It was Ava Wong’s dream to compete at the North American Youth Championships (NAYC), and it had come true. But in her opening round of the Children’s division competition, the speed leg, things didn’t go her way. Her horse, Concelo, lost a shoe, and she missed a jump and had to circle. She finished in the middle of the pack with six faults.

For many young teenagers, the rough start would be hard to overcome but not for Wong.

“I was upset and disappointed in myself that my first day was like that,” said the 14-year-old. “But that only made me want to perform out of this world the next day and put down a spectacular round, and that’s what I did! A lot of people say it’s important to forget about your round if it was bad and carry on, but I think the exact opposite. It’s important for me to remember my bad rounds because they just remind me of how much I don’t want to make the same mistake again. I hate feeling disappointed in myself and like I could have done something better after a bad round. Reminding myself of how much I do not want to feel like that makes me perform to the best of my ability.”

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