CHRISTCHURCH’S Lauren Mills is looking forward to her greatest challenge in endurance horse racing after qualifying to represent Great Britain on the global stage.

Lauren, 19, will ride Oakleaze Farm Czarko at the World Young Rider Endurance Championships in Tarbes, France on July 27.

The young rider national champion of 2012 qualified with four others from a hotly-contested selection trial at the Endurance GB Wimpole Way ride in Cambridgeshire last month.

Since starting endurance racing at the age of 13, Lauren has moved on to advanced level, enabling her to compete on the international stage and culminating in her most recent achievement, which will see her tackle the tough 125km course in the foothills of the Pyrenees.

The qualification comes after a consistent spell of improvement for Lauren, who is currently ranked joint-fourth in the Young Rider World Endurance Rankings, compiled by the International Federation for Equestrian Sports.

Lauren recently finished seventh from a strong field of 48 in the Windsor 120km CEI Endurance race.

But despite finishing behind GB team-mate Dace Sainsbury, Lauren still became the second-placed Brit at the prestigious event and vastly improved her average speed from 22 to just over 24 km-per-hour in a time of four hours 59 minutes.

On her recent rise up the ranks, the local star said: “I am lucky enough to have my outstanding endurance horse who has helped me achieve so much.

“In the three years we have been together, we have managed to gain many Grade Ones in graded rides and have won many races against some tough competition.”

Meanwhile, on earning the opportunity to represent her country, Lauren added: “It hasn’t sunk in yet that I have been selected for the team. My horse deserves this so much as he has worked so hard for me.”

And Lauren, who works full-time for the NHS as a 111 call centre advisor, says her job fits nicely around her training schedule.

“My job fits in well with the riding,” she said. “I work on a shift rota with six days on and then four days off which means I have the time to regularly fit in three-hour training rides.”