Jack Whitaker is one of Britain’s most promising up and coming athletes, showjumping at international level at the tender age of 19. Having already won a silver medal in the Youth Olympics aged 17, the future certainly looks bright for this starlet as he hopes to leave his own stamp on the sport, but being the son of Michael Whitaker and the nephew of John Whitaker, the equestrian world certainly has high expectations.

Jack started off by speaking about his recent competition in Spain at the Vilamoura Equestrian Centre “We’re doing alright, trying to win. Well, I won 1 class!” He has also been affected by the recent equine Herpes outbreak, however “There’s a massive bloody disease spread between horses out here now… where I’m at is the only show running in Europe I think.”

The showjumper then carried on to discuss some of his highlights in the sport and his Olympic success “The Europeans I’ve done; I’ve been going to Europeans for 6 years and I think there’s only 1 year I’ve not come away with a medal.

“(The Olympics) was a fantastic feeling to be honest.” Jack won a Silver medal in the teams showjumping at the Youth Olympics in Buenos Aires 34 years after his father Michael did the same in the main Olympics but confesses “I never really thought about it like that until everybody started saying about doing the same as my father but it was a great feeling and hopefully, I can do it in the main Olympics, go one better!”

Being a young athlete competing at such a high level, Jack certainly values the guidance he’s been gifted “It’s not even the fact that my family are amazing and they’re always there to help but it’s a great sport and I have many friends in the sport and they’re always looking to help you.

“It’d be rare to find somebody who doesn’t want to help you and if you do you just try and stay away from them kinds of people.” Joked Jack as he kept the names to himself. “I’d be nowhere without my Father and my Mother… my Dad is obviously the big equestrian and my Mum… she does everything, she’s a complete lunatic but she’s amazing.

“And out my family there’s loads, it would be difficult to name one! Scott Brash and Nick Skelton… they’re all there to help you. You just try and get as much information off them as you can.

“John as well, John Whitaker. They’re all there to give you a hand and they all want to see you do well!”

Jack has lived in Nottingham his whole life and grown up at home with his parents on their Whatton farm. When I asked if he enjoyed growing up in Nottinghamshire… Jacks’ answer was clear “Oh massively! I love it here in Nottingham it’s fantastic; I wouldn’t want to have grown up anywhere else.”

Jack also continued to speak about the opportunities being based in Nottinghamshire has gifted him “I was lucky, especially in the beginning of my career when I was a lot younger, I basically got to go to a show nearly every day or every weekend, like you say there’s a big community around there, you get a lot of feedback from everybody, it’s nice!” The young showjumper also spoke about the brief spell he spent at the Nottingham Forest academy saying “It was a lot of fun and I’d say I’m a very sporty person in general. I still play football now; it was a great experience.” He laughed as he reminisced “It was probably just a dream in the end. I wasn’t so bad but I don’t think I’d ever have been good enough.”

Jack is certainly an experienced rider in a young body and has competed at the top level, both with, and against many different riders. When asked about some of the most inspiring riders he has come up against Jack said “I’ve been lucky enough to compete against some of the best riders in the world in my short career. Obviously, Scott Brash, Daniel Deusser, Peder Fredricson… there’s loads! Any of the best riders are just a pleasure to ride against because you just watch them and you try and take as much as you can away from their riding and add it to yours.”

Jack enjoys turning his passion into a career admitting “I still wouldn’t even call it work. Me and my Dad do stuff together you know, it’s good fun!

“The travelling’s a lot of fun. I’ve been lucky enough to go to some fantastic places in the world, and then the worst bit’s probably early mornings!” He chuckles as he continues “I always get up but it’s difficult.

“I’ve got to be on the yard to muck the horses out at 7 o’clock… there’s always plenty to do. It’s just a normal running farm, there’s never no jobs.”

With equestrianism becoming increasingly harder to break into, the international showjumper shared his best advice for young people looking to get involved in the sport. “Don’t give up! You get knocked down a lot and you feel like you’re not getting anywhere but you don’t give up it’ll come.” It is clear that Jack acknowledges his support in the community from both humans and equines saying “It would be impossible for me to do what I do without having the horses I’ve got and you always need more.” But continues “You can really get into the sport with any horse and then it’s just how far you want to progress and keep going.”

The future looks bright for Jack as he aims to go on and do massive things within the sport. “The Nations Cup’s the biggest thing really, try and compete for GB as much as possible and hopefully do well.

“Just try and get some more consistent results and that’s how I plan to get there hopefully.”

Being from the Whitaker family gives Jack massive boots to fill as he admits it may be difficult to beat the achievements his family already hold within the sport “I mean topping (what they’ve achieved) would be very hard but it gives me a goal to try and aim for. I’m not going to say I can’t do it but I understand it’s a big task.”

The Olympian realises his fortunes of being born into such a successful family within the sport admitting “With the skills my father’s given me and the position I’m in, it would be stupid to squander it.” But continues “As much as I love being a part of the family and having the Whitaker name, I want to make my own way a little bit you know and make my own name a little bit. Like I’m not trying to live off that at all, I’m trying to live off myself.

When asked about how important carrying on his family’s legacy in the sport was to him in his career, Jack’s response made it clear “Oh majorly. I can’t hold my Father, my Uncle and everybody in my family up in a high enough regard and I want to keep the Whitaker name as strong and as high up in everybody else’s regard as possible.”

*Article provided by Matthew Benton-Smith (Sports Correspondent).

*Main image @thegaitpost Jack Whitaker has showjumping in his genes.