American showjumper Beezie Madden may make her entrance into a second Hall of Fame. After Madden was inducted into the Show Jumping Hall of Fame at the beginning of this year, she now also cashed in on the Washington International Horse Show. In honor of this, McLain Ward told FEI.TV in an interview what the rider has done for international sport and for his own career.
Beezie Madden's entry into this Halls of Fame and McLain Ward's eulogy to the rider is anything but without reason. The soon to be 59 years old Madden has already had a hugely successful career in the international show jumping scene. She won gold, silver and bronze for the United States at no fewer than four Olympic Games, she won the World Cup twice, she was the first woman to collect more than one million dollars in prize money, and on top of that she was also the first American rider who made it to the top three of the FEI world rankings.
In September of this year, Beezie was diagnosed with a tumor that affected her sense of balance. Although the tumor is not life-threatening, Madden has since limited himself only to (international) competitions on American soil.
Eulogy of McLain Ward
McLain Ward, who formed the core of the American showjumping team with Beezie for about eighteen years, said in an interview with FEI.TV how grateful he is to the rider. "There were definitely times when I thought, 'Wow, if I didn't had to compete against here, I would have won a great deal more,' but in reality we just made each other better," Ward said. "We pushed each other to the next level, and that 'rivalry' had a big impact on how our careers turned out to be."
“Even though we came from different backgrounds, we had the same philosophy instilled in us: riding for our country and succeeding, and representing our flag was the most important thing in sport and in life. In addition, we both wanted to be first and foremost good horseman, good caretakers of the animals, and good ambassadors for the sport," Ward continued. "It's a huge void not to have Beezie on the team for the remainder of my international career, but I'm so grateful for the fact that our careers intertwined, and for what Beezie has brought to the sport and to my personal achievements."
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