Hobby horsing competitor’s ‘entire physique burning in ache’ after routine

A hobby horse competitor has posted dramatic video of her writhing in pain following the completion of her round in the unusual tournament. 

The 40-second clip that was posted to TikTok shows nothing of the actual routine, but the rider, Anna, can be seen convulsing on the ground after her performance. 

The teen appears to be completely out of breath as she is seen gasping for air on the floor of a sports hall. 

In one portion of the video she can be seen coughing and hyperventilating, looking as though she was on the verge of throwing up.

‘This is me after my dressage routine… I was passing out, couldn’t breathe, almost throwing up, dizzy, shaking, whole body burning in pain…’ 16-year-old Anna captioned the video.

A hobby horse competitor has posted dramatic video of her writhing in pain following the completion of her round in the unusual tournament

Anna, 16, from the Czech Republic could be seen gasping for air and looked to be in pain

She countered claims that hobby horsing is easy, highlighting the intense physical exertion involved that sees riders trotting around like horses.  

‘”Hobbyhorsing is not a sport, it’s easy and everyone can do that” . . . Oh yeah?’, Anna asks on her TikTok, in a clap back at critics. 

‘Yeah, it looks easy, but this is reality :)’ she responds. 

Anna has posted a series of videos of her hobby horsing around in the last week, one of which appeared to show her winning a ‘national championship’ – but the comments have not been kind.

‘I think this says more about your stamina than it does about a hobby horsing’, wrote one TikTok user.

‘Hobby horsing is NOT easy. It takes years of dedication to believe it is a real sport’, mocked a second.

‘Hobby horsing? When I was a kid we called it playing,’ added another. 

Anna has posted a series of videos of her hobby horsing around in the last week one of which appeared to show her winning a ‘national championship’ 

The hobby-horsing craze has been around for a number of years and sees mainly teenage girls riding around on pretend animals and competing in contests. 

The tournaments have coaches and judges with the participants obliged to abide by the rules of horse-riding competitions. 

Like a real horse and its rider, the hobby-horse and its master form a team and become attached to one another. The sport also simulates traditional equestrian events such as dressage and show jumping.  

Some actual horse riders may look down on hobby-horsing as a childlike past-time and not suitable for anyone aged over 10, but Fred Sundwall, the secretary general of the Equestrian Federation of Finland, disagrees.

‘We think it’s simply wonderful that hobby-horsing has become a phenomenon and so popular,’ Sundwall said during a 2017 interview.

A girl jumps during a training session at a Hobby horsing competition in Russia, in April

The hobby-horsing craze has been around for a number of years and sees mainly teenage girls riding around on pretend animals and competing in contests. Pictures, an April competition 

Dozens of hobby horses are lined up ready to be ridden during a Hobby Horse championship in Finland (file photo from 2019)

‘It gives a chance to those children and teens who don’t own horses to interact with them also outside stables and riding schools.’

The discipline comes from Finland and it is still more of a grassroots movement rather than a professional sport.

Finland has more than 10,000 hobby-horse aficionados – by far the largest number in any country. 

But the sport is gradually gaining momentum in some other European nations like Sweden, Germany, the Netherlands and Switzerland, all hotbeds for equestrian sports. 

The vast majority of the hobbyhorses are homemade – exchanged and sold by owners at events and through social media.