Foster comes from a modest background – her father was a firefighter and her mother worked for Canadian Airlines – and has been on a long journey to get to where she is today. “I took lessons at the local riding school but I had to work while I was studying so I could continue to pursue my passion.” 

She was in no doubt that she would end up working with horses: “If I hadn’t been a rider, I would have definitely ended up an interior designer. I also buy a lot of furniture, too much in fact, and Caroline sighs every time there’s a competition because there’s always a new piece to load onto the lorry (laughs). Travelling around the world allows me to find beautiful pieces and take them home.”

Tiffany started off at the stables of Brent and Laura Balisky in Langley before Eric Lamaze invited her to come and work for him. She was only 21 at the time and had never competed in anything higher than 1.20m events. They say that patience is a virtue, and it took several years, recovery from a broken back and the continued faith of Artisan Farm, whose horses she rides, for the Canadian to reach the elite. She now has her own little empire, with stables in Langley (around an hour from her home city); Wellington, in Florida; and Vrasene, in Belgium.

Tiffany has just spent a few days at her European stables. Meanwhile, her partners, Figor and Électrique, arrived on Tuesday evening. “I try to plan the whole year in advance so that they don’t have to fly too often,” she explains. “We spend a few months at each stable with my horses and pupils. It gives me the chance to see different circuits.” As well as running her company, Little Creek Equestrian, and looking after its 30 or so horses, the Canadian rider also coaches an all-women’s team. “It wasn’t a goal of mine to begin with but we have a great atmosphere going. We’ve got mothers and their daughters on the team.” 

Travelling between three countries on two continents, Tiffany inevitably racks up a lot of air miles each year. That does not prevent her, however, from doing her level best to make every Rolex Grand Slam event, with, understandably, Spruce Meadows in Calgary top of her list. “Coming back to Geneva is one of my objectives too,” she explains. “And perhaps the ultimate goal would be to make the ten best riders in the world and earn a place in the Rolex IJRC Top 10.” 

In the meantime, she is counting on her “Figgy” to carry her to victory in the Rolex Grand Prix: “Especially after Martin Fuchs “stole” (laughs) the trophy from me at Spruce Meadows in 2023 in the jump-off. I’ve been dreaming of getting my revenge ever since.”

Aurore Favre