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European RoyalsNorway

Princess Märtha Louise’s daughter aims for medal in show jumping championship

Emma Tallulah, the youngest daughter of Princess Märtha Louise and the late Ari Behn, is competing this week in the Junior National Championships for show jumping.

The Championships are taking place in Lier, Norway, and Emma sat down to talk about her training and the upcoming competition.

“In the last few months, almost all the time has been spent on training, so there hasn’t been much time for anything else,” Emma said in an interview with Norwegian broadcaster NRK ahead of the competition.

Emma, who has been riding horses since she was two-years-old, also spoke of the special bond that she shares with her mother, who was once a show jumper as well. “Mum tried very early on to get my sisters to like it too, but they weren’t that interested. But it really worked out perfectly for me.”

She revealed that the two train together, saying, “It has been very nice to have someone who has been interested in horses since I was a child. She is very happy that I do horse riding.”

But it wasn’t always a straightforward path to show jumping. Emma also revealed that as a young child, she didn’t like jumping. “I taught my pony to stop or to turn to the side. Jumping was the worst thing I knew.”

Emma has been competing for a few years with her mare, Fetoucha, and said that she hopes to medal again, having previously won a bronze medal in the children’s competition side.

She said: “I want a medal. Preferably a bronze, but I’ll be happy with that too.”

Emma isn’t the first member of the Norwegian Royal Family to have competitive sports experience. In addition to her mother, her grandfather, King Harald, has competed in the Summer Olympics as a sailor and her cousin, Princess Ingrid Alexandra, has won championships in surfing.

About author

Jess Ilse is the Assistant Editor at Royal Central. She specialises in the British, Danish, Norwegian and Swedish Royal Families and has been following royalty since Queen Elizabeth II’s Golden Jubilee. Jess has provided commentary for media outlets in Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Jess works in communications and her debut novel THE MAJESTIC SISTERS will publish in Fall 2024.