The Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association will honor national award winners at its 40th anniversary awards dinner Sept. 6 at Fasig-Tipton Kentucky in Lexington. Four national winners have been announced ahead of time, and BloodHorse is offering profiles of these winners throughout the week.
Today we profile Zealand, the Sport Horse of the Year.
While many college students are working to find a balance between social life and academics, Grace Walker is adding yet another component to the mix.
A student at the University of Alabama, working toward a double major in finance and marketing, Walker also is a competitive equestrian. And with her horse Zealand—a Thoroughbred who raced as Our Prince Charlie—Walker's reign is showing no signs of letting up.
From 11 starts, Our Prince Charlie—a gelded son of Domestic Dispute—failed to win on the racetrack. He did manage three third-place finishes during his career, but the Maryland-bred bay's talents clearly lie elsewhere. When Walker acquired him, Zealand embarked on a second career, and he thrived, showing everyone the athleticism and class that Thoroughbreds can possess.
He logged numerous firsts at the 2024 Ocala Winter Finals with Brittany Shutt aboard, and his success continued all year long. At the 121st Annual Keswick Horse Show, held in May 2025, Zealand was even named the 2024 $500 TAKE2 Thoroughbred Hunter champion, bringing home the "I Know Why" Perpetual Trophy. He received that prestigious championship honor in 2023, as well.
For 2024, Zealand finished third in the Virginia Horse Shows Association Thoroughbred Hunter Division; he won the Large Junior Hunter 3'6" Division; he came in first, bringing home the Younger Green Hill Challenge Perpetual Trophy for his owner. Now 17, Zealand is showing that age for a racehorse is very different from age for a sport horse.
Walker is a versatile athlete; she shows in western reining, hunters, and horsemanship in the Intercollegiate Horse Shows Association. She is involved in amateur owner hunters, achieving great success on the mare Caleesi and Zealand, among others.
With Kirsty Welch aboard, Zealand performed in a stellar fashion at numerous events last year, including the legendary Middleburg Classic Horse Show; he came in first in a TAKE2 Thoroughbred Hunters 3' event, finishing a solid second in several others, including a TAKE2 Thoroughbred Hunters 3', $500 TAKE2 Thoroughbred Classic, and Adult Amateur Hunters 36-49 3'. Welch and Zealand were named the Washington International Horse Show Regional Hunter champions.
Zealand is boarded at Pam Baker's Hillcrest Farms near Bealeton, Va. Baker is a prominent figure in her own right, mentoring and training young and talented riders; she is listed as Zealand's trainer.
Outside of her equestrian endeavors and her academics, Walker stays busy with plenty of other activities. She closely follows the University of Alabama's legendary football team, the Crimson Tide—"Roll Tide!"—and is also involved in boating.
