The Whitaker Family:
The name Whitaker is synomonus with show jumping there are probably the most successful family in the sport of show jumping. The Whiter family begins with 4 brothers from Yorkshire, the most famous of these brothers are John Whitaker & Michael Whitaker who have both been the cornerstone of the British show jumping team for the last 30 years in 1984 John Whitaker & Michael Whitaker were members of the silver medal winning team at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics. Ian Whitaker & Steven Whitaker are both highly accomplished horsemen who have both competed in the sport.

Stephen:
Along with his brothers, John, Michael and Ian, Stephen was brought up by his parents Donald and Enid. Donald was a farmer, and although he didn’t ride, he had a good eye for buying horses. It was the brothers’ mother Enid who taught her sons to ride and so began the Whitaker legend.
Today Stephen trains Ellen and her brothers to ride, as well as competing himself when he can.

John:
Born August the 5th 1955 John Whitaker is the eldest brother or the 4 Whitakers Michael Whitaker, Steven Whitaker and Ian Whitaker. John Whitaker has 3 children Louise Whitaker, Robert Whitaker & Joanne Whitaker.

Michael:
Younger brother of John Whitaker, Michael Whitaker began competing on ponies at the age of 7 years. At the age of 16, he made his debut in international competitions and at 20 years in 1980, he became the youngest winner of the famous Hickstead Derby. In September 1993 he took over from his brother John as the world’s no.1 show jumping rider.

The Younger Generation of the Whitaker family:

Ellen:
Twenty-three-year-old Ellen is the daughter of Carol and Stephen Whitaker, and the niece of international riders John and Michael. As a member of the famous Whitaker “show jumping” family, she was born with the sport in her blood.
Ellen grew up on the family farm near Barnsley in South Yorkshire where she began to ride as a toddler. She still lives there today with her parents, her brothers, Joe, Thomas and Donald and her dog Lucy.
Ellen is currently ranked 13th in the UK and is working hard to achieve her goal of attending the 2012 Olympics.

Joe:
Currently aged 21, Joe is ranked 7th in the UK's Top Young Riders list and was a member of the Junior European Championship team that won the bronze medal in 2006. As well as competing, Joe spends much of his time coaching other riders.

Thomas:
Thomas, aged 19, is currently ranked 29th in the UK's Top Young Riders list and recently came first in the Horse Deals Young Riders Final at Arena UK on Hosire Des Chaines.

Donald:
Donald is following hot on his siblings' heals and at 17 is beginning to get his name known in the show jumping world for his own talent, as well as for being a member of show jumping's most famous family.

Robert:
Robert Whitaker is an international show jumper who rides for the British Team. Robert is the son of the John Whitaker, nephew of Michael Whitaker and cousin of both Ellen and William Whitaker.

William:

William is cousin to Ellen and Robert Whitaker, both of who have established themselves at senior international level in show jumping. The twenty two year old has been described as a naturally talented rider and is potentially one of Britain's best show jumpers.

He grew up with horses and has competed since he was 8. In 2001 when he was 12, William won the Horse of the Year Show 138cm Championship on his pony Mystic Starlight Express. Two years later he won the Junior Foxhunter riding Devlin and in 2005 he won the Junior Show Jumper of the Year.
In 2007 Robert was selected to be a member of the Accenture Young Rider European team who claimed gold. He was also chosen to be a member of the Young Riders Nations Cup Team, winning at Compeigne and Carnaval Path.
The following year William was a member of the Young Rider European Bronze Medal Team and won the Puissance at Olympia.

Here is a video of William on his horse Leonardo jumping the puissance.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ka4RGOhFrtk&NR=1

England – Windsor Castle
In April 1989, Monty was invited by the Queen to spend a week at Windsor Castle and give her a demonstration. During that week, he started 22 horses, some of which belonged to the Queen Mother and two other members of the royal family and their friends. All horses in the royal stables are now started under saddle using Monty's join-up method.

The Royal Windsor Horse Show:
The Royal Windsor Horse show is an annual fixture for which the Royal Family have a great affection. Held annually for five days in May or June in Windsor Home Park, the Royal Windsor Horse Show has always enjoyed the enthusiastic support of the Royal Family.

It began in 1943 with the founding of the Royal Windsor Horse Show Club which was set up to hold horse shows for charity. King George VI became its Patron and the first Royal Windsor Horse was held on 27 May 1944, attended by numerous members of the Royal Family including the King and Queen. Princess Elizabeth (now our current Queen) won the Single Private Driving on her pony Hans and Princess Margaret won the Wartime Utility Driving Class on the King’s Fell pony Gipsy.

The show steadily grew in popularity and size during the latter half of the 20th century and Royal involvement continued. The Queen became Patron in 1952, and two years later she donated The Queen’s Cup for Armed Services team jumping.
Her Majesty still attends each year along with other members of her family, and The Duke of Edinburgh regularly competes in carriage driving competitions.

America: Flag is up Farms – Monty Roberts

As a child, Monty Roberts witnessed horses being "broken" by traditional, violent methods and also experienced abuse from his father which led him to look for kinder ways to deal with horses.

He spent a lot of time studying how horses behave in the wild and how they respond in the herd situation.

This led him to experiment with using the horse's natural instincts in ways that he could start to build an understanding and communicate with the horse in its own language - which he terms "Equus" and which earned him the title of the horse whisperer.

His 1996 autobiography, the man who listens to horses, became a best seller. He wrote that by personally observing horses in the wild, he learned to listen to their non-verbal language; that when horses understood that they can trust you, they will decide to be with you. His book remained on the New York Times bestseller list for fifty eight weeks.

