Equestrianism is one of the world’s oldest sports and features a variety of disciplines, including dressage, eventing, and vaulting. Dressage, which dates back to ancient Greece, was created to prepare horses for war. It is an event in which the horse and rider execute a series of predetermined movements in unison.
While horses were used for chariot races in the ancient Olympic Games as far back as 680 BCE, equestrianism wasn’t part of the first-ever modern Olympic Games in 1896. The sport debuted four years later with five events at the Paris Games but was again left off the Olympic program in 1904 and 1908. However, the equestrian program has been a staple of the Summer Olympics since the 1912 Stockholm Games, which included medal competitions in dressage, eventing, and show jumping.
The following is a look at five of the most accomplished equestrian athletes in Olympic history.
1. Isabell Werth
Germany is the most accomplished nation in equestrian sports at the Olympics and nobody has won more medals than Isabell Werth. A six-time Olympian, Werth first competed in the 1992 Barcelona Games and won a gold medal in team dressage and a silver medal in individual dressage. She won gold medals in team and individual dressage four years later at the 1996 Atlanta Games. Werth was also part of the gold-medal-winning German dressage teams in 2000, 2008, 2016, and 2021, and won individual silver medals in 2000, 2008, 2016, and 2021.
Overall, Werth has won 12 Olympic medals, which is three more than the next most accomplished equestrian athlete. She has also won more gold medals (7) than any other rider in history. At 53 years old, Werth intends to compete again at the 2024 Paris Games, where she could add to her impressive medal collection. She does, however, plan to retire after the Games.
“I have no ambition to look at statistics,” Werth said after declaring her intentions in 2021. “I’ll be 55 [in Paris] and I certainly no longer want to ride at the age of 60.”
In addition to her success at the Olympics, Werth has won 21 gold medals at the
European Championships and nine at the World Championships.
2. Anky van Grunsven
A longtime rival of Werth, Anky van Grunsven retired in 2012 after winning nine Olympic medals (three gold, five silver, and one bronze). Also a nine-time world champion in dressage, van Grunsven won her first dressage title at 12 years old and made her Olympic debut at the 1988 Seoul Games. She finished just behind Werth in dressage at the 1992 and 1996 Games but won her first individual Olympic title at the 2000 Sydney Games.
The Dutch rider achieved new heights with a new champion horse, Salinero, in the early 2000s after retiring her longtime partner, Bonfire. She won the gold medal again at the 2004 Athens Games and defended her championship at the 2008 Beijing Games. She also won multiple Dutch, European, and world titles with Salinero.
3. Reiner Klimke
The most accomplished male rider in Olympic history, Germany’s Reiner Klimke won eight medals (six gold and two bronze) in six Olympic Games from 1960 to 1988. He was part of the dominant German dressage teams during this time, winning gold in the team event in 1964, 1968, 1976, 1984, and 1988. He won his only individual gold medal in 1984 and captured bronze medals in the individual event in 1968 and 1976.
4. Hans Günter Winkler
Also from Germany, Hans Günter Winkler is the most accomplished non-dressage rider in Olympic equestrian history. He won seven Olympic medals in six Olympic Games from 1956 to 1976 and is the only show jumper in history to win five Olympic gold medals. He’s also the only show jumper to reach the podium in six different Olympic Games.
Winkler won five team jumping gold medals and earned his lone individual jumping gold medal at the 1956 Stockholm Games. He also won team jumping bronze and silver medals in 1968 and 1976, respectively. One of Germany’s most popular athletes during the 1950s and 1960s, he also won two individual jumping gold medals at the World Championships and was a five-time medalist at the European Championships.
5. Andrew Hoy
A member of the Sport Australia Hall of Fame, Andrew Hoy first represented his country in eventing at the 1984 Los Angeles Games. However, he didn’t win a medal until his third Games at Barcelona 1992, when he won gold in team eventing. Hoy and his Australian compatriots defended their titles in 1996 and 2000, while Hoy also won the silver medal in individual eventing in 2000. He was held off the podium in 2004 and 2012 but won a bronze (individual) and silver (team) medal at the 2020 Tokyo Games, becoming the oldest Australian to compete in and win a medal at the Olympics.