Anne Skinner

Anne Skinner (born 14 February 1954) is an Australian para-equestrian. She represented Australia at the 2000 Sydney Paralympics and 2004 Athens Paralympics.

Personal life On 19 September 1997 Anne Skinner was involved in a serious accident that changed her life forever. Skinner was distracted as she got out of her car to unhitch her horse float, accidentally leaving her car running and in reverse, and as Skinner unhooked the trailer, the car engaged and reversed approximately seven to eight meters backwards, crushing her within the eight inches between the ground and the car. Skinner was trapped for approximately 2 hours before her husband Rex and 17-year-old son Tim returned home and came to her aid. Skinner was flown to The Alfred Hospital in Melbourne where she underwent emergency surgery and was placed in an induced coma for seven weeks. With spinal and pelvic injuries so complex, a team of orthopedic surgeons had to reconnect them during a surgery that took 9 weeks of planning. Skinner's spinal cord hadn't been severed during the accident, only damaged, leaving her without feeling from waist down up until her surgery. After surgery all feeling had returned in her right leg, however she was still without feeling in her left and some nerve damage.

Equestrian career For most of Skinner's life she wanted to own her own horse. When she was 17 years old that she purchased her first horse, an old paint horse named Terror, that she picked up for $100. Skinner started an affiliated pony club and enjoyed assisting inexperienced riders. Skinner commenced with the Riding for Disabled Association of Victoria (RDA), as a state coach in 1989. She later qualified as Equestrian Australia (EA) coach, with RDA National Championships. – 1st /champion 2000 Sydney Paralympic games. – 9th 2001 RDAV National Dressage. – 3rd 2009 RDAV CDPEI. – 2nd 2014 Equestrian Australia – 4th team 2016 Sydney CDPEI. – Champion 2016 Boneo Para Equestrian Championships. – 2nd 2017 Boneo Para Equestrian Championships. – 1st