Kathryn Kusner

Last updated

Kathy Kusner
Kathryn Kusner 1968.jpg
Kusner in 1968
Personal information
Full nameKathryn Hallowell "Kathy" Kusner
CitizenshipUSA
Born (1940-03-21) March 21, 1940 (age 84)
Height4 ft 11.5 in (151.1 cm)
Weight99 lb (45 kg) (1968)
Website www.kathykusner.com
Sport
SportEquestrian
Achievements and titles
Olympic finals 1964, 1968, 1972
Medal record
Representing the Flag of the United States (23px).png  United States
Olympic Games
Silver medal icon (S initial).svg 1972 Munich Team jumping
Pan American Games
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg 1963 Sao Paulo Team jumping
Silver medal icon (S initial).svg 1967 Winnipeg Team jumping

Kathryn Hallowell "Kathy" Kusner (born March 21, 1940) is an American equestrian and Olympic medalist in show jumping. She was one of the first woman who rode for the United States Equestrian Team (USET), the first licensed female jockey, and the first American women to win an Olympic medal in equestrian competition.

Contents

Early life

Kathryn "Kathy" Kusner was born in Gainesville, Florida, on March 21, 1940. [1] Her mother was a teacher; her father was a mathematics professor at U. Florida and later a Lt. Colonel in the Air Force. She grew up with a natural affinity for horses, searching for them in fields throughout her childhood days. [2] When she first saw a horse show, she immediately knew that she wanted to ride horses for the rest of her life. However, because she did not come from a well-connected or wealthy family, she could not buy her own horse. Instead, Kusner spent her time working at the stables for $2 an afternoon. More importantly though, Kusner could ride horses and take lessons. Her riding and jumping skills quickly grew, and soon Kusner was being noticed by horse dealers. She spent much of her high school years completely immersed in the world of horses, riding and performing in shows and ring events as well as showing horses for horse dealers. Although she began by riding "their most raggedy rough horses," getting any and every experience she could, she rose to ride better horses, even riding the best jumper in the United States at the time. Since the age of 16, Kusner also participated in unrecognized flat and timber races, where she often won.

Equestrian career

In 1958, when Kusner was 18, she was invited to the United States Equestrian Team trials. [2] [3] Two years later, she was named "Horsewoman of the Year" by the American Horse Shows Association. [1] In 1961 at age 21, Kusner officially joined the United States Equestrian Team as the first woman member in 10 years. She helped win a team gold medal for the 1963 Pan-Am Games in San Paulo and represented the United States in the 1964 Olympic Games in Tokyo. In 1967, she brought a team silver medal at the Pan-Am Games in Winnipeg and in 1968, she represented the United States for the Olympics in Mexico. [4]

1967 also marked the year when Kusner applied for a jockey license through the Maryland Racing Commission but was denied because she was a woman. [1] In an interview with Makers [2] , Kusner noted that "I never, ever thought about being a woman until it was time to get a jock's license." [2] At this time, Kusner was an internationally acclaimed equestrian but could not legally compete in American races without a jockey license. Kusner and her lawyer took her case to court, and in 1968 Judge Ernest A. Loveless of the Circuit Court of Prince Georges County ordered her to be granted the license. [5] Kusner thus became the first licensed female jockey in the United States in October 1968. [1] [6] [5]

After taking time off in 1969 from a broken leg, Kusner won a silver medal in the 1972 Munich Olympics and became the first American woman to win an Olympic medal in equestrian competition. Now a licensed jockey, she competed in races from Canada to Mexico, Germany, Colombia, Chile, Peru, Panama, South Africa, and what was then Rhodesia. She was also the first woman to ride in the Maryland Hunt Cup, the toughest timber race in the world. [4] In 1990, Kusner was inducted into United States Show Jumping Hall of Fame. [7] [3] In 2021, she was inducted into the National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame. [8]

Horses in the Hood

In 1990, Kusner founded the organization, Horses in the Hood (HHLA), [9] which brought at-risk inner-city children in the Los Angeles area to a five-day horse and riding camp. By the end of October 2014, it was recorded that over 928 at risk children and adults have taken part in 91 horse camps through HHLA. [3] The camps allowed children to work with horses and develop emotional and personal bonds through learning the care and riding of horses.

Later life

Although Kusner no longer competes, she continues to leave her legacy as a renowned equestrian by giving riding clinics all over the world. Beyond the show ring, she has worked as an expert witness concerning horse-related issues since 1983, a course designer both nationally and internationally, a television commentator for Grand Prix show jumping events and a writer for well-known equestrian journals. [10] Her impact and work has had her featured in a variety of television shows, books, articles and a 2005 Library of Congress publication, Women Who Dare. She was even featured in the Disney movie, The Horse in the Grey Flannel Suit, for long riding shots.

Outside of the horse world, Kusner is a licensed pilot with commercial, multi-engine, instrument, seaplane, and commercial glider ratings. [11] She obtained a Lear Jet-type rating, for the Lear 23 and 24, and became the first woman to work as a Lear Jet pilot for Executive Jet Aviation, which was the largest jet charter company in the world at that time. [11] [3]

She is also a skilled flying acrobat, an experienced scuba, and an active marathon runner. [11] She has completed 122 marathons as of September 2014 and 73 ultramarathons, including 20 races of 50 miles or longer. [3]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jockey</span> Someone who rides horses in horse racing or steeplechase racing

A jockey is someone who rides horses in horse racing or steeplechase racing, primarily as a profession. The word also applies to camel riders in camel racing. The word "jockey" originated from England and was used to describe the individual who rode horses in racing. They must be light, typically around a weight of 100–120 lb. (45–55 kg), and physically fit. They are typically self-employed, and are paid a small fee from the horse trainer and a percentage of the horse's winnings. The job has a very high risk of debilitating or life-threatening injuries.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Julie Krone</span> American jockey

Julieann Louise Krone, is a retired American jockey. In 1993, she became the first female jockey to win a Triple Crown race when she captured the Belmont Stakes aboard Colonial Affair. In 2000, she became the first woman inducted into the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame, and in 2003 became the first female jockey to win a Breeders' Cup race. She has also been honored by induction into the National Women's Hall of Fame, Michigan Women's Hall of Fame, and Cowgirl Hall of Fame.

