The United States Olympic Endowment announced the recipients of its three awards that were presented during the annual awards ceremony on December 8 at the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Museum in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Dara Torres, Olympic swimming champion, was the recipient of the George M. Steinbrenner III Sport Leadership Award; Bob Beamon, Olympic and world record holder in the long jump, was recognized with the William E. Simon Award; and equestrian David O’Connor was the honoree of the General Douglas MacArthur Award. Each of these individuals will be honored for their commitment and contributions to the Olympic and Paralympic movements.
One of the most successful athletes ever to compete in three-day eventing, David O’Connor has also become one of the most dynamic and respected leaders in the history of U.S. equestrian sport. Olympic & Paralympic Committee and to athletes. O’Connor served as the President of US Equestrian for eight years, leading the organization’s key strategic initiatives and growth from 2004-2012. O’Connor served two terms as President and transitioned into a Technical Advisor role on the administrative side of the sport. He worked with the Canadian Equestrian Federation for several years before transitioning into a similar role for the U.S. Eventing Team in 2013, which he held until 2017. In 2018, he became chair of the FEI Eventing Committee, leading and participating in global administration, governance, and safety initiatives in the sport.The Douglas MacArthur award is given to an individual who has exhibited exemplary service to the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee and to athletes.
“David has represented the equestrian community, both in competition as an athlete, and in governance as a leader, with confidence and complete dedication, always putting the best interests of our sport at the forefront of everything he does,” said Bill Moroney, Chief Executive Officer of US Equestrian. “He is most deserving of this recognition and his devotion to ensuring the continued success of the equestrian disciplines has been instrumental in the shaping our community and sport here in the United States and around the world.”
The USOE was established by the USOC (now the USOPC) in 1984 to administer and invest the corpus of endowed funds that resulted from the surplus of the Olympic Games Los Angeles 1984. A nonprofit organization, its objective is to support the USOPC and its member organizations, with the overall aim of enhancing Olympic and Paralympic sports in the United States. A separate entity from the USOPC, the USOE’s net assets have grown to approximately $259 million, while awarding grants to the USOPC and its member organizations totaling $350 million over the last 37 years.
On a pack trip in Wyoming’s Big Horn Mountains in 2018 with her family, Australia-born Zara Bewley encountered many memorable creatures—moose, mountain lions, and bears. But it was Sam, a stoic 4-year-old blue roan gelding she rode during the journey, who made the biggest impact on her life.
For the first time, the USEA Eventing Coaches Program (ECP) Symposium has headed west! This year's educational experience will take place in Temecula, California, at Galway Downs starting Tuesday, Jan. 14 through Thursday, Jan. 16 and provide an in-depth dive into the mentality of coaching for coaches for all of its attendees.
It's the start of a new year and what better time to talk about prioritizing yourself and your fitness than at the start of a new season? USEA Podcast Host Nicole Brown sat down with Olympian Boyd Martin and equestrian sports performance fitness coach Tony Sandoval to answer all of your submitted questions regarding your health and fitness so that you can start your year off on the right foot!
This past year was an impressive year of growth for ShowConnect, the innovative event management system for equestrian events. Not only were many updates made by the development team to further enhance the user experience, but many events adopted the platform as their event management system for the year with immense success. Here are a few fun statistics showcasing some highlights of ShowConnect's 2024 season: