Sienna Weir, a 23-year-old Australian model, has died from injuries suffered during a horseback riding accident that happened last month. The Miss Universe Australia finalist was riding a horse at Windsor Polo Grounds in Sydney on April 2 when the horse fell during a Sydney Jumping Association event.
Following the freak accident, Weir was rushed to the nearby Westmead Hospital and spent the final month of her life on life support before being taken off of it on May 4. Her sudden death comes not long after she graduated from Sydney University with a double degree in English literature and psychology.
Her death was confirmed by the model’s agency – Scoop Management – in an Instagram post on May 4, just hours after she was taken off life support. “Forever in our hearts” they wrote in the caption, adding a white heart and dove emoji. They shared several photos of her with Coldplay playing in the background.
“Although I’ve lived most of my life in the city, I have a deep and unmoving love for show jumping. My family aren’t quite sure where this passion came from, but I’ve been horse-riding since I was 3 years old and can’t imagine my life without it,” she told Gold Coast Magazine in an interview in September 2022.
She went on to add that she travels to ‘rural Sydney’ several times per week to train and competes every other weekend in New South Wales or broader Australia. In addition to her modeling and show jumping, she has a deep passion for English literature – hence the degree – and, more specifically, gothic poetry.
Equestrian Australia expressed their condolences to her family in the wake of her death. “Our thoughts are with them at this time, we also extend our condolences to her friends and the equestrian community, including those who witnessed the event, we wish to respect their privacy at this difficult time,” they wrote.
She received several other tributes on social media as news of her death circulated around the web – including photographer Chris Dwyer, who called her ‘one of the kindest souls in the world.’ He praised her for lighting up every room she walked into and said the world is a lot darker now that she’s gone.
Boyfriend Shares Emotional Tribute for Sienna Weir
Among the rush of tributes and kind words being left on social media, the one tribute that received the most attention came from Sienna Weir’s boyfriend, Tom Bull. He took to his Instagram account on May 5 to share several photos of the couple together and shared one of his favorite poems by her favorite poet.
“I love you my sunflower girl. My favourite poem, ‘Annabel Lee’, written by her favourite poet, Edgar Allan Poe,” he wrote in the caption – followed by the poem. It’s just his second photo on Instagram, the other one being a photo of the couple on a boat. “The most important person to me, Sienna Mae,” he wrote.