Boyd Exell

Last updated

Boyd Exell
Boyd Exell, driving dressage closeup 2014.jpg
Boyd Exell in 2014
Personal information
Born (1972-07-29) 29 July 1972 (age 52) [1]
Website boydexell.com
Sport
CountryFlag of Australia (converted).svg  Australia
Sport Equestrianism
Event(s) Carriage driving, combined driving
Medal record
Representing Flag of Australia (converted).svg  Australia
FEI World Equestrian Games [2]
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg 2010 USA Individual driving
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg 2014 France Individual driving
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg 2018 USA Individual driving
World Championship [2]
Bronze medal icon (B initial).svg2008 NetherlandsIndividual driving
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg2012 GermanyIndividual driving
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg2016 NetherlandsIndividual driving
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg2022 ItalyIndividual driving
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg2024 HungaryIndividual driving
FEI World Cup Final [2]
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg2009 SwedenIndividual driving
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg2010 SwitzerlandIndividual driving
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg 2011 Germany Individual driving
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg2012 FranceIndividual driving
Silver medal icon (S initial).svg2013 FranceIndividual driving
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg2014 FranceIndividual driving
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg2015 FranceIndividual driving
Silver medal icon (S initial).svg2016 FranceIndividual driving
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg2017 SwedenIndividual driving
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg2018 FranceIndividual driving
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg2020 FranceIndividual driving
Silver medal icon (S initial).svg 2022 Germany Individual driving
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg2023 FranceIndividual driving
Silver medal icon (S initial).svg2024 FranceIndividual driving

Boyd Exell (born July 29, 1972, in Bega) is an Australian horse driver, trainer, judge and horse owner who specialises in competing with four-in-hand teams in the combined driving sport, has won the World Cup indoor driving finals ten times, and won eight world champion titles during his career. As of October 2024, Exell is ranked #1 in the world for his sport. Stationed in the Netherlands since 2015, and in the UK for the previous 20 years, [3] he travels to Australia, the US and around Europe holding events to train drivers. [4] [5]

Contents

Personal life

Boyd Exell was born July 29, 1972 in Bega, Australia [6] where he and his two brothers and a sister were raised. His father was a civil engineer and his mother a schoolteacher. Boyd had always loved horses, and he and his brother Kent learned to drive horses early on and competed as young boys. At 16, Boyd started to compete seriously in carriage driving competitions in Australia and won the Australian National Championships with a Hackney Pony team. As a backup to a career with horses and pressure from his mother, he completed an apprenticeship with a local engineering firm. [7] [8] [9]

When he was 21, he travelled to the United States and eventually settled in England to learn more about horse sports and carriage driving. He stayed in England for 20 years before moving to Valkenswaard, Netherlands in 2015. Exell is married to Preetha and has two children. Exell enjoys boating and water skiing. [10] [11] [8] [7]

Career

Along with competing in four-in-hand driving sports, Exell has been active in breaking, training, buying and selling horses. Much of his time has been spent training drivers in America and across Europe, and he has sought talented drivers to mentor. He has provided horses and carriages for weddings and funerals, and driven coaches for sponsors and owners. [8] [9]

The nice thing about carriage driving is that we can host our sponsors and owners and we can take them to Royal Ascot on a coach (an English Park Drag) with a team of horses. We can take 10 to 12 guests and we can have three days of racing. We set off from the Royal Mews in Windsor Castle, head down through Windsor Great Park, spend the day racing, have lunch and take the guests home. That is one of the upsides of driving, to be able to host your owners and your sponsors in that way.

— Boyd Exell (2020) [9]

Exell was a judge for the Fédération Équestre Internationale (FEI) from 2010 to 2020, and Deputy Chair of the FEI Driving Committee from 2012 to 2014. [1] [12]

Annually, he hosts the Driving Valkenswaard International combined driving competition at his farm in the Netherlands. [9]

Competitions

Boyd Exell became the individual world champion for the first time at the World Equestrian Games in Kentucky. He was able to repeat this success at the 2012 World Championships in Germany with the same team. [2] [8]

Boyd Exell during the 2013 World Cup CHI Geneve 2013 - 20131215 - Boyd Exell.jpg
Boyd Exell during the 2013 World Cup

