A former soldier turned gold medal-winning para athlete who sued for £1.7million after falling off her army horse has been accused of being 'fundamentally dishonest' by a judge.
Debbie O'Connell sued the Ministry of Defence after claiming she fell off the horse because her boots were too big.
The 37-year-old was part of the Royal Horse Artillery's crack squadron, the King's Troop, when she fell from a bucking parade horse in 2015, breaking her collarbone and claiming her left arm was rendered virtually useless.
She was training as a mounted gunner with the Royal Horse Artillery's crack squadron, the King's Troop, but ended up being discharged from the forces two years later.
She quit the army due to her injury, but went on to forge a successful career in para athletics, winning gold medals for cycling at the Invictus Games in 2018, sprinting at European and world level, and becoming a leading CrossFit competitor.
