We are very excited to get a new ACTor on board, equestrian showjumper Luca Watson from South Africa!
Luca is working together with our local partner Amazeballs Equestrian creating awareness and understanding of importance for improving brain health and safety in equestrian sports. It is absolutely essential for the equestrian community, as studies show that:
- Equestrian activities have one of the highest rates of sports-related TBIs
- Head injuries account for 15–30% of equestrian-related hospital admissions
- Falls from a horse can cause concussions, skull fractures, or severe brain trauma
- TBIs are the primary cause of death in equestrian sports
The most common causes of TBI in Equestrian sports are: Falls while riding, when jumping, cross-country, or unexpected horse movements; Kicks or strikes, when handling horses on the ground; Collisions with obstacles, other horses, or the ground.
Luca is 15 years old and has been competing very succesfully in the Junior Open showjumping classes for over 3 Years, with impressive results, most recently as Reserve Champion at both the 2025 Junior Open Presidents Cup and the 2025 Junior Open South African Championships.
He has his Protea Colours and represented South Africa at the end of 2024 at the FEI International Children’s Classic World Final in Mexico, where he finished 8th from 32 starters on a borrowed horse.
Luca is all about putting the horse first and the sport second and his main concern is always the health and wellbeing of his incredible string of horses, namely Sunny (Carlson 113), Cero and Hubs (Habanero S). Their comfort, happiness and willingness to do their jobs is what makes Luca love the sport of showjumping.
Luca is delighted to join the Amazeballs Team of Ambassadors and is grateful he has the opportunity to draw awareness to the ACT Head Impact Tracker technology for equestrians and its ability to help in recognition of hazardous events, as well as measuring and tracking also smaller sub-concussive events to help avoid their irreversible long term effects on Athletes.
Warmest of welcomes to the ACT Head Impact Tracker family Luca! Together we can help the sports to become brain healthier and safer, and to improve the athlete health, safety and wellbeing in short, medium and long term.