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SIDELINESMAGAZINE | May 2026
riana Cyr’s love for horses began far
from the polished show rings she’d one
day know—on a small campground
pony that sparked a lifelong obsession. “I
was probably 4,” the 29-year-old professional
recalled with a smile. “I begged my mom to let
me take lessons and wouldn’t stop asking until
she finally gave in.”
Raised in Northborough, Massachusetts,
Ariana didn’t come from a wealthy or well-
connected equestrian family. Her parents,
both hardworking nurses, taught her the value
of grit early on. “I didn’t grow up riding with
anybody super well-known,” she said. “I just
found my way into 4-H and IEA, competing
regularly at Fieldstone and Saddle Rowe.”
Most local programs were hunter-jumper
focused, and Ariana was instantly hooked.
“I’m addicted to jumping—as we all are—but
even more so, I love everything that happens
on the ground.”
At 18, a seemingly harmless fall left Ariana
with two broken legs and months in a
wheelchair. “I almost lost my right leg,” she
shared. “But as soon as I could, I was back
on a horse.” Determined to stay close to the
animals she loved, Ariana continued her
equine business management studies online
while rehabbing and working in barns. A stint
out west with Arabian show horses enhanced
her patience, communication and natural
development skills—“everything I felt was
missing in the hunters,” she joked.
In 2019, while working at a barn in
Medfield, Massachusetts, Ariana met
Kassandra Cousseillant. “We just clicked,”
Ariana said. “We were so like-minded about
how horses should be trained and treated.”
DEVELOPING A PARTNERSHIP
From a young age, Kassandra grappled
with the challenges of being a minority in
a predominantly white sport, navigating
everything from hair comments to subtle
assumptions about her place in the barn.
The daughter of a Haitian father and an
American mother, she often stood out
among her peers in ways that went beyond
riding style or skill. “As a kid and young
Junior, it was very hard to look around and
see that nobody looked like me,” she said.
“On IEA teams, if I needed to put my hair
up in my helmet, I’d go to my mom’s car so I
didn’t have to hear comments like, ‘Your hair
is so crazy. Can I touch it?’”
ARIANA CYR
& KASSANDRA
COUSSEILLANT
Partnership and Success
Built on Happy Horses
By Diana Bezdedeanu • Portraits by Addie Beguelin
HUNTER-JUMPER
Kassandra Cousseillant, left, with her horse BRF
Rockwell and Ariana Cyr with BRF Calena E, owned
by Periosmiles, LLC, in Putnam, Connecticut.