Mark Todd (equestrian) - Biography

Biography

Born in Cambridge, New Zealand, he developed a deep and abiding passion for horses. He rode at pony club as a youngster and competed at local shows.

Todd considered becoming a jockey but quickly grew to 6 ft 2 in which forced him into show jumping instead. In reference to his riding skills, fellow New Zealand Team member, Andrew Nicholson, is quoted as saying “Mark can ride anything – he could go cross-country on a dairy cow!”

On leaving school Todd pursued a career as a farmer, gaining a Diploma of Agriculture at the Waikato Technical Institute, and working on farms while fitting in riding, competing and selling horses.

In 1978 he was part of New Zealand’s first three-day eventing team to contest a world championship, at Lexington, Kentucky, U.S.A.. He was 10th after the dressage and second in the steeplechase, but then his horse, Tophunter, broke down during the cross-country stage. Thereafter, Todd moved to England where he mucked out stables and obtained use of horses for event rides. At his first attempt, in 1980, he won the Badminton Horse Trials riding Southern Comfort. Todd was a virtual unknown when he arrived, with fellow New Zealander Andrew Nicholson as his groom.

Todd is recognized as a pioneer of three-day eventing in New Zealand. His success was followed by fellow New Zealand Olympic medallists and world champions like Tinks Pottinger, Blyth Tait, Vaughn Jefferis, Vicky Latta, Sally Clark and Andrew Nicholson. Jefferis once said: “We all owe a huge debt to Mark Todd. He was the first, and he paved the way for us".

Todd married Carolyn Berry in 1986 and had two children, Lauren and James.

Todd became a popular sportsman in his home country and some of the horses he rode also became well-known. Most notable was Charisma, the 15.2 hands (62 inches, 157 cm) Thoroughbred (with 1/16 Percheron) Todd rode when winning successive Olympic Gold Medals in 1984 and 1988. Charisma was retired to a Waikato farm after the Seoul Olympics but appeared with Todd for later public appearances including flag bearing at the 1990 Commonwealth Games in Auckland New Zealand. Charisma died aged 30 from a broken shoulder.

Prior to his 'comeback' for the Beijing Olympics, Todd's last international competition was at the Sydney 2000 Summer Olympics where he won an individual bronze medal. His win was somewhat clouded by allegations in the UK's Sunday Mirror tabloid that Todd had used cocaine with a homosexual partner prior to final team selection. The controversy was a matter of national debate and almost cost Todd his team selection.

Todd retired from international competition following the 2000 Sydney Olympics and returned to live in New Zealand. He, Carolyn, and their children moved to Rivermonte Farm near his home town of Cambridge in Waikato to breed horses and concentrate on several business ventures, including the manufacture/retail of harness and other tack. His Thoroughbreds enjoyed racing success, including wins in the Wellington Cup and New Zealand Oaks. He remained closely involved with the administration of the eventing, acting as coach for the NZ Olympic Eventing team at Athens in 2004. He continued to compete in eventing at a local level and to support the sport in general.

Todd's autobiography, So Far So Good, was published in 1998. He has had several other books published including “Charisma” (1989), “One Day Eventing”, “Mark Todd’s Cross-Country Handbook” (1995) and “Novice Eventing with Mark Todd” (1996). He has also produced a series of training videos.

On 25 January 2008 Horse & Hound announced online that Mark Todd was to make a return to Eventing eight years after he retired in Sydney. He purchased a 10-year old grey called Gandalf to campaign for selection to ride at the Beijing Olympics 2008. "He was available to be bought, so I flew up to Auckland, tried him out, had him vetted and it all happened very quickly. There wasn't a lot of planning involved, it all just happened," said 52-year-old Mark, whose comeback was sponsored by New Zealand Bloodstock.

On 19 May 2008, Todd placed sixth at a three-day equestrian event in Saumur, France. Subsequently achieving qualification and selection for the Beijing Olympics he put up one of the best performances of the NZ team, in what was only his eighth competition in eight years. The New Zealand team finished fifth, and Todd managed the second best individual performance for the team, coming in 17th overall.

Following Beijing, Todd and Gandalf joined a strong field of international eventers to compete for the inaugural Express Eventing International Cup. However, three refusals in the show jumping portion resulted in a poor placing.

In February 2009 Todd announced that he was making a full return to elite level eventing, basing himself in England with a team of up to 8 horses including Gandalf, his Beijing Olympics mount. Todd told British magazine Horse and Hound that he would be based in Swindon with Belgian event rider Bruno Goyens de Heusch. "I plan to be (in the UK) until June, then will go back to New Zealand for a month. I will return to the UK until the end of the season and be in New Zealand for Christmas," he told H&H.

Competing at the 2012 Summer Olympics, Todd is the second oldest New Zealand olympian in history.