Leslie Law

Last updated

Leslie Law
MBE
Leslie Law (GBR) 2004.jpg
Leslie Law riding Shear H2O
(2004 Burghley Horse Trials)
Personal information
Born5 May 1965 (1965-05-05) (age 58)
Hereford, England
Medal record
Equestrian
Representing Flag of the United Kingdom.svg  Great Britain
Olympic Games
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg 2004 Athens Individual eventing
Silver medal icon (S initial).svg 2000 Sydney Team eventing
Silver medal icon (S initial).svg 2004 Athens Team eventing
World Championships
Bronze medal icon (B initial).svg 2002 Jerez Team eventing
European Championships
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg 2001 Pau Team eventing
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg 2003 Punchestown Team eventing
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg 2005 Blenheim Team eventing

Leslie Law MBE (born 5 May 1965) is a British eventer, who won the individual gold medal in the 2004 Summer Olympic Games. He started riding at age 10, competing with his brother, and participated in his first accredited event in 1982. He attended Lady Hawkins' School, where his passion for riding developed further. By 1989, he was a widely respected competitor, and that year placed 8th at the Badminton Horse Trials. After a period of consolidation, by the late 1990s he was counted amongst the sport's elite, placing in the top ten at Badminton, Burghley and the British Championship on a number of occasions.

Biography

Born in Hereford, Law began in 1997 to compete on the brothers Shear H2O and Shear L'eau, a pair of Irish Sport Horse greys that made him immediately recognisable on the cross-country course. On the former, he won at Bramham in 1999, came second and third at Badminton in 2000 and 2002, and was a member of the British team that won silver at the 2000 Olympic Games and bronze at the 2002 World Equestrian Games. On Shear L'eau, he won team gold at the European Championship.

Their greatest success, however, was at the 2004 Olympics. Tenth after the dressage section, an excellent cross country still left him out of the medals, an inspired clear round in the show jumping saw him awarded the silver medal. However, amid much controversy the result was appealed, as video evidence showed that the gold medalist, German rider Bettina Hoy, had crossed the start line twice, and thus incurred twelve penalty points. By the time the Court of Arbitration for Sport ruled against Hoy, promoting Law to the gold, he had returned to England and heard the news that he was Olympic Champion while competing in the Solihull Horse Trials.

He was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire in the 2005 New Year Honours List for services to Equestrian Sport. [1]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mark Todd (equestrian)</span> New Zealand equestrian

Sir Mark James Todd is a New Zealand horseman noted for his accomplishments in the discipline of eventing, voted Rider of the 20th century by the International Federation for Equestrian Sports.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pippa Funnell</span> British equestrian

Philippa Rachel "Pippa" Funnell MBE is an equestrian sportswoman who competes in eventing. In 2003, she became the first person to win the Rolex Grand Slam of Eventing. She also won Badminton in 2002 and 2005. At the European Championships, she has won two Individual golds (1999–2001) and three team golds (1999–2003). She is a three-time Olympic medallist, winning team silver in 2000 and 2004, and an individual bronze in 2004. She also competed at the 2016 Summer Olympics.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mary King (equestrian)</span> British equestrian

Mary Elizabeth King is a British equestrian who competes in eventing. She has represented Great Britain at six Olympics from 1992 to 2012, winning team silver in 2004 and 2012, and team bronze in 2008. At the World Equestrian Games, she won team gold in 1994 and 2010, and team silver in 2006. She has also won four team golds and one team bronze medal at the European Eventing Championships.

David John O'Connor is a retired equestrian who represented the United States in the sport of three-day eventing. He competed in two Olympic Games, winning a team silver at the 1996 Summer Olympics and an individual gold and team bronze at the 2000 Summer Olympics. At the 1999 Pan American Games, O'Connor took an individual silver and team gold and at the 2002 World Equestrian Games he assisted the US team to gold. After his retirement from competition in 2004, he became involved in the administrative side of international eventing. O'Connor has held top coaching roles for the US and Canadian national eventing teams, and was president of the United States Equestrian Federation from 2004 to 2012. During his career, O'Connor and his horses were awarded many honors, including equestrian and horse of the year awards from several organizations. In 2009, he was inducted to the United States Eventing Association's Hall of Fame, and two of his horses have been granted the same honor. O'Connor is married to fellow international event rider Karen O'Connor, and the pair operate two equestrian training facilities in the eastern United States.

Winsome Andante was an English imported crossbred eventer who competed successfully to the highest levels of the sport of eventing. His rider, Kimberly Severson, rode him in many well-known events, and he won the Rolex CCI**** a record three times. He also competed at the Burghley Horse Trials, as well as in the Olympics and the World Equestrian Games.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">William Fox-Pitt</span> British equestrian

William Speed Lane Fox-Pitt is an English equestrian who competes in eventing. His career highlights include winning three Olympic medals in the team event, with silver in 2004 and 2012, and bronze in 2008. At the World Equestrian Games, he won team gold and individual silver in 2010, and team silver and individual bronze in 2014. He also won World team medals in 2002 and 2006. At the European Championships, he has won six team gold medals, as well as Individual silver in 1997 and 2005, and Individual bronze in 2013. He is the recordman CCI*****'s winner with 14 grand slam titles. In 2011, he became the first rider to win five different five-star events, having won the Burghley Horse Trials a record six times, Rolex Kentucky three times, Stars of Pau twice, the Badminton Horse Trials twice, and the Luhmühlen Horse Trials once (2008). A serious fall in 2015 left him in a coma for two weeks, but he came back to make the British eventing team and attend the 2016 Summer Olympics. He was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the 2018 Birthday Honours.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lucinda Green</span> British equestrian

