Olivia Rolfe ignites Blue Flame to victory in QOTT Cup Final

By Andrew Smith

Driving a cheap car in the middle of the Western Australian outback is not the traditional way to prepare for the lucrative Magic Millions Polo and Showjumping Day.

But Olivia Rolfe was able to steer past the chaos of a missed qualification attempt to take out the 2026 Queensland Off-The-Track Cup Final on the Gold Coast.

The amateur rider and former racehorse Blue Flame beat out a group of seasoned competitors to claim top spot in yesterday’s event at The Spit.

A twenty-strong field lined up to chase their share of $100,000 prizemoney, after earning their places through qualifiers held in Queensland, New South Wales, South Australia and Victoria.

Rolfe and the retired thoroughbred had only booked their spot in the 1.05m event during the Sydney Summer Classic qualifier event in mid-December.

A long-time Sunshine State resident, Rolfe explained how the pair came to be riding under the NSW banner after being unable to take part in the Queensland qualifier in June.

“We do a charity rally every year, and it happened to clash with Queensland's qualifier - I was halfway between Perth and Darwin in a $1,500 car at that point,” Rolfe said.

“It was a chaotic time just trying to get qualified, I've just moved house and it’s been wild.

“I was just happy to be there competing on the Gold Coast, and I thought whatever I could do would be a bonus.

“It hasn't set in yet still, it means a lot…I'm just over the moon.”

Rolfe and the 13-year-old chestnut gelding finished ahead of Lori James (Restauranter SHP) and Shanae Bohr-Howell (Daunies Surprise) to make it a NSW top-three finish.

Bred in Cairns and racing as Blue Banjo, the former galloper had just two starts on the track, finishing last in both races.

Rolfe detailed how an argument in an airport between herself and fellow QOTT Cup Final entrant Sarah Weiss led to her teaming up with Blue Flame a year ago.

“My friend Sarah actually found his ad and convinced me to come to Canberra to look at him, in case she didn’t like the horse,” Rolfe said.

“We both absolutely loved him and then we had to sit in the airport over the table from each other, and fight over who bought him.

“She’s been one of my biggest supporters through not only my journey with Blue but for a number of years…I wouldn’t have got to the Magic Millions Day without her!

“I had a bit of a confidence knock before, and to be just cruising around without a care in the world is amazing.

“It's not necessarily about the prizes, it's about the journey more than anything.”

Rolfe and Blue Flame have achieved plenty of success in the last 12 months, being crowned the Amateur Champion at last year’s Jumping Queensland Country Championships.

As an amateur horsewoman, Rolfe said celebrations had been put on hold last night, having to transport Blue Flame back home to Carbrook and also to complete some jobs post-event.

She added that the $16,000 top prize would be put to good use on the new property.

“I am paying off a vet bill from a long time ago…I know that's not a very exciting way to use prizemoney,” Rolfe said with a laugh.

“We've just moved to our property and there was an arena here a long time ago.

“I think my next project will be to turn it back into an arena, so that's probably where any prize money left over is going to go.”

The QOTT Cup Final was run for the third time after a successful inaugural event in 2024, with the prizemoney pool increasing from $75,000 to $100,000 this year.

Yesterday’s field also included multiple Group 1-winner and 2021 Doomben Cup victor Zaaki, with renowned trainer Annabel Archibald in the saddle.

Rolfe said it was an important event to showcase what thoroughbreds are capable of in retirement.

“It's such an amazing opportunity, and it just shows what they can do after racing,” Rolfe said.

“They do have these amazing opportunities after racing to do whatever you might want to do with them.

“They're such a versatile horse, and it's really important for the public to see that and events like this just give us that opportunity.”