A beloved Massachusetts equestrian was tragically killed after her show horse balked on a jump, hurling her from the saddle before collapsing on top of her.

Chloe Christina Smith, 25, was riding her horse with friends Friday night when she was thrown from the animal in a horrific fall that also left the steed dead after it sustained a fatal neck injury, according to her heartbroken family and obituary.

The Swampscott woman was airlifted to UMass Memorial Medical Center in Worcester, where she died hours later surrounded by loved ones, Itemlive reported.

Chloe Smith with her horses.
Chloe Christina Smith, 25, was tragically killed after her horse balked on a jump, hurling her from the saddle before collapsing on top of her.Chloe Smith / Instagram
“Chloe … died living her dreams,” her obituary said. 

“Most of us never get that chance, that special moment where life comes together, the wind is at your back, and you have everything you ever wanted right in front of you.”

Smith’s family said her life was cut short just weeks after she fulfilled her dream of buying a working horse farm in Berlin, where she boarded 18 horses and animals and trained riders, the outlet reported.

The avid rider, remembered for her ambition and generosity, had only recently moved into the farmhouse.

“Her world was right there,” her father, Jim, said, with her obit branding the devastating accident as a “cruel twist of fate.”

“Her life was horses. That was her love.”

Chloe Smith smiling next to a white horse.
Her show horse also died in the fall after it sustained a fatal neck injury.Chloe Smith / Instagram

A young woman in a riding helmet and tank top smiles while seated on a brown and white horse.
Smith’s family said her life was cut short just weeks after she fulfilled her dream of buying a working horse farm in Berlin.Chloe Smith / Instagram
Her older brother, Andrew, told the outlet how much his sister “loved her horses,” adding that “she was thrilled when she opened her own bar just seven weeks ago.”

Smith, a progressive activist committed to social justice and equality, had hoped to turn her farm into a local destination for family celebrations and community events, her family said.

“She said she wanted to live there the rest of her life,” her mother, Abbe, told the outlet, explaining how her daughter’s love for horses started after summers at equestrian camps as a child.

Chloe Smith riding a white horse over a wooden jump.
The avid rider, remembered for her ambition and generosity, had only recently moved into the farmhouse.Chloe Smith / Facebook
“She wanted to get married there.”

Funeral services will be held on Monday.

SOURCE: https://nypost.com/2026/06/10/us-news/massachusetts-equestrian-25-killed-in-horrific-accident-when-horse-refused-to-jump/