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Alexa STAIS

Alexa STAIS is a South African athlete and competes in Jumping and Vaulting.
Name Alexa STAIS
FEI ID 10038852
Gender Female
Date of Birth 16/05/1996
Competing for Cyprus - CYP
Registrations Jumping 2025
Vaulting 2014
Last update 24/05/2023
FEI Database




Jumping 70x70 Vaulting 70x70
General Interest
Nicknames Lexi (Instagram profile, 08 Apr 2020)
Hobbies Shopping (sportbuzzer.de, 10 Jan 2020)
Memorable sporting achievement Jumping a double clear round at the 2018 Nations Cup event in Drammen, Norway. (thejumpoff.co.za, 15 Apr 2021)
Most influential person in career Horse owner Hilmar Meyer. (worldofshowjumping.com, 07 Dec 2022)
Hero / Idol Dutch rider Jeroen Dubbeldam, German rider Marcus Ehning, German rider Meredith Michaels-Beerbaum. (Equestrian Life, 05 Sep 2018)
Superstitions / Rituals / Beliefs She has a lucky whip. (Equestrian Life, 05 Sep 2018)
Sporting philosophy / motto "The most important days are not the good ones. It's the bad ones, because they will determine if you have the strength to carry on and pick yourself up when needed." (worldofshowjumping.com, 08 May 2020)
Awards and honours She has received the Goldenes Reitabzeichen [Golden Riding Badge] from the German Equestrian Federation. (equestrianaffair.co.za, 01 Jun 2017)
Other sports She has competed in vaulting at international level, including at the 2014 World Equestrian Games [WEG] in Normandy, France. (Facebook page, 27 Apr 2018; FEI, 2018)
Famous relatives Her older sister Eleni represented South Africa in vaulting at the 2014 World Equestrian Games [WEG] in Normandy, France. (SportsDeskOnline, 31 Mar 2015; ghsinfo.co.za, 10 Oct 2010)
Ambitions To compete at the Olympic Games. (worldofshowjumping.com, 07 Dec 2022)
Other information NATIONALITY CHANGE In January 2022 she began competing for Cyprus. She was eligible to represent Cyprus through her grandfather, having previously competed for South Africa. "I am South African at heart. But riding for Cyprus makes a lot of things much easier from a sporting point of view because it is a European Union country. That opens up a lot more opportunities." (worldofshowjumping.com, 07 Dec 2022; equnews.com, 06 Jan 2022) SOUTH AFRICA TO GERMANY At a young age she told her parents that she wanted to travel to Europe, particularly Germany, to pursue her equestrian career as she thought it was the centre of the equestrian sport. She first met German equestrian Hilmar Meyer at age 15 when her family bought a horse from him, and after leaving school she spent three months at the stables of German equestrian Hans-Jorn Ottens before starting work for Meyer. Between January 2022 and January 2023 she worked for Markus and Meredith Michaels-Beerbaum in Thedinghausen. "Now I am infinitely happy that I can call Germany my home. I feel very comfortable here in Germany. I just had to get used to the weather. The first winter I froze but now I have the right clothes. Hilmar has done everything for me. I'm super grateful for that. But I've been with him since I came to Germany six years ago [speaking in 2022] and I want to develop further and also see something else. Now is the time for that." (worldofshowjumping.com, 07 Dec 2022; kreiszeitung.de, 14 Sep 2022; equnews.com, 06 Jan 2022; kreiszeitung.de, 05 Jan 2022; Facebook page, 04 Jan 2022; sportbuzzer.de, 10 Jan 2020; reitsport-magazin.net, 25 Sep 2019; ridersacademy.eu, 01 Jan 2019)
Sport Specific Information
When and where did you begin this sport? She first tried riding at age three, and got her first pony at age seven. "I started riding at three years old after seeing my older sister ride. I guess I've never looked back. I began vaulting when I was five, and I did both vaulting and showjumping until I turned 18. When I was riding up the grades, my parents made me do everything, I did equitation, eventing, and dressage on top of showjumping and vaulting. Then I started to focus more on showjumping. I do think my past with vaulting definitely helps me, my balance is really good."
Why this sport? Her parents both rode. Her mother hacked on weekends and her father evented, so horses were a natural part of her family life. She was captain of her school's equestrian team, and also represented the school in athletics, swimming, and hockey before focusing on equestrian sports. "We had stables at home, and my dad had a horse he used to hack out on Sundays, and he evented competitively - but I don't come from a serious horsey background. Showjumping was always my first passion."
Club / Team Gauteng Equestrian: South Africa
Training Regime "I go to yoga when I am at home, and if I am at home for a week, I try to go to the gym as well and do other sports. Riding only works a certain amount of muscles in your body, so it is important to stay fit."
Further Personal Information
Occupation Athlete, Horse Trainer
Languages Afrikaans, English, German