Oklahoma State University Athletics
European Cowgirl: Loïs Op Het Veld’s Journey Across the Pond
October 01, 2023 | Cowgirl Equestrian
STILLWATER – There are more bikes than people in Amsterdam. For Loïs Op Het Veld, who grew up on the west side of Amsterdam, that's what sticks out when thinking about her childhood.
In Stillwater, Okla., Op Het Veld doesn't have a bike. The reason: There aren't decent bike lanes. Comparatively, she said, the bike lanes in Stillwater don't size up to the safety the lanes provide in her hometown.
That is just one of the adjustments she's had to make in her time across the pond. Just over 11 hours and almost 5,000 miles separate her from her home and family. While this may seem vast, Op Het Veld has found every reason to celebrate her time in the states.
Op Het Veld, a senior on Oklahoma State's equestrian team, is one of several European athletes to compete for OSU. Now a three-time Big 12 champion and an NCEA champion, Op Het Veld has helped OSU equestrian win on the national stage every year she's been on the team.
Entering her final season, she was named one of four captains by her teammates.
With expectations set high for the team, Op Het Veld has matched those expectations for herself. Looking to work hard and put others before herself, she's already embraced her new role as a captain on the team.
Humble Beginnings and Unexpected Changes
Loïs Op Het Veld said she spent most of her time growing up outside, usually on her bike. The weather was a nonfactor when it came to getting around.
"We do everything by bike," Op Het Veld said. "I went to school in the morning by bike. Even when I went to high school, it was a 30-minute bike ride. That was the most normal thing in the world. Whether it was raining, hailing or if it was sunny, it didn't matter."
Growing up on the west side of Amsterdam, life was less hectic, and the community was close-knit. It wasn't hard to make friends growing up, as her and other children in her neighborhood went to the same school due to how close everything was.
Her 15-minute ride to the middle of the city for riding lessons was no exception. Typically, the middle of a city is its busiest. However, in Amsterdam's center, there is nothing but two arenas, peacefulness and horses.
Her love for horses and riding started early in her childhood, thanks to a weekly adventure with her father.
"Every Saturday morning, we would bike to this farm to get flour for the bread we make at home," Op Het Veld said. "We would always go by this pasture with horses in it. My dad told me later that I asked every single week if we could stop and pet the horses."
For her seventh birthday, her parents gifted her the first of many horse riding lessons.
Op Het Veld started her equestrian journey on the Hunt Seat side, competing and practicing in Dressage and Jumping Seat. However, she mostly did that to be involved with horses. In the Netherlands, the Western discipline is not as accessible as the English side, so Op Het Veld worked with what she had.
In fact, her transition to the Reining event wasn't planned. A family vacation to Italy would change the course of Op Het Veld's riding journey. It's where she saw Reining for the first time. While signing up for a trail ride, 12-year-old Op Het Veld and her family watched a Reining trainer with young horses.
"He looked very connected to the horse," Op Het Veld said. "I was like 'This looks very hard. I would like to learn how to do this.'"
Following the trail ride, she signed up for lessons with the Reining trainer. She spent almost every day of the two-week vacation with the trainer, helping him around the barn and trying to learn as much as she could.
"I was so amazed by how it looked and the connection," Op Het Veld said. "When we came back, I started looking for a Reining barn in Amsterdam."
Change of Scenery and Championship Rings
Equestrian is a growing sport in Europe, especially the Western disciplines. English disciplines have plenty of success in the Netherlands, featuring Dutch Olympian Anky van Grunsven, who is a three-time gold medalist in Dressage, and one of the best riders of the modern era. As such, there are massive show barns in the country.
In contrast, Western events haven't gained as much traction. The leading issue involves relocation. Many trainers and riders who begin their journeys in the Netherlands, such as Loïs Op Het Veld, move on to different countries for competition and training.
"There's a lot more show opportunities here," Op Het Veld said. "You can win more prize money here and the horses are better."
As Op Het Veld got older, she noticed that the training process was slower abroad. She never realized there were other opportunities to compete at a collegiate level for equestrian. However, she learned through a friend who played soccer about the chance to come to America to compete.
Op Het Veld started doing research on what places offered equestrian and other aspects of the recruiting process. She found people to help her in her search until she eventually found Oklahoma State.
She rode with a trainer the summer before she came to America who had other non-pro pupils that also went to OSU. She learned about the programs and coaches, which convinced her that Stillwater is where she wanted to be.
"The more I learned about OSU, the more I was interested in it," she said.
Her recruiting process, on her end, was very simple.
"I bombarded (OSU head coach) Larry (Sanchez) with emails and videos," Op Het Veld said.
Sanchez said the rarity of a European Western recruit caught his eye.
"The more I watched her videos, the more I appreciated her ability," Sanchez said. "I saw potential in how she rode those horses and thought we could develop her talents to be a successful college rider."
After receiving word that she would be officially joining the team, Op Het Veld got straight to work, an important first step in catching up to the standards of OSU. While she participated in all the same events as the other women on the team, her development was slower due to the lack of training in the Netherlands.
However, every year she's been on the team, she's improved. As she's improved, her resiliency has served as a benchmark for the team. In the team's end of year banquet and award ceremony, she's earned the Western Unsung Hero Award as a freshman, the Western Captains' Choice Award as a sophomore and the Most Improved in the Reining event as a junior.
Her individual accolades don't include what she and the team have accomplished in a successful three years.
The Cowgirls returned to postseason action in the 2020-21 season after the previous season ended early due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Cowgirls went 7-2 and won the seventh Big 12 title in program history.
They followed that year with one of the most historically dominant seasons in NCEA history in 2022, going 15-2. The Cowgirls once again brought home the Big 12 title and followed it up by capturing OSU's first overall NCEA team championship ever. That year, Sanchez had a nickname for the group.
He called them 'Cardiac Cowgirls.'
"I remember that year, we had to come back from being behind a few times," Op Het Veld said. "It was stressful, but everyone had faith that we would come out on top."
OSU capped off the second conference title three-peat in program history in the 2022-23 season.
Entering the new season, Op Het Veld and the Cowgirls look to bounce back to form to claim their 10th Big 12 championship and another team title.
Captain Op Het Veld
Cowgirl equestrian nominates four athletes every year to serve as team captains. Several legendary Cowgirls have come and gone with that title, and this year, Loïs Op Het Veld earned a spot as one of them.
To her, being a captain is about setting examples and leading the team in the right directions as best as one can. With that comes an added sense of pressure to perform and guide the younger athletes. For Op Het Veld, she said the pressure hasn't changed.
"I think there's more responsibility," Op Het Veld said. "I think I'm someone that even if I wasn't a captain, I would have tried to be an example."
A mentality such as that one is one of the reasons her fellow riders voted her a captain. It's also something she's emphasized as the new season approaches.
With the first meet of the year for the Cowgirls approaching, and several teams having already competed, Op Het Veld's goals for the year are strictly team-oriented.
"More than anything, I would really like to help the team dynamic," Op Het Veld said. "I want the team to become one unit and that we all get in the same rhythm. I was on the team when we won nationals, and what I remember the most is how it felt to be part of that team. Obviously, it won't be exactly the same because this is a different team. But I want to create that same sense of unity."
Likewise, the goal for the team remains the same. It wants to win, and Op Het Veld and the other captains look to lead the group all the way.
Op Het Veld has had many moments in her career that have stood out. Winning nationals, winning three-straight Big 12 titles come to mind. However, the time she spent with her teammates has been what sticks out the most.
"My favorite memory is the feeling I get from the team and being part of something bigger than myself and how close we are as a family," Op Het Veld said.
