Eventing

Oliver Townend

Oliver Townend is a Yorkshire-born eventer who has reached the world No. 1 ranking multiple times and was part of Britain’s breakthrough Olympic team gold at Tokyo 2020 — the country’s first Olympic eventing team gold since Sydney 2000.

Badminton, Burghley and the Rolex Grand Slam

Townend’s breakthrough came at Badminton Horse Trials in 2009, where he won on Flint Curtis. He has since gone on to become the only British rider ever to hold the Rolex Grand Slam of eventing (concurrent wins at Kentucky, Badminton and Burghley), a feat he achieved in 2018. He is also a three-time winner of the prestigious Kentucky Three-Day Event — with Cooley Master Class (2018), Ballaghmor Class (2019) and Ballaghmor Class again (2022) — a record that ranks him among the sport’s most consistent big-occasion riders.

Tokyo 2020 Olympic gold

At the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, Townend teamed with Ballaghmor Class alongside Laura Collett and Tom McEwen to deliver Britain’s first Olympic eventing team gold in two decades. McEwen took individual silver, Collett finished sixth, and Townend placed in the top ten — a team performance that underlined the depth of the British eventing production pipeline.

Championship Record

  • Olympic Games: Team gold (Tokyo 2020)
  • World Equestrian Games / World Championships: Multiple team medals
  • European Championships: Team medals across multiple cycles
  • Five-Star Events: Badminton (2009, 2018), Kentucky (2018, 2019, 2022), Luhmühlen winner
  • World Rankings: FEI Eventing World #1 at multiple points from 2018 onwards

Yard and horses

Townend rides out of a yard in Ellesmere, Shropshire and produces a string of up to 40 horses at any given time. His defining career partnerships have been:

  • Ballaghmor Class — Tokyo 2020 Olympic gold, multiple five-star wins
  • Cooley Master Class — Kentucky winner, European team medallist
  • Swallow Springs — Badminton top-five, multiple four-star wins
  • Flint Curtis — Badminton winner 2009

Townend is a regular contributor to equestrian media and an active mentor in the World Class Futures programme. His Yorkshire accent and no-nonsense demeanour on the prize-giving podium have made him one of the most recognisable British sport stars of the post-2012 era.