A local equestrian rider has made the short-list of finalists up for the Saskatchewan Youth Sports Award.

Abby Goddard, a current senior at Swift Current Comprehensive High School, was recently nominated and is one of the trio finalists for the Youth Female Athlete of the Year award.

Nominated by her family with support from the Saskatchewan Horse Federation, Goddard hopes that having her name entered for the award will help to bring recognition to the sport of equestrian.

"Not a lot of people know about this sport," she said. "I'm quite happy that I could represent the whole riding community with that and help people become more aware of this [sport]."

Goddard says she trains hard in winters to be able to compete in the summers, travelling to multiple places within Canada and the United States.

Her skills have made her a top 10 finisher at many events such as the American Quarter Horse Canadian Nationals, Ford World Youths, and the Canadian Gold Buckle Futurity.

Goddard is not slowing down anytime soon as she'll be heading down to the United States shortly for a level 1 championship.

The 2021 Saskatchewan Sports Awards will be announcing all winners on January 27 with a live Youtube premier.