Surrey’s Emma, Bella and Abigail Old take sibling rivalry to a new level as they compete against one another in equestrian vaulting at the B.C. Summer Games in Abbotsford this week.
Although Abigail, 12, is going into the competition ranked number one in B.C. in Canter D, Bella, 14, is a close second. Emma, 16, edged both her sisters out for a first place finish at the last competition in June.
Equestrian vaulting is the sport of gymnastics and acrobatics on a moving horse.
The girls will be competing at canter and will be required to do one round of compulsory moves followed by a freestyle performance set to music. They will 
be judged on their technique, harmony with the horse and performance.
The horse will be judged on his obedience, turnout and quality of his gait.
The three sisters have been training with the Triple M Vaulters in Surrey for the past eight years. Although there is rivalry amongst the sisters, they train well together encouraging each other, pushing each other to work hard and building one another up.
They have all been training hard leading up to the Summer Games with extra practices and cross training. All of the girls will compete on Buddy, the team’s 16-year-old paint cross gelding.
Emma is the reflective one, who thinks things through and quietly goes about her training. Bella loves to attempt new and more difficult moves, whereas Abigail is the performer who loves an audience. “I want to be on the podium!” says Abigail when asked about Summer Games.
The sisters will be competing against 10 other athletes from across British Columbia as part of the BC Summer Games, and look forward to the experience and the opportunity to be part of this exciting event.
The two older girls, Emma and Bella, attend Lord Tweedsmuir Secondary and Abigail is a student at A.J. McLellan Elementary in Cloverdale.