Tributes to girl killed in horse riding tragedy
Published Date:
28 January 2008
TRIBUTES have been paid to a "happy-go-lucky" girl who died after a tragic horse riding accident in Hanslope.
Shannon Bloomfield, aged 12, from Bletchley, died after her horse landed on top of her at the MK Eventing Centre at Malt Hill Farm on Sunday afternoon.
She was a keen and popular member of the Whaddon Chase Pony Club and had been taken part in a Cross Country event when the tragedy happened.
Her parents Darren and Wendy yesterday told the Citizen: "Horses were her life. She touched many people's hearts throughout her short life."
Owner of the centre, Fiona Gifkins, saw the incident and said: "She was competing at a jumping event when she suffered a tragic accident.
"She was treated on site by a paramedic and doctor and taken to Milton Keynes Hospital where she later died."
She explained: "Horses are very big animals. It misnegotiated the jump and landed on the child.
"Everyone at the centre is in a very sombre mood and our hearts go out to her parents, Wendy and Darren."
Family friend Andrew Fortune has paid tribute to the talented rider and said: "She was a really happy-go-lucky child, intelligent and she was doing what she loved to do.
"She was an outstanding girl, very popular, bright and had an adult head on her shoulders.
"She was a very promising rider and recently they had been talk about her perhaps going to the 2012 Olympics, she was that good.
"Riding was her life – she spent her whole life riding from a young age and had a real talent for it."
Mrs Gifkins agreed with those sentiments and added: "She was a great kid, always bubbly and smiling and was very popular.
"She was very competitive, and very determined.
"She won many events and had aspirations to be a top equestrian rider."
Shannon attended Cottesloe School in Wing, where pupils were informed of her death yesterday afternoon (Monday).
An inquest will open on Thursday at the Civic Offices.
If you would like to pay a tribute to Shannon, click on the link below.
The full article contains 359 words and appears in n/a newspaper.
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Last Updated:
28 January 2008 6:27 PM
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Source:
n/a
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Location:
Milton Keynes