An olympic background:
Greg and Jennie McDermott, both from the Junee area in NSW, met at a gymkhana in their teens. Jennie, one of three girls, lived on a farm between Wagga and Junee. “Dad bred Australian stock horses and we all rode,” remembers Jennie. “We went to pony club and did the local shows and gymkhanas and I rode at Sydney Royal. We were horsey but not serious about our riding.” Greg was a town boy and a good sportsman. He played rugby league for NSW when he was still at school and was a good swimmer. Horses and ponies were not far removed from even a town boy in those days and riding was one of the available activities for the children in the area. Greg liked the horses, an interest fuelled by the natural talent that is only bestowed on a few. “I just liked the horses and my family was fine with me wanting to ride,” explains Greg. He did not know it at the time, but fortune was to favour the young rider from Junee, and give him the foundation for his future success. “When I was about 13 we went to visit mum’s mother who had 10 acres at Bowral, in the Southern Highlands area of New South Wales. Her property was not far from the then National Olympic training facility and the Australian Equestrian Team trainer, Franz Maringer, boarded with my grandmother at the time. Franz encouraged me to bring my horse back for two weeks during the school holidays and I did. I had a hot thoroughbred and he could jump anything. Riding back from my lesson I would, without permission, jump all the cross-country fences and one day Franz saw me and could not believe it. I could point and steer and jump anything, but I knew nothing. I went back to Franz a couple of times and he taught me a lot and was very influential. After that I didn’t have any formal instruction until George Morris came to Australia in 1986 and he greatly influenced my career.”
Greg and Jennie married, and after paying off the property they bought, travelled the country competing on the lucrative Bond showjumping circuit. “We did that for about five years in a row … it was a great time, but I had to win to get the petrol money to get to the next show.” Greg had many successful horses and was short listed for the Los Angeles Games in 1984, but his career really took off when Gordon Jones offered him the ride on Mr Shrimpton, a horse that Greg Eurell had ridden on the Australian team in LA. In 1988, Greg rode Mr Shrimpton in New Zealand and was a member of the Australian Team at the Seoul Olympic Games. In 1990, Greg won the Australian World Cup League and competed at the final in Germany, with a place in the World Equestrian Games in Stockholm much anticipated later in the year. Mr Shrimpton was a popular horse on the European tour and even at 17 years of age there were offers to purchase the spectacular jumper. Sadly, he broke down before Stockholm and tragically died following a bout of colic when in quarantine in England awaiting his return to Australia.
Keep it in the family
Greg continued to ride for a short time after he arrived back in Australia. “Once we had been to Europe and knew the calibre of horse that was needed to be successful over there, a horse that we did not have, there was not the incentive to keep going,” explains Jennie. “Our daughter, Stephanie, was born in 1992 and Tom a year later and we didn’t want to cart babies around the shows.”
“The racehorse training just sort of fell into Greg’s lap, first with breaking in and pre-training and it grew from there.”
“We sold up in Junee and for some years lived in suburban Wagga, but Tom was not a kid who was interested in toys or computers, he just wanted to be outside. So when he was about four we bought ten acres a few kilometres out of Wagga with a tennis court but no stables. The children were not really interested in horses and we just wanted them to grow up as we both had. Along the way we ended up getting a pony and the tennis court became an arena because we could shut the gate and know they would be pretty safe in there. We didn’t overly encourage either Stephanie or Tom and believed that they could not go out and ride unless they could put the saddle and bridle on themselves. Tom’s first pony was 31-year-old Flicka and at five years old he could saddle her up if he stood on a crate. In the beginning, it was just riding for fun. They would ride to visit friends and be away half the day and gradually they both became really keen.”
Both Stephanie and Tom became super competitive in the jumping arena, with Stephanie winning the Category B FEI Children’s International Jumping Competition in 2004 riding He’s Crafty, and ranked ninth individually in the FEI Children’s World Rankings. “Early on we knew Tom had that natural ability,” admitted Jennie. “Stephanie would really work at it and be able to follow Greg’s directions precisely, but we realised Tom was a gifted rider in 2006 when we took him down to the Australian Championships at Sale. It was unbelievable and we never expected him to win. Stephanie made the final as well and they were on the NSW Junior Team.”
