|
Articles: Press Release
Show Jumping Hall of Fame Announces 2007 Inductees
Contact:
Contact Michelle Riggs; 508-698-6810; michelle@classic-communications.com
Tampa, FL-March 25, 2008-The Show Jumping Hall of Fame is pleased to announce that
Joe Fargis, Karen Golding, and Marcia "Mousie" Williams have been selected for induction
into the Hall of Fame. Induction into the Show Jumping Hall of Fame is a great honor
bestowed annually upon select individuals whose contribution to the sport has set
them apart from others and whose influence has had a significant impact on the world
of show jumping.
Fargis, Golding and Williams will join the pervious 58 inductees enshrined into
the Show Jumping Hall of Fame during an induction ceremony at the Budweiser American
Invitational in Tampa, FL, at Raymond James Stadium on Saturday evening, April 5.
All three inductees have had a significant impact on the equestrian community during
their many decades of involvement, and their talents and efforts and have now been
formally recognized by their peers. It is because of these contributions and the
advancements they have brought to the sport that The Election Committee, composed
of some of the nation's top riders, trainers and officials, voted them as the 2007
inductees.
Joe Fargis is best known for his double Gold Medal performance at the 1984 Los Angeles
Olympic Games. There, riding 'Touch of Class,' he became only the second American
show jumper to win an Olympic individual Gold Medal, while leading the U.S. to the
team Gold as well. He rode 'Touch of Class' successfully over 90 of 91 obstacles,
an Olympic record.
Four years later Fargis added a third Olympic medal when he rode 'Mill Pearl' and
helped the U.S. win the team Sliver at the 1988 Olympic Games in Seoul, Korea, a
Games at which he also placed seventh individually. In all, Joe's incredible record
of success both in the U.S. and abroad spanned four full decades!
Joe Fargis first represented the U.S. in 1970 in Lucerne, Switzerland where he rode
'Bonte II' on the U.S.'s winning Nations' Cup team. Over the years, he rode on more
than 30 Nations' Cup teams and was part of winning teams at many of the word's most
significant horse shows including Aachen, Washington, New York, Calgary, Rome, and
Cannes.
Fargis won the USA-East World Cup League twice and finished fourth in the 1989 World
Cup Final in Tampa. He was the Leading International Rider at the National Horse
Show in Madison Square Garden in 1987. He was also a member of the Gold Medal team
at the 1975 Pan American Games in Mexico City and of the U.S.'s fourth place team
at the 1990 World Championships held as part of the initial World Equestrian Games
in Stockholm, Sweden.
Fargis's string of Grand Prix wins is equally impressive. He won such notable events
as the American Gold Cup in Devon, PA; the Hickstead Grand Prix in England; the
USET Wellington Cup; the Ox Ridge Grand Prix; the Grand Prix of Tampa; and the I
Love New York Grand Prix in Lake Placid. Continuing to compete well into his fifties,
Fargis added more wins in the first decade of the new millennium including the I
Love New York Grand Prix; the $175,000 Grand Prix of the United States at the Oaks
Blenheim International CSI***; and the $100,000 Hampton Classic Grand Prix.
Respected and admired by the full spectrum of the show jumping world, Fargis continues
to be a favorite at every event he attends.
Karen Golding's care of some of this country's top horses impacted the success of
American show jumpers for over 30 years. Born in England, (she became a U.S. citizen
in 2004), she had ponies and a horse as a child, and learned to drive, show in hand
and show in the junior jumpers. An elderly caretaker at a farm at which she kept
her pony taught her all the "old" remedies and sparked her interest in the proper
care of horses.
In 1970, a chance meeting with Bernie and Tiff Traurig in England led her to the
United States as she flew with a load of 27 horses that the Traurigshad bought
in Europe. She did this three more times that year, and wound up going to work
for Bernie at Bloodstock Farm in Pennsylvania, where she stayed for three years.
While there, she cared for the hunter Royal Blue, and the great jumper, Springdale.
The horses were subsequently sold to Winter Place Farm, and Karen went with them.
Bernie continued to ride them, and became a regular rider of the Winter Place horses,
and Karen cared for the horses he rode. Those horses included a young Jet Run.
In the fall of 1974, Karen went to work for Jerry Baker and Michael Matz at F. Eugene
Dixon's Erdenheim Farm. That led her to her first Olympics, in 1976 in Montreal,
with Michael and Grande. In 1977, Dixon bought Karen's old friend, Jet Run, from
Fernando Senderos of Mexico, and the relationship that had started at Winter Place
resumed and lasted until the horse's death in 1999.
