Carl Hester MBE (born 29 June 1967 in Cambridgeshire, England)[1] is a British dressage rider competing at Olympic level.[2] As of 8 August 2012, the Fédération Équestre Internationale (FEI) rank him 12th in the world riding Uthopia.[3] In 2012, Hester formed part of the Great Britain Dressage team that won gold at the 2012 Summer Olympics.[4]
 Hester at the 2012 Summer Olympics | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Born | 29 June 1967 Cambridgeshire, England, United Kingdom | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Early life and career
editHester was raised by his mother and stepfather. He lived on the Channel Island of Sark from the age of four,[5] and was educated at Elizabeth College in Guernsey. His biological father is the actor Tony Smee.[6]
Aged 19 he applied for a job with horses in the UK at The Fortune Centre of Riding Therapy and on the centre's skewbald mare, Jolly Dolly, he won the 1985 Young Dressage Rider Championship. Moving to Bourton-on-the-Hill he competed at the first Blenheim Horse Trials and won the Spillers Dressage with Jumping Championship. He next rode for Dr Wilfried Bechtolsheimer[5] (father of Laura Bechtolsheimer) and in 1990 went to the World Championships on Rubelit von Unkenriff, the European Championships in 1991 and in 1992 the Barcelona Olympics on Georgioni. Hester became the youngest British rider ever to compete in an Olympic Games. He next went into a business partnership with Kate Carter at her yard at Stow-on-the-Wold until Carter decided to move for more space. Hester too moved to buy his own yard at Oaklebrook Mill, near Newent, Gloucestershire.[7][8]
2011 European Dressage Championship
editIn 2011 Hester riding the horse Uthopia was part of the British team that won the team gold medal at the 2011 European Dressage Championship in Rotterdam.[5][9] Hester also won individual silver medals in the Grand Prix Freestyle and Grand Prix Special.[10]
As of 8 August 2012 the (FEI) ranked him 12th in the world riding Uthopia.[3]
2012 Olympics
editIn 2012, Hester was selected with three others to represent the United Kingdom at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London in the Individual and Team Dressage events.[11] The UK dressage team won the gold medal with Hester riding Uthopia.[12][13]
Hester was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the 2013 New Year Honours for services to equestrianism.[14][15]
International Championship results
edit| Results | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Event | Horse | Score | Placing | Notes | ||||||
| 1990 | World Equestrian Games | Rubelit v. Unkenruf | 5th | Team | |||||||
| 18th | Individual | ||||||||||
| 1992 | Olympic Games | Giorgione | 7th | Team | |||||||
| 16th | Individual | ||||||||||
| 1999 | European Championships | Legal Democrat | 5th | Team | |||||||
| 13th | Individual | ||||||||||
| 2004 | Olympic Games | Exquis Escapado | 7th | Team | |||||||
| 13th | Individual | ||||||||||
| 2005 | World Cup Final | Exquis Escapado | 10th | ||||||||
| 2005 | European Championships | Exquis Escapado | 5th | Team | |||||||
| 6th | Individual | ||||||||||
| 2009 | European Championships | Liebling II | 72.085% | 
|
Team | ||||||
| 72.250% | 10th | Individual Special | |||||||||
| 75.900% | 10th | Individual Freestyle | |||||||||
| 2010 | World Equestrian Games | Leibling II | 72.128% |
|
Team | ||||||
| 69.417% | 17th | Individual Special | |||||||||
| 2011 | European Championships | Uthopia | 82.568% | 
|
Team | ||||||
| 81.682% |
|
Individual Special | |||||||||
| 84.179% |
|
Individual Freestyle | |||||||||
| 2012 | Olympic Games | Uthopia | 77.720% |
|
Team | ||||||
| 82.857% | 5th | Individual | |||||||||
| 2013 | European Championships | Uthopia | 75.334% | 
|
Team | ||||||
| 72.250% | 6th | Individual Special | |||||||||
