Ludger Beerbaum (, ; born 26 August 1963 in

Detmold Detmold () is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, with a population of . It was the capital of the small Principality of Lippe from 1468 until 1918 and then of the Free State of Lippe until 1947. Today it is the administrative center of ...

North Rhine-Westphalia North Rhine-Westphalia (german: Nordrhein-Westfalen, ; li, Noordrien-Wesfale ; nds, Noordrhien-Westfalen; ksh, Noodrhing-Wäßßfaale), commonly shortened to NRW (), is a States of Germany, state (''Land'') in Western Germany. With more tha ...

) is an internationally successful

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

equestrian who competes in

show jumping Show jumping is a part of a group of English riding equestrianism, equestrian events that also includes dressage, eventing, Show hunter, hunters, and equitation. Jumping classes are commonly seen at horse shows throughout the world, including th ...

and has been ranked the No. 1 Show Jumper in the world by the FEI on multiple occasions. He is also a four-time Olympic Gold medalist team and individual.

Early life and competitive career

Beerbaum was born in

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

. In school, he took Business Studies, but eventually gave it up for a career in show jumping. Beerbaum began riding on a Highland Pony at the age of 8. He had a very successful career as a young Rider which continued into his adulthood. His most notable accomplishments include winning 4 Olympic Golds (his first at age 25) and numerous European and World Championship medals. On Sunday 21 September 2008, at the

Samsung Super League The Samsung Super League was the commercial denomination of the Nations Cup, one of the most prestigious Grand Prix Show Jumping series in the world, from 2003 until 2008. The Samsung Super League was sponsored by Samsung Electronics and organiz ...

Final in

Barcelona Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within ci ...

, Beerbaum was a member of the winning German Nations Cup team. He was awarded Leading Rider of the 2008 Super League, along with 50,000 CHF ( $46,000). In the Final, he rode the nine-year-old Westphalian

gelding A gelding is a castrated male horse or other equine, such as a pony, donkey or a mule. Castration, as well as the elimination of hormonally driven behavior associated with a stallion, allows a male equine to be calmer and better-behaved, makin ...

, ''All Inclusive NRW'' to a double clear round, and was one of only two riders to do so, his teammate

Marco Kutscher Marco Kutscher (born 2 May 1975 in Norden, Lower Saxony) is a German equestrian who competes in the sport of show jumping. Kutcher originally finished fourth in the show jumping competition at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, Greece, but ...

being the other.

Family

Ludger Beerbaum is the oldest of 4 children, his siblings being Ruth, Monika, and show jumper Markus Beerbaum. He is married to Arundell Davison, with whom he has two daughters (Cecilia Sophie and Mathilde). From his previous marriage, he has a son (Alexander). He is also brother-in-law to

Meredith Michaels-Beerbaum Meredith Michaels-Beerbaum (born 26 December 1969) is an American-born German equestrian who competes at the international level in show jumping. Career She grew up riding ponies and had a successful career as a Young Rider, both in equit ...

Top horses

2008 Olympic Games Equestrian Game Day Racing Round 2 01

* Goldfever: 1991 chestnut Hanoverian stallion (by Grosso Z) * Classic Touch 1984 Bay (Holstein) Mare by Caletto II (GOLD Barcelona olympics 1992) * Ratina Z: 1982 bay Hanoverian mare (Ramiro Z x Almé Z) * Gladdys S: 1992 chestnut Westphalian mare (Grandeur x Apart) * PS Priamos: 1982 chestnut Westphalian gelding (Pilot x Direx) * Enorm: 1997 bay Hanoverian gelding (Escudo I x Calypso II) * Couleur Rubin: 1996 chestnut

Oldenburg Oldenburg may also refer to: Places *Mount Oldenburg, Ellsworth Land, Antarctica *Oldenburg (city), an independent city in Lower Saxony, Germany **Oldenburg (district), a district historically in Oldenburg Free State and now in Lower Saxony *Olde ...

stallion (by Cordalme Z) * L'Espoir: 1996 chestnut Zangersheide gelding (by Landwind II) * All Inclusive: 1999 bay Westphalian gelding (Arpeggio x Phantom)

Doping offense

At the 2004 Olympic Games, Beerbaum and his mount, Goldfever, managed to finish with only 4 penalty points, helping Germany earn the team gold medal. However, following the competition, Goldfever tested positive for the prohibited substance betamethasone. The International Equestrian Federation found Beerbaum guilty of breaking the rules, stripping both him and his German team of their medals, dropping Germany down to bronze. Beerbaum believed the substance to have been present in an ointment administered to the horse due to a skin irritation, and the FEI agreed that the substance provided no competitive advantage. However, in accordance with the rule, Beerbaum was disqualified. Germany's team gold medal was then given to the Americans and the silver to the Swedish show jumping team. The Germans, however, were still able to take the bronze medal, even without Goldfever's results.

Major achievements

Olympic Games

* Team gold medal - 1988

Olympic Games The modern Olympic Games or Olympics (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques) are the leading international sporting events featuring summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a var ...