In August 2013, Exell's top horse died. Bill 22 was a brown Orlov Trotter born in 1992. He had reached the age of 21 and was considered the fastest four-in-hand leader (front horse) in the world at the time. Boyd Exell's success story began in 2008 with Bill 22, winning a bronze medal at the World Championships in the Netherlands. Together they won four World Cup Finals in a row, from 2009 to 2012. In 2013, Exell placed second in the World Cup Finals in France with Bill 22 in the team. Boyd had taken over Bill 22 from driver Michael Freund  [ de; fr ] in 2007, with whom he had won five World Cup Finals starting with a 2002 victory in Sweden. [2] [13] [14]

Boyd Exell performing driven dressage at the 2014 World Equestrian Games Boyd Exell, driving dressage 2014.jpg
Boyd Exell performing driven dressage at the 2014 World Equestrian Games

In 2014, Exell won the title of individual world champion at the World Equestrian Games in France. In 2016 he became the individual world champion again in the Netherlands. In 2018 he defended his world championship title again in North Carolina, in Italy in 2022, and in Hungary in 2024. [2]

In 2023, Boyd Exell won his 10th World Cup Finals. [15] [16] In January 2023, the announcer declared Exell "number one in the world, more titles than any other driver in history." [17]

Wins

Boyd Exell in action, 2014 World Cup

Boyd Exell has won 75% of his FEI competitions, with 158 wins out of 212 starts, [18] [lower-alpha 1] and as of May 2024 is ranked #1 in the world for his sport. [18] He won the world championship competitions in 2010, 2012, 2014, 2016, 2018, 2022 and 2024, and placed third in 2008. [2] Ten times he has won the World Cup indoor driving competition (2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2014, 2015, 2017, 2018, 2020, 2023) and placed second 4 times (2013, 2016, 2022, 2024). [2]

Exell was eight times British National Champion, [8] and he has won the driving competition at CHIO Aachen twelve times (2003, 2009-2013, 2016, 2017, 2019, 2022, 2023, 2024). [19]

Accolades

Boyd Exell was awarded an Order of Australia in the 2014 Queen's Birthday Honours list for services to equestrian sports. [12] In 2017, Boyd Exell was inducted into the Equestrian Australia Hall of Fame in recognition of his achievements in carriage driving. [20] Equestrian Australia named him the International Athlete of the Year in 2010, 2013 2014, 2015, and 2016. [10] [21] In 2015, the FEI honored Exell with the Reem Acra Best Athlete award. [22]

In 2014, his team of horses was named IRT International Horse of the Year. The team of five geldings were aged 7 to 20 years old; two were Dutch Warmbloods (KWPN). [23]

"It's hard to find reliable leaders [lower-alpha 2] who are honest and forward. Horses at the back need to be honest, reliable powerful and hard-working – but the ones at the front that need to be brave and independent are harder to get... chasing the perfect team is like chasing the pot of the gold at the end of the rainbow." —Boyd Exell [5]

As of October 2024, FEI ranked Boyd Exell number 1 worldwide for Driving World Cup Standings, Driving World Cup Qualification Standings, and Driving World Ranking - Four-in-Hand. [18]

Notes

  1. ↑ Statistics counted from January 2010 to May 2023 only.
  2. ↑ "Leaders" are the two horses at the front of a team of four. The two horses at the rear are called "wheelers".

Related Research Articles

The International Federation for Equestrian Sports is the international governing body of equestrian sports. The FEI headquarters are in Lausanne, Switzerland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Combined driving</span> Sport involving horses pulling carriages

Combined driving is an equestrian sport involving carriage driving. In this discipline, the driver sits on a vehicle drawn by a single horse, a pair or a team of four. The sport has three phases: dressage, cross-country marathon and obstacle cone driving — patterned after the mounted equestrian sport of eventing. It is one of the ten international equestrian sport horse disciplines recognized by the Fédération Équestre Internationale (FEI). Combined driving became an FEI discipline in 1970 when Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, the then-president of FEI, produced the first rule book.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Carriage driving</span> Form of competitive horse driving in harness with two or four wheeled carriages