| 81.696% | 6th | Individual Freestyle | |||||||||
| 2014 | World Equestrian Games | Nip Tuck | 74.186% |
|
Team | ||||||
| 75.532% | 12th | Individual Special | |||||||||
| 76.589% | 12th | Individual Freestyle | |||||||||
| 2015 | European Championships | Nip Tuck | 75.400% |
|
Team | ||||||
| 77.003% | 5th | Individual Special | |||||||||
| 79.571% | 8th | Individual Freestyle | |||||||||
| 2016 | Olympic Games | Nip Tuck | 75.529% |
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Team | ||||||
| 82.553% | 7th | Individual | |||||||||
| 2017 | World Cup Final | Nip Tuck | 83.757% |
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| 2017 | European Championships | Nip Tuck | 74.900% | 4th | Team | ||||||
| 76.732% | 5th | Individual Special | |||||||||
| 80.614% | 4th | Individual Freestyle | |||||||||
| 2018 | World Equestrian Games | Hawtins Delicato | 77.283% |
|
Team | ||||||
| 77.219% | 9th | Individual Special | |||||||||
| 2019 | European Championships | Hawtins Delicato | 78.323% | 4th | Team | ||||||
| 77.508% | 9th | Individual Special | |||||||||
| 70.732% | 14th | Individual Freestyle | |||||||||
Personal life
editHester is openly gay.[16][17][18] In July 2024 it was announced a film was to be made about his life.[19][20]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ Hester, Carl; Hewitt, Bernadette (8 May 2014). Making it Happen: The Autobiography. Orion. ISBN 9781409147695.
- ^ "Carl Hester: Great Britain & N. Ireland, Equestrian". BBC Sport. Retrieved 8 August 2012.
- ^ a b "Ranking / Standing Search". Fédération Équestre Internationale. Archived from the original on 19 March 2012. Retrieved 8 August 2012.
- ^ Winfield, Nicole; Freeman, Margaret (7 August 2012). "Britain wins 1st Olympic team dressage medal: gold". San Diego Union-Tribune. Retrieved 15 August 2023.
- ^ a b c Knight, Sam (8 August 2016). "The Duo That Dominates Dressage". The New Yorker. Retrieved 4 August 2016.
- ^ "Olympic champ first saw dad's face in Corrie". 29 November 2021.
- ^ "Gloucestershire going for gold at the London 2012 Olympics". gloucestershireecho.co.uk. 27 June 2012. Archived from the original on 1 August 2012. Retrieved 15 August 2012.
- ^ "Carl Hester Official Website". Archived from the original on 26 July 2010. Retrieved 2 August 2012.
- ^ "Britain win first-ever European team dressage title". BBC Sport. 18 August 2011. Retrieved 8 August 2012.
- ^ Parkes, Louise (21 August 2011). "FEI European Dressage Championships 2011 – Grand Prix Freestyle". Fédération Équestre Internationale. Retrieved 8 August 2012.
- ^ "London 2012: Team GB dressage team announced by BOA". BBC Sport. 22 June 2012. Retrieved 8 August 2012.
- ^ Williams, Ollie (7 August 2012). "Olympics equestrian: 20 gold medals for GB with dressage win". BBC Sport. Archived from the original on 8 August 2012. Retrieved 8 August 2012.
- ^ "Carl Hester and Uthopia 'Uphoria' at the 2012 Olympic Games". Eurodressage. Retrieved 15 August 2023.
- ^ "No. 60367". The London Gazette (Supplement). 29 December 2012. p. 25.
- ^ "2013 New Year's Honours" (PDF). Retrieved 29 December 2012.
- ^ Buzinski, Jim. "20 openly gay and lesbian athletes at 2012 London Summer Olympics". Outsports. Archived from the original on 21 July 2012. Retrieved 1 August 2016.
- ^ Milton, Josh (28 July 2021). "Carl Hester becomes latest gay Team GB athlete to win Olympic medal". PinkNews. Retrieved 15 August 2023.
- ^ Scott, Duncan (30 July 2021). "Gay Dressage Rider, Carl Hester, Wins Bronze Medal For Great Britain". DNA. Retrieved 15 August 2023.
- ^ "Film to tell story of Sark's Olympic gold medallist". Guernsey Press. 8 July 2024. Retrieved 9 July 2024.
- ^ "Carl Hester: film star, Rupert Campbell-Black and other things the horse world is talking about". Horse and Hound. 3 July 2024. Retrieved 9 July 2024.
