‘You don’t need it all by 22 – just keep showing up’: Gareth Hughes on the reality of making it in dressage and advice for the next generation
On the latest episode of The Horse & Hound Podcast, Gareth Hughes shares the highs, setbacks and hard-earned lessons of building a professional riding career – and offers career advice to the next generation of aspiring dressage riders.
When Gareth first arrived in Britain in his early 20s, success in dressage seemed a distant dream. To stay afloat, he clipped horses, showed Arabians, taught lessons – anything he could.
“You think if you work hard, the horses, the success, the money will come,” Gareth says. “But it doesn’t. And it never happens as quickly as you expect.”
Born in the UK but raised in Australia, Gareth returned to Britain without a network or a clear plan.
“I hadn’t grown up here. I didn’t know anyone. I felt like I was going round in circles, not sure if I was even on the right track.”
A defining moment came after a trip home to Australia.
“I’d half-decided to stay there,” he recalls. “But when I got back to the UK, I opened my post – and I’d been put on the World Class Programme. That was the sign. That changed everything.”
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Even then, the path wasn’t all plain sailing.
“The reality is, you fail a lot on the way up,” Gareth says. “If you’re pushing for something, it’s normal to feel self-doubt and anxiety. Success doesn’t come from avoiding that. It comes from learning how to carry on through it.”
Dressage career advice: why success takes longer – and harder work – than you think
Today, Gareth sees new pressures on young riders, particularly from social media.
“You only see the good stuff,” he says. “You don’t see the early mornings, the setbacks, the days you want to quit. It’s easy to think everyone else has it sorted – and that you’re failing if you don’t.”
In reality, he says, progress is slow and messy – and that’s perfectly normal.
“You don’t earn a living from competing. You earn it through the work at home: the coaching, the yard work, the everyday graft. That’s what pays your bills.”
Now, Gareth’s daughter Ruby is forging her own career, but even with support, Gareth and his wife Rebecca have stressed the same values: patience, graft, and building horses from scratch.
“We can’t afford to go out and buy the ready-made horses,” Gareth says. “Ruby’s had to learn to train her own. And honestly, that’s better. It teaches you what really matters.”
His advice to young riders?
“Find a yard. Muck in. Work hard. Take every opportunity. If you love it enough, you’ll find a way. It’s not glamorous – but that’s what makes it real.”
And if you’re still waiting for that breakthrough?
“I didn’t really get going until I was 27, 28,” Gareth says. “I was into my 30s before anything big happened. You don’t need to have it all by 22. Just keep showing up. That’s the secret.”
To hear Gareth Hughes’ full interview – including his career advice for aspiring dressage riders and thoughts on the pressures of social media – listen to episode 164 of The Horse & Hound Podcast here, or search “The Horse & Hound Podcast” in your favourite podcast app.
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Oscar joined Horse & Hound in October 2023 and is the magazine’s dressage editor and sports manager, overseeing coverage of equestrian sport. After studying equine science at Myerscough College, he spent four years working for leading dressage rider Emile Faurie, competing at the 2015 National Dressage Championships and travelling with the yard to CDIs including Aachen and Saumur. He holds a master’s degree in Literature from York St John University (2021).