Equestrian Australia Hall of Fame Inductees

Neale Lavis riding Mirrabooka during the 1960 Rome Olympic Games. Photo courtesy of Neale Lavis

Andrew Hoy and Darien Powers. Credit: Equestrian Australia

Colin Kelly and his horse. Credit: Kelly family

1992 Olympics Australian Eventing Team

Neale Lavis inducted into EA Hall of Fame

Equestrian Australia is pleased to announce that Neale Lavis will be inducted into the EA Hall of Fame in the Individual Achievement category. 

Inductees will be celebrated at the annual Sport Achievement Awards night on Friday 5 June, to be held for the first time in Melbourne.

Neale Lavis

Neale Lavis was a member of the four-man Australian equestrian team that made history by winning gold in the three-day team event at the 1960 Rome Olympic Games.

Lavis, a former rodeo rider who farmed cattle, finished second to Morgan in the individual event. Lavis, 30 at the time, was the youngest of the Rome Olympic team. Riding 'Mirrabooka', he was almost faultless over the three days of competition. He bought the horse in Cooma for £100, and after the Olympics was offered £10,000 for him but refused to sell him.

Lavis won the inaugural Australian three-day event in Sydney in 1957 and the Great Auckland one-day event in 1960. He went to England in 1960 and competed successfully in jumping, fox-hunting and team events in Surrey, White City, and Badminton. 

Lavis competed again at the 1964 Tokyo Olympic Games. In 1999, Lavis was awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) for his service to the equestrian sports as a competitor, coach, and administrator, and to the community.

Darien Powers inducted into EA Hall of Fame

Equestrian Australia is pleased to announce that Darien Powers will be inducted into the EA Hall of Fame in the Outstanding Horse category.

Darien Powers

Darien Powers was bred in Victoria by a Warmblood stallion Christophle out of a thoroughbred mare. He was originally bred as a show hack and won a stallion class as a youngster at Melbourne Royal before he was gelded. Darien Powers was owned by Bob Scarborough who evented him a pre-novice before giving the horse to Andrew Hoy.

Hoy won two Olympic Gold medals on Darien Powers in both the Eventing team competition at the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games and on home soil at the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games.

 

The big grey thoroughbred/Warmblood cross excelled in the discipline of Eventing having carried Andrew to Gold in Atlanta when he was only 8 years old with a faultless showjumping round and a near perfect score in cross country. He did it again in Sydney in 2000 in front of a home crowd. Darien Powers also won the 1997 British open title.

Colin Kelly inducted into EA Hall of Fame

Equestrian Australia is pleased to announce that Colin Kelly will be inducted into the EA Hall of Fame in the Service to Sport category.

Colin Kelly

Colin not only put his stamp on farming and property improvements throughout his life, he was one of the members that shaped the Equestrian Federation of Australia in its early days. Colin held numerous positions at EFA Branch and National level. He was President of the Victorian Branch, member of the Federal Council and Federal President. He was an FEI-listed Jumping Course Builder, Life Councillor of the Royal Agricultural Society of Victoria & a pioneer of our Medication Control Programme in Victoria.

In 1949 Colin won the first official dressage competition held in Victoria. He also won many showjumping competitions and went on to be the first International Course Designer in Australia, going overseas to learn the modern techniques of course design and then encouraging other Australians to follow suit.  Colin designed courses at Australian Royal Shows, at World Cup qualifiers and many Agricultural shows throughout the country.

Colin was a renowned breeder and owner of many competition horses including CK, the Dressage horse ridden by Margaret McIver at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympic Games.  Colin played Polo for Victoria and competed in Dressage competitions into his early eighties, placing in the Elementary Championship at the Victorian South Western Dressage Championships in March 2001 riding Barwidgee Kalla.

1992 Eventing Team inducted into Equestrian Australia Hall of Fame

Equestrian Australia is pleased to announce that the 1992 Barcelona Olympic Games Eventing Team of Matthew Ryan, Andrew Hoy, Gillian Rolton and David Green will be inducted into the EA Hall of Fame in the Team's category.

Congratulations to the 1992 Eventing Team

The Australian Eventing team won team gold in the three day equestrian event at the Barcelona Olympic Games in 1992 having overcome a series of setbacks. The team was made up of Andrew Hoy on Kiwi, Matthew Ryan on Kibah Tic Toc, David Green on Duncan, Gillian Rolton on Peppermint Grove and coached by Wayne Roycroft.
Leading into the competition the team was already depleted by injury and illness and was reduced to the minimum three members when David Green's horse Duncan was ruled unfit after the second day.

The surviving trio, Matthew Ryan, Andrew Hoy and Gillian Rolton were placed second entering the show jumping phase behind the New Zealand team who had a strong lead. After a disastrous round by one of the New Zealand riders it all came down to Matthew Ryan and Kibah Tic Toc to secure the Gold medal for the team.

Despite the pressure the pair cleared all but the last fence to claim victory for the Australians. Ryan also took home the individual Gold medal and Rolton became the first Australian female to win a medal at an Olympic Games in equestrian. 

Hall of Fame

The Equestrian Australia Hall of Fame is the sport's opportunity to recognise the achievements and efforts of its members in equestrian sport. Australia's success on the international sporting arena has earned the country a reputation as one of the top equestrian nations in the world. This reputation is due to extraordinary achievements and dedication by EA members over the years. Introduced for the first time at the Equestrian Australia 2010 Sport Achievement Awards, the Hall of Fame will forever honor Equestrian Australia's greatest achievers.

Sport Achievement Awards night

The 2015 Equestrian Australia Sport Achievement Awards Night, incorporating the EA Hall of Fame will be held for the first time in Melbourne on Friday 5 June. 

This annual event recognises the top performing athletes and horses of the previous year as well as the sport's most outstanding administrator, coach, official, owner, volunteer and event of the past 12 months.

To purchase tickets for the gala dinner click HERE