Carriage driving is a form of competitive horse driving in harness in which larger two- or four-wheeled carriages are pulled by a single horse, a pair, tandem or a four-in-hand team. Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh helped to expand the sport. He started to compete in carriage driving in 1971, and the early rule book was drafted under his supervision.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Christoph Sandmann</span> German equestrian

Christoph Sandmann is a German equestrian and multiple World Champion at the World Equestrian Games.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Beezie Madden</span> American equestrian

Elizabeth Madden is an American Olympic champion equestrian competing in show jumping. She has two Olympic golds and one silver in team jumping, and an individual bronze. She won the FEI Show Jumping World Cup twice; won two silvers and two bronzes at World Championships; and won two golds, one silver and two bronzes at the Pan American Games. She was the first American to break into the international top three show jumping ranking, and the first woman to win over one million dollars in show jumping prize money.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hans Peter Minderhoud</span> Dutch equestrian

Hans Peter Minderhoud is a Dutch dressage rider.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Adelinde Cornelissen</span> Dutch dressage rider (born 1979)

Adelinde Cornelissen is a Dutch dressage rider.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Global Champions Tour</span>

The Longines Global Champions Tour (LGCT) is an annual pre-eminent individual show jumping series that comprises up to 15 rounds of competition hosted around the world. It brings together the top 30 riders in the FEI Jumping World Rankings.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">London International Horse Show</span>

The London International Horse Show, formerly the Olympia London International Horse Show, is one of the UK's biggest equestrian competitions. It is best known as the host of the UK legs of the FEI World Cup series in dressage, show jumping and driving, however it also has multiple other showjumping classes, as well as fun competitions such as a Shetland pony race and a dog agility competition. Many competitions are broadcast live by the BBC, and all are streamed. The show is held over six days during the week preceding Christmas, and typically involves over 400 horses and ponies.

The 2011 FEI World Cup Finals in Leipzig, Germany were the Final of four World Cups in different Equestrian sports. They were held in the exhibition halls 1 and 3 at the new Leipzig Trade Fair from April 27 to May 1, 2011.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Charlotte Dujardin</span> British equestrian and writer (born 1985)

Charlotte Susan Jane Dujardin is a British dressage rider, equestrian, and writer. A multiple World and Olympic champion, Dujardin has been described as the dominant dressage rider of her era. She held the complete set of available individual elite dressage titles at one point: the individual Olympic freestyle, World freestyle and Grand Prix Special, World Cup individual dressage and European freestyle, and Grand Prix Special titles. Dujardin was the first rider to hold this complete set of titles at the same time.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Boyd Martin</span> American equestrian

Boyd Martin is an Australian-born, American equestrian competing in the discipline of eventing. He has participated in four consecutive Summer Olympic Games and is a two-time Pan American Games team gold medalist and individual gold medalist. He is a two-time CCI5*-L winner.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Para-equestrian</span> Type of disability sport

Para-equestrian is an equestrian sport governed by the International Federation for Equestrian Sports (FEI), and includes two competitive events. One is para-equestrian dressage, which is conducted under the same basic rules as conventional dressage, but with riders divided into different competition grades based on their functional abilities. The other is para-equestrian driving, which operates under the same basic rules as combined driving but places competitors in various grades based on their functional abilities.

The individual combined driving at the 2014 World Equestrian Games in Normandy was held at La Prairie Race Course in Caen from 4 to 7 September.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kent Farrington</span> American equestrian (born 1980)

Kent Farrington is an American equestrian show jumping athlete.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Laura Graves</span> American equestrian

Laura Graves is an American dressage rider. She represented the United States at the 2016 Summer Olympics where she won a bronze medal in the team dressage competition. After winning double silver medals at the 2018 World Equestrian Games in Tryon, NC, Laura became the first American dressage rider to be ranked No. 1 in FEI World rankings, aboard her longtime partner Verdades.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Daniel Bluman</span> Israeli equestrian (born 1990)

Daniel Bluman is an Olympic show jumping rider. Born in Colombia, he represents Israel internationally and competed for his country of birth in the past. Bluman qualified to represent Israel at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, but did not compete due to a clerical error in his horse's registration. Bluman represented Israel at the 2024 Paris Olympics at the Palace of Versailles in individual jumping and team jumping.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nayel Nassar</span> Egyptian-American equestrian

Nayel Nassar is an Egyptian American professional equestrian. He first began riding at age five and jumping at ten. Nassar qualified for the International Federation for Equestrian Sports (FEI) Show Jumping World Cup Finals in 2013, 2014, and 2017, and the FEI World Equestrian Games in 2014. He competed at the Longines FEI World Cup Finals in Paris and regularly competes on the international Grand Prix circuit.

