EQUESTRIAN Carl Hester has competed at an astonishing six Olympic Games, and has bagged a large number of medals.
Here’s all you need to know about the dressage superstar who’s back for another go at the 2024 games.
Carl Hester MBE was born in Cambridgeshire on June 29, 1967.
He’s a British dressage rider who competes at Olympic level, having won a number of gold medals in international competitions.
Carl has been riding since he was just five-years-old.
He was raised on the Channel Island of Sark, where there are no cars allowed, and so horse-riding was an important part of his early life.
At 19 he headed to the UK mainland after applying for a job at a horse-riding therapy centre in Hampshire, where he worked with people with learning difficulties and disabilities.
Carl started to compete in competitions, and was eventually noticed by the father of a young Laura Tomlinson MBE.
She would grow up to become another star in the dressage world, and later competed alongside Carl at the 2012 Olympics.
Carl joined their family’s yard as a rider, and was able to take part in a number of international tournaments.
In 2024 it was revealed that Carl’s life may be turned into a film.
UK producers Drew Curtis and Richard Conway are part of the project.
Drew Curtis told Variety magazine: “Carl Hester’s journey has done for dressage what Billy Elliot did for ballet.”
It’s thought that the film will tell the story of his upbringing, and run all the way up to his gold medal-winning performance at London 2012.
Carl has won a total of fifteen medals in international competitions over his dressage career.
Paris 2024 will be the seventh time for Carl at the Olympics, after competing for the first time in Barcelona in 1992.
He was a part of the gold-winning Team GB at the London 2012 games, and since that has also brought home silver from the 2016 games in Rio, and bronze from Tokyo 2020.
Carl’s had some recent success too – his team won gold at the 2023 European Dressage Championships.
Carl has competed with team mate Charlotte Dujardin over a number of competitions, however Dujardin was banned from the sport ahead of the start of the Paris Olympics.
It’s after a video was released which showed her whipping a horse on its legs more than 24 times.
Britain’s greatest horsewoman said she was “deeply ashamed” by her “error of judgement” in a coaching session “from four years ago”.
Travelling reserve Becky Moody will take Dujardin’s place on horse Jägerbomb along with teammates Carl and fellow rider Charlotte Fry.
Charlotte went for riding lessons at Carl’s yard in 2007 and, whilst she was there, she stayed on to cover the absence of a member of staff.
Carl has been my biggest supporter; not only has he been a mentor for me, he’s my trainer, my coach at a competition, and he’s everyone’s rock.”
Charlotte Dujardin
Carl was so pleased with her that she stayed on working with him, and became her tutor and mentor.
The pair eventually won gold together at the London 2012 Olympics.
Charlotte’s spoken warmly about her professional relationship with Carl over the years.
She told Horse & Hound: “Carl has been my biggest supporter; not only has he been a mentor for me, he’s my trainer, my coach at a competition, and he’s everyone’s rock.”
The pair are both based at Carl’s yard near Newent in Gloucestershire, where they work and train alongside each other.
WHAT TO WATCH TODAY...
Paris 2024 Olympics – Day -1
Women’s handball and archery gets underway today while the Rugby sevens continues with some quarter-final action.
Spain, Brazil and Germany are all in action in the women’s football as well.
Click here for all the events taking place at Paris 2024 today.
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