THE best piece of advice my dad gave me was: “Be nice to people on the way up because you might meet them on the way down.”
My parents had nothing to do with horses when I started out but they became massive supporters. John Whitaker and I first met when we were 12 and our parents became good friends, so they used to travel to all the shows together.
Harvey Smith and David Broome were our heroes. I started watching the Horse of the Year Show on television when I was about nine and they were the most prominent riders then. At that age, I don’t suppose I dreamed that one day I’d be riding against them but it’s funny how life goes – we became fellow competitors and then good friends.
The biggest change in my riding is that I always wear a hat now. In the old days, nobody wore one unless you were in the ring and, before chinstraps, if your hat was wobbling about you’d just throw it off. But I’ve seen enough accidents for it to have been an important lesson, and I’d never get on a horse without one now.
FINDING THE KEY
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Toledo De Kerser
Tom McEwen’s world team gold medallist was picked by William and Pippa Funnell to feature in this week’s magazine. Pippa Roome meets him
Gemma Tattersall
The Olympian on embracing modern fitness methods, her dislike for sunrise starts and why she does her mindset preparation before she gets on the horse
William Funnell and John Whitaker
John Whitaker has inspired generations of riders, not least William Funnell. The pair sit down to discuss horsemanship, riding Milton, keeping motivated and years of friendship
‘A blissful landing'
In the face of dark evenings and home schooling, a weekend ride in the snow with the children lifts the spirits, says Tessa Waugh, despite a tumble and the prospect of retrieving a runaway pony
Giving something back
Hunts receive a lot of support from their local communities, but what do they do in return? As Abi Butcher discovers, one thing is raising a great deal of money for charitable causes
The medal makers
They are the heroes of equestrian sport, but how much of that star material do they pass on to their descendants? Lucy Elder looks at the offspring of some high-profile medal winners to find out if the apple falls far from the tree...
Welfare chief
Pippa Funnell asks World Horse Welfare chief executive Roly Owers to discuss his role and hopes for equine welfare
The winning formula
The future looks bright for Vicky Tuffs and Andrew Williams, as their business producing young event horses goes from strength to strength. Catherine Austen meets them
‘A step back to a more positive time'
Julie Templeton on how jockeys benefit from changes in the show ring
Irish hunting's linchpin
David Lalor has been a master since 1992 and is in his second term as IMFHA chairman. Liam Clancy talks to him about his life, and whether the sport is under threat in Ireland
COVID-19 PANDEMIC CHANGING INDUSTRY CONFERENCES & EVENTS
The global COVID-19 pandemic has changed the world and many industries and businesses.
Do the Olympics really need an audience?
With a $5.9 billion budget and a decade of planning behind it, the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo had been expected to draw 11,000 of the world’s elite athletes and more than 600,000 tourists when it starts in late July.
A Different Path
I ran track in high school. Was I pushing my daughter too hard to follow in my steps?
GOING FOR ANOTHER GOLD
OLYMPIC SHOOTING LEGEND KIM RHODE TALKS SHOOTING, TRAINING, AND BRINGING ANOTHER MEDAL HOME FOR THE U.S.
AHEAD IN THE CLOUDS: ALIBABA PLANS TO CHANGE THE OLYMPICS
Alibaba’s promise to the Olympic family is to bring its technological might to help organizers, broadcasters and fans.
Pointers From The World's Top Climbers
You’ll never get to the destination happy, or at all in certain cases, if you don’t enjoy the process. —Sean McColl, CAN, 2020 Sport Climbing Olympic Athlete, 2016 Villars Lead World Cup Gold Medalist
Doping - With The Olympics Comes Temptation
With the Olympics comes increased scrutiny of the anti-doping policies of competition climbing
BHCS students challenge their fitness in PACER Olympics
BLUE HILL—Stretched across one end of the Blue Hill Consolidated School gymnasium October 29, 31 students were poised to take offrunning—not for speed but for endurance, in a program where students compete against their own level of fitness.
Aly Raisman 'We Have To Change The Way Our Society Views Women.'
In her fight to end sexual abuse, the Olympic champion is challenging the very institutions she led to glory.
Stan the Man: Wawrinka Takes Aim at Another Major Title
Drama seems to find Stan Wawrinka, and failure once dogged him. But at 31, he's learned how to survive, and thrive, in the era of the Big Four.