Lucinda Jane Green is a British equestrian and journalist who competed in eventing. She is the 1982 World Champion and twice European Champion (1975–77). She also won World team Gold (1982), three European team golds and an Olympic silver medal in the team event in 1984. Between 1973 and 1984, she won a record six times at the Badminton Horse Trials. She also won the Burghley Horse Trials in 1977 and 1981. In 2020, she launched The Lucinda Green XC Academy, an online membership for cross country riding.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bruce Davidson (equestrian)</span> American equestrian

Bruce Oram Davidson is an American equestrian who competes in the sport of eventing. He grew up in a family uninterested in horses, but began to compete in Pony Club events after a family friend introduced him to riding. He began college at Iowa State University, but left in his third year to train full-time with the United States Equestrian Team. In 1974, he married, and his two children were born in 1976 and 1977. His son, Bruce Davidson Jr., has followed in his footsteps to become a top eventing rider.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nick Skelton</span> British equestrian

Nicholas David Skelton is a British former equestrian who competed in show jumping. He retired at the age of 59 years old, on 5 April 2017. He began riding at age 18 months and in 1975 took two team silvers and an individual gold at the Junior European Championships.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Christopher Bartle</span> British equestrian

Christopher Bartle, FBHS is a British equestrian who has enjoyed success in both Dressage and Eventing. He is currently the Managing Director of the Yorkshire Riding Centre and Performance Coach to the British Three Day Event Squad. Chris Bartle was a member of the British Dressage Team from 1981 to 1987 and was placed 6th in individual dressage in the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics. From 2001 to 2016, together with Hans Melzer, he was the German Three Day Eventing National Team Trainer. Chris is the brother of Jane Bartle-Wilson, who was also an Olympian in the '84 Los Angeles Olympics.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Richard Meade</span> Welsh equestrian

Richard John Hannay Meade was Britain's most successful male equestrian at the Olympics. He was a triple Olympic gold medalist and the first British rider to win an individual Olympic title. He also won five World Championship medals, including team golds in 1970 and 1982.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Andrew Nicholson (equestrian)</span> New Zealand equestrian

Andrew Clifton Nicholson is a New Zealand horseman who has competed at six Olympic Games. Born and raised in the Waikato Nicholson moved to England in the 1980s to further his equestrian career. He currently works there as a horse trainer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Piggy French</span> British equestrian sportswoman

Georgina "Piggy" March is a British equestrian sportswoman who competes in eventing. She won the 2019 Badminton Horse Trials and 2022 Burghley Horse Trials on Vanir Kamira, and finished second at the 2011 Badminton Horse Trials and the 2017 Burghley Horse Trials. She won Individual silver at the 2009 and 2021 European Championships and a team gold at the 2018 World Equestrian Games. She earned selection for the 2012 Olympic Games, but was forced to withdraw due to an injury to her horse, DHI Topper W. She was also selected for Tokyo 2020 Olympics, as a reserve; however, her owners did not want the horse to travel, Brookfield Inocent, if it was not to compete.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Carl Hester</span> British dressage rider

Carl Hester is a British dressage rider competing at Olympic level. As of 8 August 2012, the Fédération Équestre Internationale (FEI) rank him 12th in the world riding Uthopia. In 2012, Hester formed part of the Great Britain Dressage team that won gold at the 2012 Summer Olympics.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nicola Wilson</span> British equestrian

Nicola Wilson is a British equestrian rider specialising in three-day eventing. Riding Opposition Buzz, she won a team gold at the 2010 FEI World Equestrian Games and team silver at the 2012 Olympic Games. She is also a seven-time medallist at the European Championships, including team golds in 2009, 2017 and 2021 and individual gold and bronze in 2021 and 2017, respectively.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sam Griffiths</span> Australian equestrian

Sam Griffiths is an Australian Eventing rider from Pearcedale in Victoria. 2017 saw him as the Ambassador to the Mitsubishi Motors Adelaide International Horse Trials. 4th individually at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympic Games and part of the Bronze medal winning team. He won the 2014 Mitsubishi Motors Badminton Horse Trials riding Paulank Brockagh who he later went on to ride in the FEI World Equestrian Games. Winner of the 2014 Event Rider of the Year L'Année Hippique Awards. At the 2012 Summer Olympics he competed in the Individual and Team eventing, but fell during the cross-country event and did not finish. He was originally selected as the second reserve rider, but entered the team when two other Australian horses were unable to compete. Now based in the UK competing himself and training other riders.

Yoshiaki Oiwa is a Japanese equestrian.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michael Jung (equestrian)</span> German equestrian

Michael Jung is a German equestrian who competes in eventing and show jumping. A three-time Olympic gold medallist, he won individual and team gold at the 2012 London Olympics, followed by individual gold and team silver at the 2016 Rio Olympics. He was inducted into the Eventing Rider Association Hall of Fame in 2013, and in 2016 he became only the second rider in history to win the Grand Slam of Eventing.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Oliver Townend</span> British equestrian sportsman

Oliver David Townend is a British eventing rider competing at the international three-day level. His wins include team gold at the 2007, 2009 and 2017 European Championships and wins at Badminton Horse Trials, Burghley Horse Trials, and the Kentucky Three Day Event. He also represented Britain at the World Equestrian Games in 2006 and 2014. He was the Event Rider Masters series champion in 2016. He has been eventing's world number one twice, in 2009 and again in 2018, and British number one seven times since 2009.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Laura Collett</span> British equestrian (born 1989)

Laura Collett is a British equestrian who competes in eventing.

References

  1. "New Year Honours--United Kingdom", The London Gazette of Thursday 30 December 2004 Supplement No. 1; accessed 14 August 2020.