His “Join-Up” method developed from this and he has been internationally successful in demonstrating this way of starting and re-starting horses.

Here is a video of Monty’s method “Join up”. Here he breaks a horse and saddles him for the first time in less than ten minutes.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Dx91mH2voo&feature=fvwrel

America: Maryland - Cigar

Cigar's fame comes from a race record that is just unbelievable. In the middle of his career he won an astonishing 16 straight races, and had an undefeated 5 year old campaign, tying him for the most consecutive races won.

The legendary racehorse of the 90’s was foaled on the 18^th of April 1990, at Country Life Farm situated in Maryland. At the time of his retirement, The Champion racehorse had the largest career earnings in the history of Thoroughbred horseracing.

The Show Place Arena:

Not far from Cigars home stud is the famous - Show Place Arena. The Show Place Arena is a 5,800-seat multi-purpose arena in Upper Malboro, Maryland. It is currently home to horse shows, computer shows, train shows, concerts, religious events, cultural festivals, trade shows and graduations.

Many equestrian events take place annually in this arena. Some of these include:

Maryland National Horse Show

Maryland Special Olympics Horse Show

Monty Roberts

Potomac Valley Dressage Association

Southern Maryland Horse Association

Southern Maryland Quarter Horse Show

Congressional Cup Grand Prix

Dubai: Meydan

Nestling only four kilometres from the mouth of Dubai Creek, Meydan is founded on the simple guiding principles of partnership, community and sporting excellence. 'Meydan' is translated from an Arabic word meaning 'a meeting place' and in keeping with this philosophy, Dubai has created an interconnected cityscape of four distinct districts where the worlds of business, sport and cosmopolitan-living merge.

Meydan is a purpose-built development that aims to set new standards of living, build an inspirational business culture, and offer spectacular quality in entertainment and lifestyle.

The Racecourse:

At the heart of Meydan City lies an architectural masterpiece that is the iconic Meydan Grandstand and Racecourse. With a capacity of 60,000, this landmark stadium houses the world's first luxury 5-star trackside hotel, The Meydan, peerless breeding and training facilities, world-class amenities, and an exciting mix of food and beverage establishments. It also houses the Meydan Museum and Gallery, an IMAX Theatre, the Dubai Racing Club and Emirates Racing Authority offices, and can comfortably accommodate 8,600 vehicles in its majestic Falcon Car Park.

Currently the new home of the world's horseracing elite, Meydan Grandstand and Racecourse has marked a defining moment in the sport's global history by hosting the richest, most illustrious race - the Dubai World Cup. This icon is also the world's largest integrated racing facility, which comprises of a 1,750m all-weather Tapeta surface track and 2,400m turf track, providing unsurpassed standards in racing facility and technology for the ultimate horseracing experience.

Dubai World Cup

The Dubai World Cup is a horse race held annually since 1996 and from 2010 at the new Meydan Racecourse in the city of Dubai. The race is operated through the Emirates Horse Racing Authority (EHRA) whose Chairman is Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Minister of Presidential Affairs of United Arab Emirates.

The race's first winner was the United States thoroughbred,Cigar, owned by Allen E. Paulson. A plaque honouring their win hangs outside one of the barns next to the racecourse.

Geography of Equestrianism

Dublin: Show jumping – RDS

Since it was first held in 1864 the Horse Show has become a Dublin institution. A celebration of Ireland's relationship with the horse, from the best show horses to the best international show jumpers. It is one of Ireland's largest events, a highlight of the summer, each year welcoming tens of thousands of people from Ireland and all over the world. The Horse Show is one of the world's best show jumping events. No lady was allowed to ride in any jumping competition until 1919 when a novelty class for women was introduced. In 1920 women were able to compete freely.

In 1976, after 50 years of international competition, the two grass banks in the Arena were removed so the Arena could be used for other events. The continental band at the western end of the Main Arena was added later. Shows have been held annually except from 1914-1919 due to World War 1 and from 1940 - 1946 due to World War2. The Fáilte Ireland Dublin Horse Show is Ireland's largest equestrian event, and one of the largest events held on the island. The show has the third largest annual prize pool for International Show Jumping in the world.

http://www.britishpathe.com/record.php?id=43514

The Aga Khan

In 1926 International Competitions were introduced to the show and it was the first time the Nation’s Cup for the Aga Khan trophy was held. This trophy is known as the “Nations` Cup”. Six countries competed in the first international teams competition for the trophy - Great Britain, Holland, Belgium, France, Switzerland and Ireland. The Swiss team won the first title on Irish bred horses. Ireland won the title in 1937 and in 1979, Britain in 1953 and 1975. Since its inception, nearly 50% of the horses that took part on victorious Aga Khan Teams were Irish Bred.

Each country was represented by a team of four horses, with the best three counting at the finish. Speed competitions that were so popular on the Continent, became a feature of the Khan Trophy in 1951, when a time limit was introduced. To win the Aga Khan Trophy, the team must have won the title three times in a row.

With wins in 2002 and 2003 France were in contention to win the Aga Khan Trophy in 2004. If victorious this would have been the first time in 25 years the cup had been won. However, Ireland won the 2004 Aga Khan Trophy and this spoiled France’s chances of making it a 3rd consecutive win and taking home the trophy.

Great Britain won the Aga Khan Trophy in 2005

Germany won the Aga Khan Trophy in 2006 and 2007

Great Britain won the Aga Khan Trophy in 2008

Italy won the Aga Khan Trophy in 2009

The Netherlands won the Aga Khan Trophy in 2010