Seven-time Olympian Andrew Hoy will be inducted into the Equestrian Australia Hall of Fame, having been unanimously voted by the living Hall of Fame members to receive the honour in the individual category.
Andrew has the rare distinction of competing in seven Olympic Games (1984, 1988, 1992, 1996, 2000, 2004, 2012 and has won three gold medals and a silver medal. During a long and illustrious career he has placed in some of the world’s most prestigious three day events including a win at the Badminton Horse Trials and Rolex Kentucky in 2006 and victories at Burghley in 1979 and 2004.
His Olympic record is second to none in equestrian and he is the only Australian to compete at seven Olympic Games. First competing at the 1984 Los Angeles Games, Andrew finished 15th in the individual and 5th in the team’s events. Four years later in Seoul, he finished 8th in the individual and 5th in the team events. His Olympic breakthrough came at the 1992 Barcelona Games where he won gold in the team event with Matt Ryan and Gillian Rolton, and finished fifth in the individual event. In Atlanta in 1996, after carrying the Australian flag in the opening ceremony, he was a member of the team (with Phillip Dutton, Rolton and Wendy Schaeffer) that won back-to-back gold.
After Australia won the three-day event at the 2000 Sydney Games, crowd members were chanting: "Aussie, Aussie, Aussie, Hoy, Hoy, Hoy." They were congratulating all four members of the team (Phillip Dutton, Matt Ryan, and Stuart Tinney), but this variation on the normal cry was a salute to Andrew Hoy, who had just become the first Australian other than Dawn Fraser to win three gold medals in a row. He also won silver in the individual event.
Andrew is now aiming to compete for Australia at the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games in Normandy where he placed second at the Test Event in 2013 riding Cheeky Calimbo (below). He is also once again heading to compete at Badminton in May riding Rutherglen
