August 15, 2021 
Mimi Gochman is two for two on Individual gold medal wins at the North American Youth Championships.
In 2019, she made a gold-medal-winning debut in the Junior category, and in her second NAYC appearance on Sunday, she again captured gold, this time as a Young Rider.
“I feel so honored to be able to come back here and compete,” said Gochman, 16. “It’s such a prestigious event. I really enjoy learning from all the riders that come and being able to watch different nations and learn what they do—just even watching them school and seeing the different strategies that people take throughout the whole show.”
For Gochman, the strategy that she implemented flawlessly involved leading from beginning to end of the five-round competition and finishing without a single rail down on a perfect score of zero aboard Celina BH.
“My horse is phenomenal,” said Gochman of the 11-year-old Holsteiner mare. “I don’t know what I would do without her. She’s clearly insane!
“I mean, jumping this may clear rounds is tough on any day, and it’s really important this week. So, I was super, super thrilled to continue to jump clear through the whole week,” continued Gochman, who hails from New York, NY.
“My plan was really just trying to stay consistent throughout the week. My mom called me a ton of times, and she was like, ‘You’re doing great, but remember to stay level headed.’ I tried to keep that in mind throughout the whole week.”
Remaining level headed was particularly important as Gochman headed into her final round in the $25,000 Young Rider Individual Final on Sunday. When she entered the ring as the final rider to compete, Mexico’s Daniel Rihan Goyeneche held the lead on a score of 5.18 aboard Chousa Sho Z. That meant that, with her current score of 0.00, Gochman had a margin for error—but a very small margin.
“I’ve always tried to just focus on the actual jumping and not too much of the atmosphere,” said Gochman of how she stays cool under pressure. “It’s really exciting here, and your blood gets pumping. I just try to focus on my horse, the jumps, the course and the steps in between.”
Gochman’s focus paid off, as she and Celina BH again crossed the timers without a single fault, securing the gold medal. With Goyeneche then taking silver, the bronze medal went to Zone Four’s Violet Lindemann Barnett aboard Alanine de Vains.
For full results from the Young Rider competition at the North American Youth Championships, click here. Relive all the #FEINAYC action on USEFNetwork.com with promo code nayc21.
