I my first E-jumping I was sitting on pony Prince and 8 years old. It was at a regional tournament in Baden-Württemberg, where the judges sit on these typical tractor trailers – including a beer bench, beer table and a giant bell for the start. My parents were at least as excited as I was and filmed my ride from that judge trailer. Thus, you cannot only watch the ride on that film but also hear the judges comments. Already at that moment, their comments hit the nail on the head: ”She’s better in show jumping than dressage!” In this E-jumping tournament I came second. I was mostly worse in dressage. Dressage tests have always been an obligatory discipline for me!

Of course, meanwhile I know that dressage is the basis for each show-jumping course, but my heart belongs to show jumping. Every day, I enjoy horses, riding and show jumping taking the centre stage in my life. And I am grateful, deeply grateful to all the people who support me: my family, my coach, my sponsors, keepers and friends.

Of course, this sport is no walk in the park, particularly on top level. Each week has seven days with far more than eight working hours per day, each weekend you go from one fully challenging tournament to the next tournament, there is hardly any time for a private life, holidays or hobbies a side riding. However, this life is an absolute privilege for me and I am happy to share some of my special life with you through this website: the highlights, the victories, the successes, exciting and thrilling moments – it never becomes boring! Nevertheless, there are also hard times, injured horses, own injuries, defeats and disappointment – that’s also part of the game!

My birthday 
30th October 1977

My zodiac sign 
Scorpio

My profession 
Industrial business management assistant

My loved ones 
My father Hans Werner Aufrecht, my mother Roswitha Aufrecht and my sister Eva-Maria. My grandmother and my grandfather, Luise and Erich Bohmwetsch, and my boyfriend Gert-Jan Bruggink.

My hobbies – provided that I have some spare time
Skiing, running and going to the cinema

My aim in life
I think my aim in life is something everyone can understand, because most people feel the same way. I would like to be healthy and content – these are my top priorities. And, of course, I would like to celebrate many great achievements with my horses. And then, one day, I would like to start a family and have children.

My philosophy of life...
...is a three-part – suitable for me, my sport and my life:
- There will always be sunshine after the rain.
- Nothing is as bad as it seems.
- When the going gets tough, the tough get going.

Such a moment happened in June 2003 – it was a moment that explained everything: At that time, I rode into the main stadium of Soers, a district of Aachen, on the back of Ingmar. The first gallop on the holy turf – it was just amazing. The course is simply huge – in all directions. When you enter it at the front, you cannot even see the jumps at the back. Normally, one jump is followed by the next jump, but on this course there is simply too much space. This course went down in history scores of time and suddenly I was also part of it. These are the moments you are working towards and they explain an entire life.

I remember the buzzwords ”stable, horses and nature” when I think of my childhood. I crawled through nettles, collected worms and romped in the mud. School was not quite my cup of tea. Honestly speaking, I was glad when it was over. However, maths and physics were still the subjects that I could make some use of. Moreover, I was often sick as a child and my mother thus often went for a walk with me so that I got a bit of fresh air. We came past paddocks almost every time and I was always fascinated by them. When I was seven years old, I was allowed to start horse riding and it quickly became clear: I wanted to learn show-jumping! When I was eight years old, I participated in my first E-jumping with my first pony Prince and came second. From that moment in time, it became even clearer: Horses and show-jumping – this has been the philosophy of my life since then.

When I was eleven years old, I won my first title with the pony team at the Southern German Hall Championship; when I was twelve, I participated in the my first European Championship in the pony saddle. This was amazing and I was very proud, but it has not always been easy. While all the other girls in my grade were listening to pop music and collecting posters, I had to practice. I did not have much time for other things. And I was three or four years younger than my team members and thus often had to hear that my father had so much money and was able to buy me the most expensive ponies. However, I think this is the reason why I sometimes had to work and practise even harder than all others. Yet, this is what I always wanted – I wanted to ride and I wanted to become better. Moreover, it was more important to me that my father always stood behind me as a person and believed in me than to have all the money. He told me again and again that I have to pull through the things I really want and that I am in a position to do so. My mother and my sister have also always been there for me – I would almost say: in good times as well as in bad times... And this is much more important than anything else in our sport: People who give you encouragement. This was true for the pony time, at the juniors and young riders stage and now it is more than ever. For the sports pressure becomes bigger and bigger. Then, it makes a difference whether you participate as a no-name or as position 19 of the world ranking – position 19 is how far I got in 2004. It is a great feeling, but it comes along with a bit of stress – expectations of your own performance.

During my pony, juniors and young riders time, I participated in seven European Championships. I saw many places around the world, experienced a lot, learned how to deal with pressure and gained skills in the jumping saddle. I practised with Nelson Pessoa, Fritz Ligges and Achaz von Buchwaldt.

All these stages were very important for my career, but the real international breakthrough for me came in 2003. At the beginning of year, I moved to the vicinity of Münster with my horses and started my training with Kurt Gravemeier. He brought me where I am today. In 2003, I was appointed to join the B-squad, won the Grand Prix of Mannheim against international cracks, participated in Aachen for the first time and in the jump-off at the Prize of Europe and became vice champion at the German Championship – this was an incredible season for me. And this is only where it begins! Coming second at the German Championship (Women) was really great, but I was even more proud of the bronze metal at the German Championship (Men) in 2005 – this was also a highlight, such a moment, towards which your have worked for years and which compensates you for quite some dry spells. The victory on my 27th birthday at the Grand Prix of our own tournament in Affalterbach was also one of these special, incredibly emotional moments – a birthday victory in front of ”my” audience on the back of my favourite Ingmar. Just the memory gives me goose bumps.

I also abandoned my business studies for equestrianism including all its ups and downs and its ”special moments” – I have not regretted this decision for a single second. If you are not part of this tournament circus, you might wonder how we riders ”persevere”: the constant pressure to perform, the ”gipsy life” from one tournament hotel to the next tournament hotel, this dependence on performance – weekend after weekend. I can only say: I have learned to deal with pressure and I absolutely enjoy this life. On Sundays, I am always a bit exhausted and happy to have finished another tournament. On Mondays, I repose for a while and only ride a few horses relaxedly, on Tuesdays, I start real work with the horses again, on Wednesdays I mostly miss the tournament atmosphere again and on Thursdays, I am really happy to go to the next tournament.

Whenever I have the time and strength to fight my inner temptation, I also go for a run. I have had some problems with my right meniscus for several years. The better I build up muscles, the less it hurts. Thus, I go for runs in order to avoid an operation in the long-term. However, my inner temptation sometimes prefers the sofa or the cinema...

Well, there is not much time left for relaxation. Nonetheless, I feel very well with this way of life and when I really want to relax, I love baking cookies or cakes, which we devour with the team in the stable.

There is still one passion aside horses that I have to admit: I love watches! And this love is not pulled out of thin air, I inherited it from my father. Both of us are passionate watch collectors. At the moment, I dedicate my life to horses and sport, but I am naturally aware of the fact that there will be ”another” life. On the one hand, after the sports career, when I have to earn my money by way of training, purchase and sale or coaching and on the other hand, a life after the horses. This is still unimaginable for me, however, I can imagine that I will slip into the role of a housewife and mother in a few years time. And then I will take time for holidays and travelling – to America or Australia for example.