Richard Meade, one of the most successful event riders of all time, has died at the age of 76 following a battle with cancer.
Olympian
His eventing record was extraordinary, with British Eventing describing him as the “lynchpin of British teams for 21 years”.
Richard was part of the gold medal-winning team at the Mexico Olympics in 1968, and four years later he won individual and team gold at the Munich Olympics on Laurieston.
In total, he competed in four successive Olympic Games plus the substitute competition in 1980 at Fontainebleau during the partial boycott of the Moscow Olympics.
Medals
Richard is among the elite few to win both Badminton and Burghley. Riding Barberry, he won his only Burghley title in 1964; while Badminton titles came in 1970 (The Poacher) and 1982 (Speculator III).
At the World Championships, he won two team golds in 1970 and 1982. He won a further three team golds at the European Championships in 1967, 1969 and 1981.
Equestrian life
Richard was born into a horsey family, and started riding at a young age. After gaining an engineering degree from Cambridge, he served in the 11th Hussars and worked in London before becoming a professional event rider.
In addition to his many eventing successes, Richard was heavily involved with the equestrian industry. He held the various positions ofChairman of the British Horse Foundation, President of the British Equestrian Federation, and he was a member of the FEI Eventing Committee. He was actively involved in the sport’s governing body for more than three decades.
Richard was also an FEI judge and course designer. He was awarded the OBE in 1974.
End of an era
Sadly, he was diagnosed with cancer in October 2014 and he lost his fight against the disease yesterday.
Richard is survived byhis wife Angela and their three children, James, Harry and Lucy.Harry followed in his father’s footsteps and won a team silver medal at last summer’s FEI World Equestrian Games.
Hugh Thomas, Chairman of British Eventing, paid tribute to one of the sport’s greats.
“Richard at the height of his powers towered over the eventing world – his results far exceeded the innate ability of many of the horses he rode and he was at his very best when riding at the major events and Championships,” Hugh said. “Then he gave countless time and effort to supporting the sport he loved. His passing really does feel like the end of an era.”
Richard Meade, 1938-2015