At just 15 years old, Haridian De la Rosa is already taking on one of the toughest challenges in endurance riding.
The young rider from Tenerife will represent the Canary Islands at the Spanish Junior Endurance Championship over 100 kilometres on Saturday 26 September, with the competition taking place in La Vecilla, León.
Haridian is part of the Las Cumbres Raid Team and trains at Centro Hípico Del Norte in Ravelo, El Sauzal. She’ll make the trip with her trainer, Samuel Santos, who has played an important role in her development.
It all started by chance
Haridian’s relationship with horses wasn’t something that had been planned from an early age.
She was 10 when she went along to a summer camp and decided to try an introductory riding class simply because a school friend was doing it.
One lesson was enough to change things.
Two years later, at just 12, she was already competing.
Since then, her progress has been pretty impressive, with a string of good results and podium finishes.
In 2025, aged just 14, she became Canary Islands Junior Champion over 100 kilometres.
This year she added another regional podium, finishing as runner-up in the Canary Islands, further establishing herself among the young riders making their mark in this demanding discipline.
Why endurance riding is different
Haridian has also tried other equestrian disciplines, including show jumping, but endurance riding eventually became her real passion.
And it’s considerably more than simply staying on a horse for a long time.
A 100-kilometre endurance event requires physical stamina, preparation, strategy and careful management of the horse, as well as a strong relationship between rider and animal.
Every part of the partnership matters.
She doesn’t even own her own horse
There’s another interesting part to Haridian’s story.
She doesn’t have a horse of her own.
Instead, she competes with horses belonging to her trainer, something that clearly hasn’t stopped her from progressing or setting her sights on bigger competitions.
She also didn’t grow up in an equestrian family.
Nobody in her immediate family rides or is involved in the sport, meaning her journey into the world of horses really did begin with that seemingly insignificant decision to join her friend for a riding lesson at the age of 10.
A big weekend ahead
Now that chance encounter has taken Haridian to the biggest competition of her young career so far.
On 26 September, she’ll be in La Vecilla competing against some of the country’s best young endurance riders over 100 kilometres.
She’ll also be carrying the colours of the Canary Islands with her.
Not bad for a girl who originally only went along for a riding lesson because her mate was doing it.