Free Victory and the All-Stars Academy by Stacy Gregg

exaggerating though when she said they were cute. Issie had to admit that the boys were pretty good-looking. The brown-haired one that Stella must have meant looked like Zac Efron was particularly handsome.
    Avery was also in the kitchen with Tara and Ryan Stewart, the chef d’équipe for the Australian team.
    Ryan Stewart was a formidable-looking man. He must have been at least 1.9 metres tall—and built likea mountain. Issie couldn’t imagine that he had ever been a horse rider himself. He was too big—it would have taken a seventeen-hands-high hack just to hold him. Standing next to Ryan, even Tom Avery, who was quite tall, seemed almost dainty in comparison.
    â€œIt’s great to meet you at last, Ryan,” Tara was telling him. “I know your wife, Minka. We met about ten years ago when we were both riding on the eventing circuit. She’s a very talented dressage rider.”
    â€œMinka told me that you two were old friends,” Ryan smiled. “She’s looking forward to catching up with you again.”
    â€œWhere is Minka?” asked Avery.
    â€œShe’s outside helping the riders to bandage their horses,” Ryan said. “She’ll join us in a minute.”
    â€œWe were just about to have breakfast before we head down to the arena,” Avery continued. “Are your riders hungry?”
    With sixteen riders for breakfast, the kitchen table was way too small to accommodate everyone, so the plates and cutlery were quickly reset on the trestle table outside on the verandah. The only problem now was sharing the maple syrup. There was only onebottle which had to be passed up and down the table—it was a pain, but also useful for finding outeveryone’s names. By the time Issie had finished her third pancake, she had figured out that the really hunky Australian rider was called Shane Campbell. He was the captain of their team. The other riders were Matt, Steve, Bret, Dobbo and Jace. The two girls were called Kylie and Nicky.
    â€œKylie, can you pass the juice?” Shane called out down the table. He said her name with an Australian twang so that it sounded as if he was saying Coy-leee and the New Zealand girls had to stifle their giggles.
    Ryan, Tara and Avery sat together and discussed the training programme.
    â€œWe’re boarding with our horses at Whispering Moon Station, just down the road,” Ryan told them. “But we’re glad we can bring them here to train with your team. The facilities are much better and we can leave the horses overnight or truck them in each day, whichever you prefer.”
    â€œI’ve scheduled Minka to take both squads together for dressage training for the next two days,” Avery told Ryan. “I hope that will be OK with her.Araminta arrives on Wednesday and will do a two-day showjumping clinic, and then Tara takes over for cross-country schooling.”
    â€œSounds good to me,” Ryan said. “We can have training sessions together for the first week and then split them up after that.”
    Avery and Tara both agreed that this was a good idea.
    â€œWait until you see the event venue at the showgrounds,” Ryan continued. “The cross-country jumps are nearly finished and the stadium looks incredible.”
    â€œWho’s your course builder?” asked Tara.
    â€œDelaney Swift.”
    Tara nodded. “She’s the best.”
    â€œIt’s a tough course,” Ryan said. “It’s got big fences and lots of twists and zigzags that make it easy to lose your bearings. It’ll be a real test for the riders.”
    Kate, who had been listening to their conversation, asked the question that all the riders were wondering about. “How can you build an entire one-day event on a stadium sports field? There isn’t enough room for jumps!”
    â€œDelaney Swift will manage it somehow,” Tara said confidently. “She’s a genius. She can construct a