| Sapphire | |
|---|---|
 Sapphire and Mark Watring | |
| Breed | Holsteiner |
| Sire | Liostro |
| Grandsire | Ladykiller XX |
| Dam | Manolita |
| Maternal grandsire | Roman |
| Sex | Gelding |
| Foaled | April 15, 1992 |
| Country | United States |
| Colour | Dapple Grey |
| Breeder | Bernd Bockhold, Germany |
| Owner | Mark Watring and Dr. & Mrs. John Bohannan |
| Trainer | Mark Watring Stables |
| Last updated on: June 29, 2010. | |
Sapphire (born April 15, 1992) was a Holsteiner gelding who competed in Olympic show jumping, [1] and 2003 Pan American Games gold medalist.
On May 27, 2002, Sapphire won $35,000 Lexus of Glendale Memorial Grand Prix prize money, at the Memorial Day Classic Horse Show. Sapphire bested a field of 25 starters with a double clear rounds and the fastest time in the jump off of 41.176 seconds. This win moved Sapphire into fourth place standing for American Grand Prix Association's "Horse of the Year", and Mark Watring "AGA (American Grand Prix Association) Rider".
2003, 2003 Pan American Games | Equestrian Individual Gold Medalist
In 2008 Replica Farms, which represents Austin, Texas–based ViaGen partnered with Sapphire's owners to produce a clone. Replica Farms, Inc. first produced clones of cutting horse Royal Blue Boon in 2005.
Successful cloning was completed in 2010. [2] On February 11, 2010, the cloned foal was born in Amarillo, Texas. The new colt is named "Saphir". [3] [4]
Mark Watring, is a Puerto Rican equestrian who in 2003, won a gold medal in the Pan American Games.
James E. Day was a Canadian Olympic equestrian show jumping champion and Thoroughbred horse trainer.
Gem Twist was a 16.3 hands world champion American Thoroughbred show jumping horse registered under the name Icey Twist. Bred by equestrian Frank Chapot, Gem Twist had an incredible career at the Grand Prix level. The gelding is the only horse to have won the "American Grand Prix Association Horse of the Year" title three times, and is regarded as one of the best show-jumpers in history.
Rodrigo de Paula Pessoa is a Brazilian equestrian specialized in show jumping. The son of fellow equestrian Nelson Pessoa, Pessoa is considered one of the most talented of his generation, being an Olympic Games gold medalist in individual jumping and having over 70 Grand Prix wins. He has represented Brazil at 8 Olympic Games second most appearances behind Ian Millar which has 10.
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.
Gregory Alan Best is an equestrian competitor and coach in the sport of show jumping who won two silver medals for the United States in the 1988 Summer Olympic Games in Seoul, South Korea riding the famous Gem Twist. In 1992, Best suffered a fall that shattered his shoulder. After this, he moved to New Zealand, where he rode for the New Zealand League, winning the World Cup Series. He has also served as a New Zealand National Show Jumping Selector, a National Show Jumping Coach and a member of the New Zealand Show Jumping High Performance Committee. Best coached New Zealand's jumpers for the 2004 Summer Olympic Games in Athens. Between 1987 and 2003, Best also garnered 6 FEI World Cup wins. He now conducts coaching clinics in the United States, Canada and New Zealand. Along with Gem Twist, horses named Santos and Entrepreneur have been among his champion mounts.
Royal Kaliber was a Dutch Warmblood stallion that competed at the Grand Prix level of show jumping, and was part of the United States Show Jumping Team at the 2004 Athens Olympic Games.
Álvaro Affonso de Miranda Neto, more commonly known as Álvaro de Miranda or "Doda" Miranda, is an Olympic-class Brazilian show jumping rider. He was married to Athina Onassis. He is president of the organizing committee behind the Athina Onassis International Horse Show, which debuted in 2007 as the fifth stage of the Global Champions Tour in São Paulo. In 2008, the AOIHS-São Paulo event was the final phase of the tour. For the tour in 2009, the host city of the AOIHS was Rio de Janeiro.
Chris Kappler is an American show jumper and horse trainer. He is an Olympic gold and silver medalist, and the winner of over 100 Grand Prixs. He is a founder of the North American Riders Group.
Ludger Beerbaum is an internationally successful German equestrian who competes in show jumping and has been ranked the No. 1 Show Jumper in the world by the FEI on multiple occasions. He is also a four-time Olympic Gold medalist team and individual.
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.
Peter Wylde is an American show jumping competitor and Olympic champion.
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.
McLain Ward is an American show jumping competitor and five-time Olympic medalist.
In Style was a Holsteiner gelding ridden by Canadian Equestrian Team member Ian Millar in the sport of show jumping. He was imported to Canada from the Netherlands in 2003. His full brother, VDL Atlantic, is also an international show jumper. Furthermore, VDL Atlantic was a Zangersheide-approved stallion with approved sons of his own. The dam of In Style and Atlantic is Diana, a full sister to Lord Z, himself a strong sire and FEI show jumper under Franke Sloothaak and John Whitaker. In Style was reported to be a sensitive horse with a Thoroughbred-like disposition.
Authentic, nicknamed "Bud", is a Dutch Warmblood gelding that used to compete in show jumping. He has won three Olympic medals and two World Equestrian Games medals. He is owned by Abigail Wexner, and was ridden by Olympic medalist Beezie Madden. Authentic is a bay with a star and snip and stands 16.1 hands high. He was retired from competition in 2009 and is now in Cazanovia, NY, at the Madden's farm.
Francis Davis "Frank" Chapot was an American equestrian who competed at six consecutive Olympic Games - from 1956 to 1976 - and won two silver medals in team show jumping, at Rome 1960 and Munich 1972. Chapot was chef d'equipe of the American equestrian team from 1980 to 2004, leading them to their first Olympic team gold at Los Angeles 1984. Additionally, he coached the American show jumping team from 1968 until his retirement in 2005. Chapot is also known for breeding and training Gem Twist, a champion showjumper named World's Best Horse in 1990. In later life, Chapot became a jump course designer and judge. In 2001, he was awarded the United States Equestrian Federation's Lifetime Achievement Award for his contributions to horse sport.
Janne Friederike Meyer is a German rider who competes in show jumping. She was part of the German team winning the gold medal at the 2010 FEI World Equestrian Games. In 2012 Meyer participated in the Summer Olympics in London as part of the German show jumping team with her horse Lambrasco.
Cedric is a Holsteiner horse which competes internationally in the sport of show jumping. With rider Laura Kraut, he was part of the gold medal-winning American team in the Beijing Olympics.
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.