Emma Boylan, a senior at Oakland High School, will travel to Belgium next week to compete in the International Mounted Games Association World Championships.

Boylan competes with a team of the five best mounted-game riders in the United States.

The IMGA World Championship is an equestrian skill riding event that attracts riders from 18 countries. The team will leave for Belgium this week and competition will begin Aug. 22.

Boylan and her team will participate in riding events twice a day as they progress through the rounds. Their goal is to reach the championship round.

The U.S. team will not bring their own ponies, so Boylan and the other team members will only have two to three days to get familiar with ponies that will be loaned to them through the IMGA. 

Boylan said her favorite event is the sock and bucket race, which involves skill, hand-and-eye coordination and a large dose of bravery because she must jump off and then back on her pony as it races to the other end of the track.

Boylan has been riding horses her entire life and has competed in equestrian events, cross country and stadium prior to taking an interest and training for mounted games.

She is the only competitor from Tennessee and this will be her second time to compete in the IMGA World Championship. She enjoys meeting other riders from all over the world.