Graham Fletcher

The Nations Cup stalwart made his name producing bargain horses to the highest level. Penny Richardson plots his career from all-round sportsman to Olympic athlete

- Penny Richardson

WHEN I ask Graham Fletcher what it was like to be showjumping’s pin-up boy of the 1970s, there is a moment’s silence before he bursts out laughing.

“At the risk of sounding conceited, I don’t think there was a downside. I really enjoyed it!” he replies.

But Graham Fletcher was always a lot more than just a pretty face. He rode at two Olympics, was reserve for a third and went to number four as trainer of the British team. His major wins included grands prix at Meccas such as Aachen, Olympia and Dublin. A former international selector and board member of the British Show Jumping Association (now British Showjumping), for many years he has also found the time to write a column about his sport for this magazine. And most impressively, the majority of his wins were on horses that were inexpensive buys.

Born into a North Yorkshire farming family, he was introduced to riding by his father, Ken.

“Dad did a bit of point-to-pointing and hunting, but he never show jumped,” reflects Graham. “My sister Liz [now married to David Broome] and I both had ponies and Dad was really supportive and took us to shows. We all enjoyed it and it became a family day out.”

It took young Graham a while to settle on a sporting career.