Horse racing has been around for hundreds of years, and some records state that it has been present since ancient times. Still, our devotion to the sport and respect for the horse riders has not begun to fade even in modern times. Horse races are still visited by thousands of people, and those most famous ones have amazing betting offers such as Royal Ascot betting Offers. Because of that, today we take a look at 5 most famous horse riders and the ways they changed the boundaries of this sport and by doing that, made history.
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Charlotte Dujardin (1987-Present)
Charlotte Dujardin is one of the most famous names in the world of dressage, which is a form of riding for highly skilled riders. Even though she is only 34, she has already had a long and successful career with two gold medals from the 2012 Olympics. She started riding when she was only 2 years old and often says that she cannot imagine her life without horses.
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Theodora Anky van Grunsven (1980-2001)
Anky van Grunsven is one person all fans of dressage have to know about. In 2001 she was named Rider Of The Century, and we can’t be too surprised concerning the fact that she won the Dressage World Cup 9 times, which is a record she still holds. Even though she is no longer active, Theodora is far away from leaving the world of horses and racing, as she now owns horses and teaches students.
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Lucinda Green (1973-1987)
If you are also a fan of video games as well as horse riding, you will find Lucinda Green truly interesting. She has a video game named after her – Lucinda Green’s Equestrian Challenge, which just proves how famous this rider is. Lucinda started training when she was only 4 years old but it paid off as she won the Badminton Horse Trials six times!
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Lester Piggott (1948-1995)
Lester Piggott had one of the most successful and fulfilling careers as a flat racing jockey. Since horse riding runs in the Pigott family, he began riding when he was 10 and won his first race only two years later. After that, he just kept winning one race after another until he achieved 4,493 career wins, including winning Epsom Derby unbelievable 9 times. Even though he also had some scandals in his personal life, his career is one to dream of.
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Mark Todd (1978-2016)
In 2011, Mark Todd became the oldest rider to win Badminton; however, this is just the beginning of a long list of his accomplishments. Since his height did not allow him to become a jockey, Todd tried his luck in showjumping and proved to be incredibly good. He has also competed at the Olympics twice with great results.