Gail E. Greenough, was a member of the Canadian Equestrian Team for show jumping.

Anne Kindig Kursinski is an American showjumper and two-time Olympic silver medalist in team jumping, at Seoul 1988 and Atlanta 1996. Representing the United States, she was a member of five Olympic teams, forty-seven Nations Cup teams, and three World Equestrian Games teams. In 2017, she was inducted into the Showjumping Hall of Fame.

James Cunningham Wofford was an American equestrian who competed in many international competitions in the sport of eventing. He was most known as a trainer of both horses and riders, and as a retired president of the AHSA and vice-president of the USET.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gillian Rolton</span> Australian equestrian (1956–2017)

Gillian Rolton was an Australian Olympic equestrian champion. She competed in two Olympic Games, the 1992 Barcelona Games and 1996 Atlanta Games, winning a gold medal in team eventing both times on her horse, Peppermint Grove. At the 1996 Atlanta Games, she broke her collarbone and ribs, but remounted and completed the course. She was one of four Australians to win multiple equestrian Olympic gold medals.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lis Hartel</span> Danish equestrian (1921–2009)

Lis Hartel was an Olympic equestrian competitor from Denmark.

William Clark "Bill" Steinkraus was an American show jumping champion.

Joseph "Joe" Halpin Fargis IV is an American showjumper and Olympic champion. Fargis won showjumping individual gold and team gold at the 1984 Summer Olympics. He won showjumping team silver at the 1988 Summer Olympics. He is the owner of Sandron Farm.

<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.

Bertalan de Némethy was a cavalry officer in Hungary and later became the show jumping coach for the United States Equestrian Team. He was influential in developing riding and training methods used by show jumpers today.

Leslie Burr-Howard is an American equestrian and an Olympic champion in showjumping. She won team gold at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics and team silver at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, as well as team silver at the 1999 Winnipeg Pan American Games.

Melanie Smith is an equestrian from the United States and Olympic champion.

Marion Janice Mould is an English show-jumper. She competed for Great Britain at the 1968 Summer Olympics, winning a silver medal in the individual jumping event.

Diane Crump is an American jockey and horse trainer. Crump was the first woman to ride in a pari-mutuel race in the United States; her participation in the event was so contested that she required a full police escort through the crowds at the Hialeah Park Race Track. She went on to be the first woman to ride in the Kentucky Derby. Crump briefly retired in 1985 to become a horse trainer, but returned to riding and was a professional jockey until retiring in 1999. She now runs an equine sales business.

The Maryland Racing Commission is the official governing body that oversees the horse racing and off-track betting in Maryland. Based in Towson, Maryland, it was formed on 1920. The commission is a division of the Maryland Department of Labor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cheryl White (jockey)</span> American horse racing jockey (1953–2019)

Cheryl White was the first African American female horse racing jockey and the first woman to serve as a California horse racing steward.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gonda Betrix</span> South African equestrian rider

Gonda Betrix is a South African Equestrian Coach and a retired equestrian athlete. She is renowned for representing South Africa at the 1992 Summer Olympics in individual show jumping and for winning every major South African equestrian show jumping title. She is considered one of the best showjumpers of her era.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eva Ring</span> Female horse racing jockey

Eva Ring (1911–1989) was among the first female jockeys to ride and train winning race horses in Canada in the 1930s–1940s. It was a time in North American history when women were not permitted to obtain a jockey license or ride in flat races alongside their male counterparts, but Ring was a trailblazer and managed to overcome many of the obstacles of her time. Discrimination was not a situation unique to North America; rather, it was a global issue in the male dominated sport of Thoroughbred racing, the "Sport of Kings".

Barbara Jo Rubin is an American jockey. She was the first woman to win a professional horse race.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Kusner, Kathy (1940—) – Dictionary definition of Kusner, Kathy (1940—) | Encyclopedia.com: FREE online dictionary". www.encyclopedia.com. Retrieved March 31, 2017.
  2. 1 2 3 4 "Kathy Kusner". MAKERS. Retrieved March 31, 2017.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 "KATHY KUSNER: JACK OF ALL TRADES. MASTER OF ALL". Horse Canada. December 3, 2014.
  4. 1 2 "Kathy Kusner Bio, Stats, and Results". Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Archived from the original on April 18, 2020. Retrieved March 31, 2017.
  5. 1 2 "Rediscovering Kathy Kusner: The country's first licensed female jockey".
  6. "Kusner, Kathy (1940—) – Dictionary definition of Kusner, Kathy (1940—) | Encyclopedia.com: FREE online dictionary". www.encyclopedia.com. Retrieved March 31, 2017.
  7. "Show Jumping Hall of Fame". Show Jumping Hall of Fame. Retrieved August 20, 2021.
  8. "Kathryn Kusner". Cowgirl Hall of Fame & Museum. Retrieved August 20, 2021.
  9. "Horses in the Hood". horsesinthehood.org. Retrieved March 31, 2017.
  10. "1990 Kathy Kusner" (PDF). Show Jumping Hall of Fame.
  11. 1 2 3 "HORSE EXPERT WITNESS – KATHY KUSNER". www.kathykusner.com. Retrieved March 31, 2017.