Dual Olympian Penny and at home with her retired show horse Swell. Image supplied.
Horses have always been part of Penny Smith’s life. A dual Olympian and Paris bronze medallist in trap shooting, Penny has dedicated more than a decade to the sport – but away from the rifle range, the 29-year-old loves nothing more than relaxing in the saddle on the family dairy farm in southwest Victoria.
Growing up on a farm outside of Camperdown in Victoria’s Western District, it’s perhaps no surprise that horses have played a part in Penny Smith’s life. Farm life and horses go hand-in-hand, and Camperdown – a town synonymous with the famed Roycroft family – has a long history with equestrian sports.
Penny’s family also has a history with horses. Her parents both rode as children, with her mother Kim in particular following the equestrian path. In 1984, Kim groomed for none other than Andrew Hoy at the Los Angeles Olympics – the eventer’s first of eight Games.
Like many farm kids, Penny was in the saddle of a little black and white Shetland by age three. Named Pentland Becky, this pony introduced Penny to riding and competition, taking her from Pony Club to Royal Shows. “Each weekend we would be off riding at events, often at Werribee. My parents really got me into riding, and it’s certainly still a love of mine today,” explains Penny.
Her family purchased off the track Thoroughbred Swell (racing name Son of a Sailor) as a six-year-old, and he became Penny’s show ring partner for many years. “We bought him out of Wollongong when he was six years old in 2009… he raced but was no good as a racehorse,” she recalls. “We transformed him into a show horse, and I had a lot of success with him.”
The pair competed at Barastoc Horse of the Year Show, most notably winning the Owner Rider Horse of the Year and Junior Saddle Horse titles in 2011.
“In 1984, Kim groomed for
none other than Andrew Hoy
at the Los Angeles Olympics…”
Penny’s mum Kim groomed for Andrew Hoy at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympic Games and still rides.
FROM RIDING TO TRAP SHOOTING
Years later, Penny would be back at Werribee – her closest Olympic training facility for shooting – on a very regular basis
Penny explains that her foray into what would become her Olympic sport was quite serendipitous; riding rather than shooting was her passion growing up. It was her brother who introduced her to the sport. Involved in a serious dirt bike accident, he spent many weeks recovering in hospital; on his return home, their parents suggested he take up a safer pastime.
Penny was roped into joining her brother to make a team of three for a school team shooting event. At the time, it wasn’t the direction she wanted to take – equestrian sport was still her leading passion – however one thing led to another, and she ended up at the national championships in trap shooting. Penny had some success and ran with it.
Her coach said that if she wanted to make the team for Tokyo, she’d need to dedicate the next eight years to trap shooting – and that’s what she did. There were countless hours spent at Colac Clay Target Club and her parents endlessly completed the five-hour round trip to Werribee so that Penny could train at the elite level with Olympic coaches. In between, she squeezed in her retail job at RB Sellars Warrnambool and spent as much time as she could with her beloved horses.
The sacrifices began to pay off. In 2013, Penny claimed silver at the Oceania Championships as a junior; she then won gold at her first World Cup as a senior in Delhi in 2017; claimed the Australian title in 2020; and ultimately made the team for Tokyo in 2021, placing sixth in the final.
Penny at the Paris Olympics, where she secured the bronze medal in trap shooting.
With her eyes on Paris, Penny claimed World Cup gold last year in Doha, and then topped the Shooting Australia leaderboard for Paris nominations. She is now an Olympic bronze medallist following a high-scoring, heart-stopping competition in Paris in which she overcame a three-way shoot-off to make the final.
“It’s a really special thing that we can all share together,” says Penny of her and her mother’s joint Olympic experiences. “Mum’s journey with the horses and her involvement in the 1984 Games just kind of fed through me. Now I’m a two-time Olympian – even though it’s a different sport – it’s nice that we can cross our ties.”
At Tokyo, Penny crossed paths with none other than Andrew Hoy at his eighth Games – some thirty-seven years on from his first Olympics where Penny’s mother was his groom. “I actually walked into the dining hall and Andrew was sitting there. I introduced myself, and we got to share a special moment there. Andrew stayed in the village too, and I remember the night of the Opening Ceremony we were sitting in the athletes’ village and Andrew came over and we had a chat. He’s had a phenomenal career in the equestrian world.”
THE MENTAL ASPECT
While equestrian and shooting may appear worlds apart, there are some parallels – especially when competing at the elite level.
