Lillie Keenan, who earned top results in the hunter, jumper and equitation rings as a junior rider, will begin training with Irish rider Cian O’Connor, who was the individual bronze medalist at the 2012 London Olympic Games.
Keenan, 18, had been riding with Andre Dignelli and the team at Heritage Farm since she was 6. During her storied junior career she dominated all three rings with a jaw-dropping list of highlights, including nine titles at U.S. Equestrian Federation Pony Finals (Ky.) and wins at USHJA International Hunter Derby Finals (Ky.), the Washington International Equitation Classic Final (D.C.), the Pessoa/USEF Medal Final (Pa.), the ASPCA Maclay Final (Ky.) and team and individual young rider gold at the Adequan FEI North American Junior and Young Rider Championships (Ky.).
More recently Keenan made her senior team debut in Bratislava CSIO (Slovakia), where she served as the anchor rider for the U.S. team, who finished fourth, and the USET Foundation awarded her the 2015 Lionel Guerrand-Hermès Trophy as a young rider who exemplifies sportsmanship and horsemanship.
“I owe all my success in riding to Andre and Heritage,” said Keenan, New York City. “Their slogan is ‘From short stirrup to grand prix,’ and I’ve truly lived that. I started riding with them before I turned 7 and got my first pony with them and learned how to ride. Patricia [Griffith] was there from the first time I walked into the children’s ponies, and Andre started helping me more when I started riding horses.
“I really felt like it was time for an upward progression in my career,” Keenan continued. “Cian’s based in Europe and comes to [the Winter Equestrian Festival] every winter. I’m friends with one of his clients, Nikki Walker. After WEF he had an opening to train another person, and it made sense moving into the summer.”
O’Connor splits his time between Germany and Ireland outside of the Florida circuit. Keenan’s four horses—Mercury, Quick Shine, Super Sox and Balance—will head to Dusseldorf, Germany, at the end of May. Keenan will be based there and in Dublin for the summer and will show in Europe, though she hasn’t worked out her schedule yet.
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Keenan enters Harvard University (Mass.) this fall as a freshman, and she said that life change lined up nicely with the next phase of her riding career. She’s not sure how big a role riding will play in her life while she’s at school.
“I’m going to play it by ear,” she said. “I’ve never been to college, so I’ll figure it out as I go. I may leave the horses in Dublin so I can really get my feet wet with school and take a shot at being a college student. The horses will come to Florida, and I’ll show at WEF. I’m going to find a way to make sure I’m balanced between my college and riding careers.”
Keenan’s career echoes that of another young rider. Katie Dinan, 21, has had to reschedule Harvard midterms to represent the United States in international competition. Since 2014, Dinan has been riding with Beat Mändli, who’s also based in Europe.
“Katie’s obviously a top student of the sport and at school,” said Keenan. “I’ve talked to her a lot. I can tell you that seeing her able to juggle school and riding has given me more confidence to go that route.
“The important thing is while I’m at school I have to give myself a shot to grow up a little bit and learn,” she continued. “Even if I’m not the top 30 in the world while I’m at school, I have to give myself that chance.”