Seoul Seoul (; ; ), officially known as the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea.Before 1972, Seoul was the ''de jure'' capital of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) as stated iArticle 103 ...

: 17.25 penalties (The Freak) * Individual gold medal - 1992 Olympic Games

: 0 penalties (Classic Touch) * Team gold medal - 1996 Olympic Games

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

: 1.75 penalties (Ratina Z) * Team gold medal - 2000 Olympic Games

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

: 15 penalties (Goldfever 3) * Disqualified, losing team gold medal at the 2004 Olympic Games

Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...

—''See "Doping Offense" above'' (Goldfever 3) * Team bronze medal - 2016 Summer Olympics

Rio Rio or Río is the Portuguese, Spanish, Italian, and Maltese word for "river". When spoken on its own, the word often means Rio de Janeiro, a major city in Brazil. Rio or Río may also refer to: Geography Brazil * Rio de Janeiro * Rio do Sul, a ...

: Casello

World Championships A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game, ...

* Team silver medal & 73rd Individually - 1990 World Equestrian Games,

Stockholm, Sweden Stockholm () is the capital and largest city of Sweden as well as the largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people live in the municipality, with 1.6 million in the urban area, and 2.4 million in the metropoli ...

(Gazelle) * Team gold medal & 4th Individually - 1994 World Equestrian Games in

The Hague, Netherlands The Hague ( ; nl, Den Haag or ) is a city and municipality of the Netherlands, situated on the west coast facing the North Sea. The Hague is the country's administrative centre and its seat of government, and while the official capital of ...

(Ratina Z) *Team gold medal & 5th Individually - 1998 World Equestrian Games in

Rome, Italy , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (Romulus and Remus, legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg ...

(P.S. Priamos) * 4th place & 22nd Individually - 2002 World Equestrian Games in Jerez de la Frontera, Spain (Gladdys S) *Team bronze medal & 5th Individually - 2006

World Equestrian Games The FEI World Equestrian Games are the major international championships for equestrianism, and are administered by the Fédération Equestre Internationale (FEI). The games have been held every four years, halfway between sets of consecutive ...

Aachen, Germany Aachen ( ; ; Aachen dialect: ''Oche'' ; French and traditional English: Aix-la-Chapelle; or ''Aquisgranum''; nl, Aken ; Polish: Akwizgran) is, with around 249,000 inhabitants, the 13th-largest city in North Rhine-Westphalia, and the 28th- ...

(L'Espoir)

European Championships

* Team bronze & Individual bronze - 1984 CH-EU-Y in

Cervia Cervia ( rgn, Zirvia) is a seaside resort town in the province of Ravenna, located in the northern Italian region of Emilia-Romagna. Cervia is a major seaside resort in Emilia-Romagna, North Italy. Its population was 28,700 at the 2018 census. ...

, Italy (Wittersfernde) * Team 5th & Individually 23rd - 1987 CH-EU in

St. Gallen , neighboring_municipalities = Eggersriet, Gaiserwald, Gossau, Herisau (AR), Mörschwil, Speicher (AR), Stein (AR), Teufen (AR), Untereggen, Wittenbach , twintowns = Liberec (Czech Republic) , website ...

, Switzerland (Wiener Domspatz) * Team 5th & Individually 21st - 1991 CH-EU in

La Baule La Baule-Escoublac (; br, Ar Baol-Skoubleg, ), commonly referred to as La Baule, is a communes of France, commune in the Loire-Atlantique departments of France, department, Pays de la Loire, western France. A century-old seaside resort in southe ...

, France (Grand Plaisir) * Team 4th & Individually 29th - 1993 CH-EU in Gijon, Spain (Rush On) * Team gold & Individual gold - 1997 CH-EU in

Mannheim Mannheim (; Palatine German: or ), officially the University City of Mannheim (german: Universitätsstadt Mannheim), is the second-largest city in the German state of Baden-Württemberg after the state capital of Stuttgart, and Germany's 2 ...

, Germany (Ratina Z) * Team gold & Individually 26th - 1999 CH-EU in

Hickstead Hickstead may refer to: * All England Jumping Course at Hickstead The All England Jumping Course at Hickstead, known widely as Hickstead, is an equestrian centre in West Sussex, England, principally known for its showjumping. It hosts two inte ...

, Great Britain (Champion du Lys) * Team bronze & Individual gold - 2001 CH-EU in

Arnhem Arnhem ( or ; german: Arnheim; South Guelderish: ''Èrnem'') is a city and municipality situated in the eastern part of the Netherlands about 55 km south east of Utrecht. It is the capital of the province of Gelderland, located on both banks of ...

, Netherlands (Gladdys S) * Team gold & Individual silver - 2003 CH-EU in

Donaueschingen Donaueschingen (; Low Alemannic: ''Eschinge'') is a German town in the Black Forest in the southwest of the federal state of Baden-Württemberg in the Schwarzwald-Baar '' Kreis''. It stands near the confluence of the two sources of the river Da ...

, Germany (Goldfever 3) * Team silver & Individual bronze - 2007 CH-EU in

, Germany (Goldfever 3) * Team gold & Individually 8th - 2011 CH-EU in

Madrid Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the second-largest city in the European Union (EU), and ...

, Spain (Gotha FRH) * Team silver & Individually 6th - 2013 CH-EU in

Herning Herning () is a Danish town in the Central Denmark Region of the Jutland peninsula. It is the main town and the administrative seat of Herning Municipality. Herning has a population of 50,565 (1 January 2022)CH-EU in

Aachen Aachen ( ; ; Aachen dialect: ''Oche'' ; French and traditional English: Aix-la-Chapelle; or ''Aquisgranum''; nl, Aken ; Polish: Akwizgran) is, with around 249,000 inhabitants, the 13th-largest city in North Rhine-Westphalia, and the 28th- ...

, Germany (Chiara 222)FEI European Championships (August 11th to 23rd
European Championship Jumping Individuals
Aachen 2015

World Cup Final

* 1st - 1993 World Cup Final in

Göteborg Gothenburg (; abbreviated Gbg; sv, Göteborg ) is the second-largest city in Sweden, fifth-largest in the Nordic countries, and capital of the Västra Götaland County. It is situated by the Kattegat, on the west coast of Sweden, and has a p ...

, Sweden (Ratina Z) * 4th - 1995 World Cup Final in

, Sweden (Gaylord & Ratina Z) * 6th - 1996 World Cup Final in

Geneve Geneve may refer to: * Genève, French for Geneva , neighboring_municipalities= Carouge, Chêne-Bougeries, Cologny, Lancy, Grand-Saconnex, Pregny-Chambésy, Vernier, Veyrier , website = https://www.geneve.ch/ Geneva ( ; french: Genève ...

, Switzerland (Gaylord & Rush On) * 3rd - 1998 World Cup Final in

Helsinki Helsinki ( or ; ; sv, Helsingfors, ) is the Capital city, capital, primate city, primate, and List of cities and towns in Finland, most populous city of Finland. Located on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, it is the seat of the region of U ...

, Finland (P.S. Priamos) * 6th - 1999 World Cup Final in

, Sweden (Ratina Z & P.S. Priamos) * 4th - 2000 World Cup Final in

Las Vegas Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...

, USA (Goldfever 3) * 2nd - 2002 World Cup Final in

Leipzig Leipzig ( , ; Upper Saxon: ) is the most populous city in the German state of Saxony. Leipzig's population of 605,407 inhabitants (1.1 million in the larger urban zone) as of 2021 places the city as Germany's eighth most populous, as wel ...

, Germany (Gladdys S) * 8th - 2003 World Cup Final in

, USA (Goldfever 3) * 12th - 2005 World Cup Final in

, USA (Couleur Rubin) * 4th - 2008 World Cup Final in

, Sweden (All Inclusive NRW) * 6th - 2009 World Cup Final in

, USA (Coupe de Coeur) * Joint 2nd - 2010 World Cup Final in

Le Grand-Saconnex Le Grand-Saconnex () is a municipality of the Canton of Geneva, Switzerland. Several international organizations and permanent missions to the United Nations are located in Grand Saconnex. Consequently, the population of Grand Saconnex is quite ...

near Geneve, Switzerland (Gotha FRH) * 2nd - 2014 World Cup Final in

Lyon Lyon,, ; Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the third-largest city and second-largest metropolitan area of France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of t ...

, France (Chaman & Chiara 222)

Other major achievements

* Multiple World No. 1 Show Jumper ranking by the FEI * 8-time winner of the German masters (1988, 1992, 1993, 1997, 1998, 2000, 2001, 2004) * 3-time Rider of the Year (2001, 2002, 2003) * 3-time winner of the

Grand Prix Grand Prix ( , meaning ''Grand Prize''; plural Grands Prix), is a name sometimes used for competitions or sport events, alluding to the winner receiving a prize, trophy or honour Grand Prix or grand prix may refer to: Arts and entertainment ...

(1996 Ratina Z; 2002 and 2003 Goldfever 3) * Winner of the Bambi prize in 1992 * Winner of the 2002 CN International at the Spruce Meadows Masters on the stallion, Goldfever 3.

References

External links

* * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Beerbaum, Ludger 1963 births Living people People from Detmold Sportspeople from Detmold (region) Equestrians at the 1988 Summer Olympics Equestrians at the 1992 Summer Olympics Equestrians at the 1996 Summer Olympics Equestrians at the 2000 Summer Olympics Equestrians at the 2004 Summer Olympics Equestrians at the 2008 Summer Olympics Equestrians at the 2016 Summer Olympics German male equestrians German sportspeople in doping cases Olympic equestrians of Germany Olympic equestrians of West Germany Olympic gold medalists for Germany Olympic bronze medalists for Germany Olympic gold medalists for West Germany German show jumping riders Olympic medalists in equestrian Competitors stripped of Summer Olympics medals Medalists at the 2016 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 2000 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 1996 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 1992 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 1988 Summer Olympics Horse trader