About Amanda

Amanda Shirtcliffe had her first riding lesson at six years old. “To say I was smitten was an understatement,” she says. She went on to compete in the showring, at cross-country and in show jumping, until a heavy rotational fall damaged her spine and kept her out of the saddle for months.

Living with dystonia

In February 2012 Amanda was diagnosed with dystonia, an incurable neurological movement disorder. It causes painful muscle spasms and affects her legs, arms and neck. Her balance, co-ordination and motor skills are severely compromised.

Getting back in the saddle meant relearning balance from scratch. It was hard, unglamorous work, and it paid off.

Inspired by London 2012

That summer, Amanda watched the London 2012 Paralympics and saw a path back to the sport she loved. She sat on a horse again in December 2012, and less than a month later won her first para dressage competition on Millie (Run of the Mill). In 2013 she won the British Dressage para talent spotting competition and made her international debut for Great Britain.

“Most people in my position would be content with just being able to ride, but for me it’s not enough. I missed the electrifying buzz and nervous energy of a competition arena.”

In 2014 she was selected for the British Equestrian Podium Potential Pathway (the Excel squad). She competed abroad for Great Britain in 2015 and 2016, was selected for the British Equestrian Podium Potential squad in 2016 and received a SportsAid Sports Bursary Award the same year. She went on to score 13 international wins, including clean sweeps of all three tests at Bishop Burton in 2017 and 2019, became Grade III national champion and was part of several winning Nations Cup and Home International teams.

A second discipline

In 2024, Amanda started learning to drive, introduced to para carriage driving by the Para Equestrian Foundation. Her motto: take the risk or lose the chance. She drove in her first competition in April 2025, taking a short sabbatical from dressage to concentrate on driving. Six months later she drove for Great Britain at the FEI Para Driving World Championships in Lähden, Germany, and finished 9th of 17.

Beyond the arena

• Charity patron. She is patron of Ride High, a Milton Keynes charity that uses horses to transform the lives of disadvantaged children.
• Mentor. She is a rider mentor with the Para Equestrian Foundation, helping new para athletes into the sport.
• Judge. Amanda is a qualified Riding for the Disabled Association (RDA) dressage judge and has trained as a British Dressage judge.
• Speaker. She talks to businesses, schools and clubs about resilience, disability and elite sport.

Her own summary? “No one said it’d be easy but I love a challenge!”

See Amanda in the media or download the press kit.