Penny Pearce Passed Away

Dressage

New Zealand

New Zealand Grand Prix rider Penny Pearce has passed away on 21 February 2025. She was 60 years old.

Penny Pearce (née Castle) grew up on the family’s steep hill-country farm near Pahiatua, north of Masterton, where horses were the main mode of transport. She was first put on a horse as a three-year-old. She rode and coached at pony club in her youth, then went to collage and worked as a nurse.

At age 22 she decided to work full-time with horses and spent time in Germany and England being employed as a rider, before going to America where she competed. Pearce returned to New Zealand and became one of New Zealand’s top dressage riders. Famed trainer Eric Ropiha was the earliest influence on a young Pearce when she worked at his racing stable in Woodville.

Penny trained and showed several horses up to Grand Prix level, including Gymstar One (by Gymnastik Star x Daktylus), Magnus Spero (by Lubeck x Rocadero) and BL About Time (by Anamour x Genius). With Magnus Spero she was the first of only a handful New Zealand dressage riders to break the magical 70% mark at Grand Prix level after a history-making day in Hastings in 2015. She was New Zealand Dressage Champion in 2011 on Gymstar One and in 2015 on Magnus Spero.

She was a highly sought-after coach by dressage and eventing riders. In 2021 she was member of the Development squad with Lord Alexis.

Involved with Equestrian Sports New Zealand’s (ESNZ) wider high-performance programme since 2008, Pearce took up the role of Eventing Performance Programme Manager and in 2023 she was appointed Equestrian New Zealand's dressage high performance manager.

Penny faced much adversity in the last years of her life. In 2023 she and her husband lost their house in Cyclone Gabrielle, while in March 2024 Penny was diagnosed with kidney cancer. At the start of 2025 she resigned from her role as high performance manager.

“She is a hero of our high performance system,” said ESNZ High performance general manager Jock Paget. “She has been this amazing coach and leader in so many different areas of the HP system through different disciplines and has impacted so many lives and performances.” Penny had mentored Jock as a rider, coach and leader.

"Penny has made a massive contribution to equestrian in New Zealand, and in particular in high performance dressage and eventing as a coach having helped so many riders achieve their dreams and beyond," Dressage New Zealand reported. 'She has been instrumental in shaping both our dressage and eventing high performance programmes and leaves a lasting legacy for our sport. She has been great friend, mentor, coach and inspiration to so many.'

She leaves behind her husband John Pearce and children Jordan and Grace Castle.

A celebration of Penny's life will be held next Wednesday at 1:00 PM at the Ellwood Road Events Centre in Hastings.