Ireland competed at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, Greece, from 13 to 29 August 2004. This was the nation's eighteenth appearance at the Summer Olympics.
Cian O'Connor is an Irish equestrian who competes in show jumping. He has competed at three Olympic Games, four World Championships and six European Championships, and has attained 133 senior caps for his country. He won an individual bronze medal at the London Olympic Games 2012 and was a member of the Irish team that took a gold medal at the European Championships in Gothenburg in 2017. O’Connor also won a bronze individual medal at the latter event. At the Tokyo Summer Olympics, Cian and his Irish-bred mount Susan Magnier’s Irish bred Kilkenny finished seventh in the individual class.
The Oldenburg or Oldenburger is a warmblood horse from the north-western corner of Lower Saxony, what was formerly the Grand Duchy of Oldenburg. The breed was built on a mare base of all-purpose farm and carriage horses, today called the Alt-Oldenburger. The modern Oldenburg is managed by the Association of Breeders of the Oldenburger Horse, which enacts strict selection of breeding stock to ensure that each generation is better than the last. Oldenburgers are tall sport horses with excellent gaits and jumping ability. The breeding of Oldenburg horses is characterized by very liberal pedigree requirements and the exclusive use of privately owned stallions rather than restriction to a state-owned stud farm.
The Holsteiner is a breed of horse originating in the Schleswig-Holstein region of northern Germany. It is thought to be the oldest of warmblood breeds, tracing back to the 13th century. Though the population is not large, Holsteiners are a dominant force of international show jumping, and are found at the top levels of dressage, combined driving, show hunters, and eventing.
The individual show jumping event, part of the equestrian program at the 2004 Summer Olympics, was held from 22 to 27 August 2004 in the Olympic Equestrian Centre on the outskirts of Markopoulo in the Attica region of Greece. Like all other equestrian events, the jumping competition was mixed gender, with both male and female athletes competing in the same division. There were 77 competitors from 27 nations. Each nation could send up to 4 riders. Cian O'Connor of Ireland initially received the gold medal, but that medal was stripped from him due to doping. After his disqualification, the event was won by Rodrigo Pessoa of Brazil, the nation's first medal in individual jumping. Silver went to Chris Kappler of the United States, with bronze to Marco Kutscher of Germany.
Almé Z was a 16.1 hh (165 cm) sport horse stallion who was a prolific sire of show jumping horses.
Cor de la Bryère, nicknamed "Corde", is one of the most influential sires in modern warmblood breeding. He is known as the "Reserve Stallion of the Century", second only to Landgraf I. He stood 16.2 hands.
Rodrigo de Paula Pessoa, known as Rodrigo Pessoa, is a Brazilian equestrian and show jumper. An Olympic gold-medalist in individual jumping, he is an accomplished rider backed with over 70 Grand Prix wins. He has represented Brazil at seven Olympic Games. In 2017, Horse Sport Ireland announced Pessoa as the new Irish showjumping team manager. As chief for Team Ireland, they won the 2017 European title in Gothenburg, and in 2019 got Ireland qualified for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics by winning the FEI Nation's Cup final. At the end of 2019, he ended his cooperation with Horse Sport Ireland to dedicate time to his family and riding career. He rides for James H. Clark and Artemis Farms in Wellington and Greenwich.
Eddie Macken is an Irish equestrian show jumper, who was a member of the Irish team - along with Paul Darragh, Capt. Con Power, and James Kernan – that won the Aga Khan Cup three years in a row. Other notable career highlights include a record four consecutive Hickstead Derby wins, two individual silver medals at the Show Jumping World Championships, 1974 with Pele and 1978 on Boomerang, and an individual silver medal at the 1977 European Championships with Pele. Macken has many major Grand Prix victories worldwide. Many of Macken's achievements were gained in partnership with his Irish bred gelding, Boomerang. From Macken's first rides with Boomerang as a four-year-old in 1970, the pair blazed a trail of wins that lasted a decade.
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.
Ellen Whitaker is an English show jumping rider, currently ranked 191 on the FEI riders Longines Ranking list in July 2022.
Meredith Michaels-Beerbaum is an American-born German equestrian who competes at the international level in show jumping.
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.
Foxhunter (1940–1959) was a champion show jumping horse ridden by Harry Llewellyn, best known for their part in securing Great Britain's only gold medal at the 1952 Summer Olympics.
Christina Liebherr is a German-born Swiss equestrian who competes in the sport of show jumping.
Steve Guerdat is a Swiss equestrian who competes in the sport of show jumping.
Pius Schwizer is a Swiss Olympic-level equestrian who competes in the sport of show jumping.
André Thieme is a German rider who competes in show jumping.
Gestion Bonfire, or Bonfire for short, was an Oldenburg gelding that competed in dressage with Dutch rider Anky van Grunsven. Between 1991 and 2000, the pair competed in multiple national and international championships, including three Olympic Games and two World Equestrian Games. They won one gold medal and four silver medals at the Olympics and one gold and three silvers at the World Equestrian Games. Although known for having a hot temperament, Bonfire mellowed as he aged, becoming one of Van Grunsven's best horses – until she found his replacement, Salinero, she did not think she would ever find a horse to match Bonfire's talent. A statue of Bonfire stands in Van Grunsven's home town of Erp.
Christopher "Burto" Burton is an Australian equestrian. He was selected to represent Australia at the 2012 Summer Olympics in equestrian eventing.
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