Under Karen's care, Jet, along with Michael's other horses, compiled a record of
incredible success. Recognizing her exceptional talent in preparing horses for
competition, the USET employed her for international competitions. Working for
either Michael or the USET, Karen attended every Olympics from 1976 through 2000,
except for 1984, in addition to numerous Pan Am Games, World Championshipsand World
Cup Finals. Some of the great horses that came under her care included Springdale,
Jet Run, Mighty Ruler, Grande, Sandor, Chef, Rhum IV, Bon Retour, Heisman and Judgement.
Karen stayed with Michael until 1997 when she decided to turn her attention to other
areas of the sport. She became an FEI steward in 2000 and quickly gained a position
of respect among national and international riders. She has been selected to work
as a steward at Olympic and World Equestrian Games Selection Trials and was Chief
Steward at the World Cup Finals in 2003 and 2005.
Tough, but fair, she has always held horses' welfare as the highest priority. She
also turned an interest in equine therapies into a side career as an equine massage
therapist. This has allowed her to continue the one-on-one contact with horses
that she still enjoys and that gave her the reputation as one of the best the show
jumping world has ever seen.
Marcia Lee "Mousie" Williams began her long career in the horse world showing hunters,
jumpers, stock and trail horses. Her childhood love of horses grew into a life of
dedication and service to the sport.
Following her career as a rider, she served the sport she loved as a trainer, administrator,
judge and licensed official. An excellent rider, she was highly regarded by all.
She always conducted herself as a professional and helped others to do the same.
Williams served as a director of the Pacific Coast Horse Shows Association (PCHA)
for many years, and was also on the AHSA Zone 10 Committee and vice president of
the Show Jumping Hall of Fame.
Always willing to give of her time and talents, she impacted virtually everyone
who followed her in the sport on the west coast. The AHSA Horsewoman of the Year
in 1966, she was designated as a "Living Legend" some 30 years later at the National
Horse Show at Madison Square Garden. In 2008, she was honored by the United States
Equestrian Federation (USEF) as a recipient of the federation's Pegasus Medal of
Honor.
The Show Jumping Hall of Fame and Museum at Busch Gardens in Tampa, FL was established
in 1987 and formally opened in 1989. It was organized to promote the sport of show
jumping and to immortalize the legends of the men, women and horses who have made
great contributions to the sport.
Since 1987, the Show Jumping Hall of Fame has inducted William C. Steinkraus, Bertalan
deNemethy, Idle Dice (1987); Patrick Butler, August A. Busch, Jr. (1988); David
Kelly, Jimmy Williams, Ben O'Meara, Frances Row (1989); Arthur McCashin, Kathy Kusner,
Brigadier General Harry D. Chamberlin, San Lucas (1990); Adolph Mogavero, Whitney
Stone, Morton "Cappy" Smith, Pat Dixon (1991); Eleonora "Eleo" Sears, Mary Mairs
Chapot, Barbara Worth Oakford, Snowman (1992); Dr. Robert C. Rost, Joe Green (1993);
Frank Chapot, Gordon Wright (1994); Mickey Walsh, Trail Guide (1995); Pamela Carruthers,
Jet Run, Richard "Dick" Donnelly, Heatherbloom (1996); Edward "Ned" King, Bobby
Egan, Sun Beau (1997); Fred "Freddy" Wettach, Jr., Melanie Smith Taylor, Johnny
Bell (1998); Rodney Jenkins, Sinjon, Franklin F. "Fuddy" Wing, Jr., Democrat (1999);
George Morris, Carol Durand, Touch of Class (2000); Eugene R. Mische, Lt. Colonel
John W. Russell, Bobby Burke, Untouchable (2001); Harry R. Gill, Clarence L. "Honey"
Craven, Calypso, Gem Twist (2002); J. Russell Stewart, Sr., Main Spring (2003);
Snowbound (2004); Michael Matz and For The Moment (2005); and Conrad Homfeld (2006).
The Show Jumping Hall of Fame also conducts the Show Jumping Hall of Fame Jumper
Classic Series, held under Grand Prix rules and specifications, with separate divisions
for juniors and amateur-owners. The Series holds classes at more than one hundred
horse shows across the country. It is designed to give amateur-owner and junior
riders an opportunity to compete at higher levels and serves as a proving ground
for many riders who aspire to someday represent the United States in international
competition.
|