“I knew they both could ride,” continues Greg, “but Tom had that real desire to win and he had that from day one. He also had a wonderful eye for a stride and a sense of timing. From the beginning, we tried to teach him the right way to go about his riding and we made sure we bought him the right sort of horses; not horses that would win everything, horses that would teach him. Most of them in the early days were ex-racehorses and he did very well in jumping classes with the Show Galloway, Murrum Park Goodwood. There is a difference between riding well and riding well enough to make a horse. We brought him up to make horses, to educate them and get them going well enough that if they don’t suit us they will be good, saleable horses”.
As Tom’s enthusiasm for showjumping escalated, Stephanie moved towards playing netball, which she found a more social, team sport. After completing her HSC she moved on to an Arts/Secondary Teaching degree but she still takes an interest in watching Tom and keeps in touch with her showjumping friends.
Since his national title in 2006, Tom has claimed the National Junior Championship in 2008 and 2010, was declared National Young Rider Champion in 2010, named 2010 Equestrian Australia Young Rider of the Year and Equestrian Australia 2011 Young Athlete of the Year. His efforts earned him a place on the Australian Showjumping Team at the 2009 Youth Olympics in Sydney and last year Tom was the only Australian representative at the Youth Olympic Games in Singapore where he helped the Australasian Team win the silver medal. “The Youth Olympics in Singapore were a huge experience and very big, just like the Senior Games,” remembers Tom. “It really tested the quality of your riding.” During the competition in Singapore, FEI Jumping Manager, John Roche commented to Australian Course Designer, John Vallance, that Tom reminded him of a young Marcus Ehning, the champion German rider who, among other major awards, has won the World Cup Final three times. In 2008, Tom won the Young Rider Ammo Shootout organised by Annie Lever and Equestrian Life magazine, with the winning rider spending time with the famous Klatte jumping family in Lastrup, Germany. “All he wanted to do was to go over there,” recalls Greg. “They gave him a couple of young horses to train and they were surprised at how quickly and how well he got them going. They were keen to have him back, but he realised how hard it is over there and that there are a lot of kids like him there.”
“I was young and homesick when I went to Germany and at that stage I didn’t want to stay,” continues Tom, who has now reached the grand age of 18. “I have been overseas a few times now and I am keen to go back, but I would like to do that with a horse or horses of my own. I hope that in the next few years the right horses will come along that will be good enough to take me to the WEG and the Olympic Games. I knew I wanted to work with horses full time after I won at Sale in 2006, but sometimes I find it hard to be patient, but I know it’s part of the game.”
A bright future
“Tom always disliked school,” explains Jennie, “and we let him leave after Year 11. We know what a tough life it is full time with horses, but we had to face the fact that it is what he wants to do. He works really hard and has a routine and Greg is here much of the time to help if he needs it, but Tom does all the work himself.”
“It works well with dad,” says Tom.
“It is not always easy, but I think that just happens with your parents. Both mum and dad have a great eye for a horse and dad especially is great as my eyes on the ground. I was never pushed in to horses, but they knew it was what I wanted to do. It is hard work, as sometimes there have been up to 15 horses to work, but it is work I love. There is still so much for me to learn. I attend the George Morris clinics when he comes out and they have been great, although the first one was a bit of an eye opener. Chris Chugg has shown us, with Vivant, that international horses can be produced here in Australia and there are great role models like former Australian National Coach and Olympian, Rod Brown, who has achieved so much and is always there to help. As much as I can, I follow every single rider in the world and every single horse. They all influence me. I now have people sending me horses to train and have great support, especially from Carole Mason who owns the imported Warmblood, Rolex, with us. I started in my first World Cup Qualifier at the Sydney Olympic venue in May and I am keen to step up to that level of competition this year. As well as riding and training, I love teaching, and my winter projects this year are to get my P plates and begin my NCAS Level 1 Coaching Accreditation studies.”
Tom has both nature and nurture on his side and when the affable young man is ready to spread his wings, they will carry him high in the world of showjumping.