story of a great horse and rider.
The spirit and resolve of Sue-Ellen Lovett is as strong as any athlete you could ever meet.
For a girl who grew up riding horses on her parents’ farm near Mudgee, knowing that genetics had dealt her an ill-fated hand, nothing has ever stopped Sue-Ellen from finding the positives and shaking the most out of life.
From her guide dog Prada who has a phobia about flying, to the beautiful Ko-Olina who reminds her of the joy in life, the animals too have a significant voice to add to this incredible story.
For Sue-Ellen, the prospect of making it to London is now all-consuming.
“There is a great old Sinatra song called A Foggy Day in London town,” Sue-Ellen said.
“Come next August I couldn’t think of a more appropriate soundtrack to Ko-Olina’s and my goal of qualifying for London.”
This Sunday Sue-Ellen and Ko-Olina will be guests at the Canberra races.
They will do a display of grand prix dressage and then Sue-Ellen will be the guest speaker at the Retinitis Pigmentosa fundraising luncheon. The funds raised will help find a cure for retinitis pigmentosa.
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