“Every Olympian, it doesn’t matter what sport it is, there’s always a mental aspect to it,” explains Penny. “You train so hard for days and weeks on end trying to qualify for the Olympic Games and then to get to the Games… whether you win or lose, it’s a really amazing – albeit tough – time, and then you go through the process of it all and come home and there’s a lull afterwards. You’ve trained and worked so hard to get to there, and then it’s done. You have a bit of time off, and then you start preparing for another four-year cycle.
“In this day and age, the days roll around really quickly. Four years seems like a long time, but before you know it LA will be just around the corner. The mental aspect is really critical; it’s a matter of being able to deal with it and work through the highs and lows and the pressure that you’re faced with.”
Equestrian sports and shooting both share the advantage of being accessible to a relatively wide age range. “We have to be 12 to be able to obtain a firearms licence as a junior, but as long as your eyes are good and your reaction time is good, age is no barrier in the sport of shooting – much like equestrian, which is fantastic,” says Penny. “At our local gun clubs, you might have a young kid that’s 12 and you might have an 85-year-old who’s still shooting.”
It’s no secret that equestrian has had its share of team selection controversies here in Australia over the years, but the reality is this isn’t exclusive to our sport. Penny reveals that Shooting Australia selection policies have also raised questions at times. Aiming for the 2018 Commonwealth Games, Penny was vying for one of two spots on the Australian team. She was the second-highest ranked qualifier, but selection criteria that year meant only the top-ranked qualifier was guaranteed while the second team slot was at the selectors’ discretion. They took number three.
She says that although devastating at the time, missing out on the Commonwealth Games team was the setback she needed prior to Tokyo. “If I wanted to be assured of going to Tokyo, I had to be number one… so that’s what I did,” she explains. Come Paris, the policy was changed to provide automatic team selection for the top two ranked shooters.
Penny’s show horse Swell is now 21 and retired at the family dairy farm.
‘DON’T FALL OFF THAT HORSE!’
Although much of Penny’s time nowadays is taken up with the sport of shooting, she always has time for her horses.
Her now 21-year-old retired Thoroughbred Swell remains in the paddock at home – still rugged like a Barastoc HOTY winner – alongside her 18-year-old Clydesdale cross, also purchased at age six and whom her mother now rides around the farm.
Penny lives down a three-kilometre dirt road and so often her rides involve heading out and back to check the mailbox. “I also love getting out around the cows on the horses and just having a good time. And it’s great that I can still share that with Mum.”
Last year, Penny also purchased a new horse named Flynn. “He’s a 15.1 hand, five-year-old skewbald and has a bit of everything in him; he’s got a lot of character. I’m just getting back into riding post-Olympics. I love getting out and going for a ride. At the moment I’m just doing a bit of groundwork with him, and he’s been out for a training day or two… he doesn’t have a worry in the world.
“We’ll see what the next 12 months brings, but at the moment I’m just happy kicking around and having a bit of fun. I’m not heading down the showing path with Flynn because life is just really busy, but I’d love to get out and do a few combined training days, a bit of show jumping, and maybe a bit of eventing.”
“I rode literally right
up until the day before
I left to go to Paris.”
Penn’y new horse, Flynn.
Leading up to Paris, Penny says she was still riding every day right up until she stepped on the plane. “I rode literally right up until the day before I left to go to Paris. My performance team were always checking in, saying, ‘You’re not riding that horse today, are you? Do not fall off before the Games!’” she laughs.
When away, Penny’s first question to her parents back at home is always to enquire after her horses and dogs. “I just love my animals. When you’re at a high-pressure event like the Olympics, it’s good to be able to turn your mind to something else and not have to worry about your shooting.
“Riding and being around my horses just eases my mind. It’s my happy place. You’ve got to continue to do what you love and that’s what I love doing. As soon as I got home, I was back on the horses again.”
So what’s next for the reigning Olympic bronze medallist? “LA 2028 is on the cards. I just need to wait until Shooting Australia releases their policies and procedures for 2025 to see what the next steps are there. There are a few things I’d still love to achieve in my shooting career… we’ve got four years to build to LA, so it’s certainly a possibility. You never know where life is going to take you and what direction it’s going take you in, but at the present time we’re all systems go towards LA. And until then, I’ll be spending as much time with the horses as I can!” EQ
Related articles
Australian mother of four Missy Morgan is an adventurer at heart. When the opportunity came to set family duties aside for 10 days and tackle a 1000km horse race across the Mongolian steppe, she did just that. Not only did Missy complete the journey in eight days – she was the first to cross the finish line.
Bred on a cattle station, My Rosalee wasn’t meant to be a Grand Prix dressage horse. Purchasing her as an 18-month-old filly, Queenslander Ellyn Parker has trained her all the way through from eventing at Pony Club to National Big Tour Champion.