Jabeena was on BBC Radio Solent's breakfast show on 15th September 2022. She was talking to presenter Laurence Herdman about the Queen’s contribution to the equestrian world and her own memories of meeting Her Majesty, following the announcement of Queen Elizabeth's death the previous week.
The Queen had a deep connection with horses, something Jabeena understands. She first met Her Majesty in 1955 when she presented her with a rosette at the Royal Windsor Horse Show.
Jabeena said: "It was a lovely day. I was told you don't wear gloves so I had one on and one off, it was quite funny really. The Queen just loved going to Royal Windsor, she would never miss anything. She would see the Prince Phillip doing the carriage driving, then the cross country and back to the show ring. She was just amazing.
"The Queen certainly loved all her horses and ponies and was very knowledgeable. She knew every horse by name, she'd pick out little things about them. She was a wonderful person, I admired her greatly."
The Queen had an enduring bond with horses throughout her life and was inducted into the British Champions Series Hall of Fame in 2021 for her services to the sport.
Jabeena said: "This was very well deserved. I was lucky enough to be at Royal Ascot on Gold Cup Day and I've never seen anybody so excited when her horse won, she was jumping and leaping up and down with her trainer. I'll never forget that day. I was very close to the Royal Box, I was virtually next door and heard the screams, the shouts, the hoorays and saw arms flying up!
"The Queen had a special bond with horses, she was very clever with the rider and the horse, putting their two brains together and analysing them, she was very quick on that. This is something I do in Modern Pentathlon, the athletes do not know their horses so the riders' attitude to the horse is very important."
You can hear the full interviews here: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p0cv44zf at 1:25:15 and 2:23:00
Yard dogs Roger, Nico and Corky were very anxious to join in.
And Bob the cat was very disappointed not to be interviewed!
