Olympic medalist Leslie Burr Howard and the late Jack Stedding, a renowned trainer, will be inducted into thePennsylvania National Horse Show Hall of Fame at the Pennsylvania National Horse Show (PNHS). The special induction ceremony will take place on Saturday evening, October 20 prior to the start of the $132,000 Prix de Penn National Grand Prix, the horse show's exciting final event which features Olympic and international riders. The 73rd annual PNHS returns to the Farm Show Complex in Harrisburg, PA, October 11-20, 2018. "We are delighted to welcome Leslie Burr Howard and Jack Stedding into the Pennsylvania National Horse Show Hall of Fame," said Susie Webb, PNHS Executive Director. "Both are exemplary individuals in the sport of show jumping and also have a long-standing history with the Pennsylvania National Horse Show." Leslie Burr Howard
With a slew of grand prix victories and titles to her name, 'Leapin Leslie' has been atop rider, trainer, stable owner and competitor throughout her long career. She was a member of U. S. squads that won the team Gold Medal at the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles and the team Silver at the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta. Leslie entered her first show at age 6, began training with George Morris at age 14, and won the 1972 ASPCA Maclay Finals at Madison Square Garden at age 15.
In 1983, Leslie was part of the Gold Medal winning U.S. team at the 1983 Pam American Games in Caracas, Venezuela with "Boing." That year, she was honored as the American Grandprix Association (AGA) Rider of the Year, and her eventual Olympic mount "Albany" was Horse of the Year, a feat he repeated in 1984.
In 1986, she won the FEI World Cup™ Final in Gothenburg, Sweden on "McLain" and was voted the American Horse Shows Association's (AHSA) Equestrian of the Year. Over the course of her career Leslie has competed in 18 FEI World Cup™ Finals, and is one of only five female champions in the event's 40-year history.
One of Leslie's career highlights was being named to replace Greg Best as "Gem Twist's" rider after Best sustained a broken shoulder in a fall while competing. She successfully completed the 1992 season, helping to earn the AGA Horse of the Year honors for "Gem Twist" for a record third time.
In 1994, Leslie represented the U.S. at the FEI World Equestrian Games™ in Holland. Also that year, she rode "Charisma" and "Gem Twist" to a first place tie in the USET Show Jumping Championship at the Bayer/USET Festival of Champions in Gladstone, NJ.
Leslie was honored by the USET in January of 1997 with the Whitney Stone Cup for long and meritorious service. In 1999, she helped the USET win team Silver Medal at the Pan American Games in Winnipeg, Canada. She topped the USA East Coast FEI World Cup League in 2000, and won the prestigious Queen Elizabeth II Cup in Calgary. She also earned the Leading Rider Award at the Royal Horse Show in Toronto. In 2002, she was part of the U.S. Team that competed at the FEI World Equestrian Games™ in Jerez, Spain.
In 2017, Leslie celebrated her 50th consecutive year competing at the PA National Horse Show and was the Leading Open Jumper Rider in 2007. In October, 2015, Leslie won the $85,000 Grand Prix de Penn National aboard "Gentille Van Spieveld" - a victory that had eluded her for over three decades - and she was named Open Jumper Champion.