Brigita's Blog: Olympians to Ride in Rose Bowl Parade

This year 12 Olympic riders will be participating in the Rose Bowl Parade on January 1, 2008, in Pasadena CA.  Four riders will be from the Olympic Show Jumping Team, four from the Olympic Dressage Team and four from the Olympic Eventing Team.  They will be representing th US Equestrian Team Foundation. 

The 12 member Olympic Squad will be led by Jane Forbes Clark, USET Foundation President and CEO, and Mason Phelps, Jr., the alternate rider for the US Eventing Team at the 1968 Mexico City Olympic Games.  They will be the flag bearers and leading the squad on foot.  It will also include a float celebrating the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing sponsored by the Avery Dennison Corp.  An escort of 4 members of the Los Angeles Mounted Sheriff's Posse will precede the USET Foundation Squad.

The riders of the USET Foundation Squad will be attired in their traditional Olympic Show clothes representing their disciplines.  The Show Jumpers will be wearing red Grand Prix jackets, the Dressage Riders will wear their shadbellies and top hats and the Event Riders will wear their cross-country attire.  The riders will be on local mounts that are accoustomed to parade work.  These horses are provided by the Los Angeles Mounted Sheriff's Posse to the USET Foundation.

The following are the names of the Olympic Riders participating in the parade:

SHOW JUMPING:                                                                           

Margie Engle, 49, from Wellington, FL                                                   

Anne Kursinski, 48, is from Frenchtown, NJ 

Beezie Madden, 44, of Cazenovia, NY

Melanie Smith Taylor, 58, from Memphis Tennessee

DRESSAGE:

Sue Blinks, 49, of San Diego, CA

Debbie McDonald, 53, of Hailey, ID

Steffen Peters, 43, of San Diego CA

Guenter Seidel, 47, from Cardiff, CA

EVENTING:                                                                                  

Darren Chiacchia, 43. of Springville, NY & Ocala, FL

Nina Fout, 48, of Middleburg, VA

Kim Severson, 34, of Keene, VA

Karen Stives, 57, from Dover, MA

These are all very accomplished riders and have participated in many international events and brought medals to the US, either individually or helping their team win the medals.  Some have even received individual awards, such as Equestrian of the year, Rider of the year and even inducted into an Equestrian Hall of Fame. 

Be sure to look for these riders while watching the Rose Bowl Parade on January 1, 2008.