Richard Rankin Fellers is an American former Olympic equestrian and horse trainer. In 2023 he pled guilty to sexually abusing one of his students when she was 17. According to the Washington County, Oregon district attorney, he will serve 30 months in state prison concurrently with a four year federal sentence.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Daniel Bachmann Andersen</span> Danish equestrian (born 1990)

Daniel Bachmann Andersen is a Danish Olympic equestrian athlete. He competed at the World Equestrian Games in Tryon 2018 and at the European Dressage Championships in 2015 and 2019. He represented the Danish team at the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris, winning a silver medal in the team competition and placed 7th in the individual freestyle.

References

  1. 1 2 "Person detail - Boyd Exell (AUS)". FEI. Retrieved 9 December 2023.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 "Athlete performance - Boyd Exell". FEI. Retrieved 9 December 2023.
  3. ↑ FEI World Cup Driving Final 2015 - Bordeaux - Boyd Exell (Interview). FEI. 7 February 2015. Retrieved 9 December 2023.
  4. ↑ Phelps, Mary (February 2018). "Top Teaching Takeaways and Videos From Combined Driving World Champion Boyd Exell". horsedaily.com. Retrieved 9 December 2023.
  5. 1 2 "Boyd Exell's Champagne Campaign". EQ Life. 4 October 2022. Retrieved 9 December 2023.
  6. ↑ "Boyd Exell". Equestrian Australia . Retrieved 9 December 2023.
  7. 1 2 Exclusive Interview with Driving World Champion Boyd Exell (video). Equestrian Australia. 29 January 2018. (part 2)
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 Stafford, Chris. "Boyd Exell's Excellent Adventure". Equestrian Life. Retrieved 28 May 2024.
  9. 1 2 3 4 "The Secret to Boyd Exell's Success". Horse Deals magazine. 8 October 2020. Retrieved 28 May 2024.
  10. 1 2 "Hall of Fame - Boyd Exell". Equestrian Australia . Retrieved 9 December 2023.
  11. ↑ Pasto, Kirsty (10 February 2020). "Boyd Exell Regains His Crown With Ninth FEI Driving World Cup Final Championship Win".
  12. 1 2 "Queen's Birthday Honours for Boyd Exell". British Carriage Driving News. 2014. Retrieved 9 December 2023.
  13. ↑ "Exells Spitzenpferd Bill 22 verstorben" [Exell's top horse Bill 22 died]. hoefnet.nl (in Dutch). 21 August 2013.
  14. ↑ "Boyd Exell's Bill Passes Away". equestrianlife.com.au.
  15. ↑ "FEI Driving World Cup Final (Bordeaux)" (PDF). FEI. 5 February 2023.
  16. ↑ Dance, Sarah (8 February 2023). "Boyd Exell gallops to 10th World Cup driving title". Horsetalk.co.nz. Archived from the original on 7 February 2023.
  17. ↑ Kidman, John (27 January 2023). "The unknown Aussie who can't stop winning". Perth Now .
  18. 1 2 3 "Athlete - Boyd Exell - Australia" . FEI. Retrieved 27 May 2024.
  19. ↑ "Boyd Exell reigns at Aachen". Equestrian life. July 2023.
  20. ↑ McMaster, Jacob (27 March 2017). "Exell, Beresford named Australia's best". Bega District News. Archived from the original on 26 March 2017. Retrieved 9 December 2023.
  21. ↑ "Equestrian Australia is proud to announce the winners of its annual Sport Achievement Awards". Equestrian Australia. 7 May 2014.
  22. ↑ Etchells, Daniel (14 November 2015). "Australian Exell crowned Reem Acra Best Athlete at 2015 International Equestrian Federation Awards". Inside the Games .
  23. ↑ "IRT International Horse of the Year". Equestrian Australia. 2014. Retrieved 9 December 2023.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.