Ryan’s Son (1968-1987) was a successful
showjumping
Show jumping is a part of a group of English riding equestrian events that also includes dressage, eventing, hunters, and equitation. Jumping classes are commonly seen at horse shows throughout the world, including the Olympics. Sometimes shows ...
horse ridden by
John Whitaker. He was a
bay
A bay is a recessed, coastal body of water that directly connects to a larger main body of water, such as an ocean, a lake, or another bay. A large bay is usually called a Gulf (geography), gulf, sea, sound (geography), sound, or bight (geogra ...
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 ...
and stood . He was sired by a Thoroughbred called Ozymandias and born from an Irish Draught mare. In January 2007, Ryan’s Son joined John Whitaker in being inducted into
The British Horse Society Equestrian Hall of Fame
The British Horse Society Equestrian Hall of Fame was launched in 2005 to pay homage to the people and horses who have made outstanding contributions to the sport of Equestrianism in Great Britain. Elections to the Hall of Fame are made by a Pane ...
.
In 2020 he was named as one of the greatest horses of all time by
Country Life (magazine)
''Country Life'' is a British weekly perfect-bound glossy magazine that is published by Future plc. It was based in London at 110 Southwark Street until March 2016, when it became based in Farnborough, Hampshire.
History
''Country Life'' ...
with Ryan’s Son being noted for “a distinctive white blaze, a swishing tail and a habit of bucking violently after the last fence that was beloved by the public.” A crowd favourite, Ryan’s Son became renowned for
bucking
Bucking is a movement performed by an animal in which it lowers its head and raises its hindquarters into the air while kicking out with the hind legs. It is most commonly seen in herbivores such as equines, cattle, deer, goats, and sheep. Most r ...
after the final fence. On the bucking, jockey John Whittaker was quoted as saying:
“He was showing off. He knew he had finished by the applause and by feeling me switch off the pressure. He said: ‘that’s it, I have done it’, and bucked. It was off-putting, though, if the audience clapped after a difficult combination in the middle of a round, because he bucked then too, which would put you wrong for the next fence.”
Career
Malcolm Barr gave Ryan’s Son to a teenage (and future son in law) John Whittaker in 1973 after buying him for £2,500. He would end up earning more than a hundred times that, winning Olympic, World and European Championship medals, the
British Jumping Derby
The British Jumping Derby meeting – known for sponsorship reasons as the Al Shira'aa Hickstead Derby Meeting – is an annual showjumping event held since 1961 at the Hickstead in June every year. It is considered one of the premier events in th ...
at the
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 international competitions, the Al Shira'aa British Jumping Derby Meet ...
and the King George V Gold Cup amongst others. Whittaker would comment that the horse catapulted him into success and without him Whittaker would have become a milkman. He also said “Ryan’s Son got me to the top and changed our lives” The horse and teenage John bonded immediately, becoming the team to beat at local shows around
Huddersfield
Huddersfield is a market town in the Kirklees district in West Yorkshire, England. It is the administrative centre and largest settlement in the Kirklees district. The town is in the foothills of the Pennines. The River Holme's confluence into ...
. This was despite the fact John had, at first sight, considered Ryan’s Son to look like
cart horse with big feet, big head, too much white on him, a ewe neck and too small standing barely 16hh. Whittaker and Ryan’s son won at The Great Yorkshire Show when Whitaker was still 17 and defeated more experienced riders such as
David Broome
David McPherson Broome (born 1 March 1940) is a retired Welsh show jumping champion. He competed in the 1960, 1964, 1968, 1972 and 1988 Olympics and won individual bronze medals in 1960 on Sunsalve and in 1968 on his best-known horse ''Mr Sof ...
and
Harvey Smith in doing so. Ryan’s Son would go on to become the biggest money-winner on the circuit for 10 years and Ryan’s Son became first British show jumping horse to win more than £200,000. After winning silver in the 1980 European Championship, in 1982 Ryan’s Son ridden by John Whittaker was part of the team that won silver at the
World Show Jumping Championships
The World Show Jumping Championships, or the show jumping competition at the FEI World Equestrian Games, was started in 1953, with individual competition. In 1978 Team competitions began, and men and women began competing against one another. Fro ...
prior to the competition becoming part of the combined WEG. He would go on to medal at the
1984 Olympics, and the 1983 World Championships. He won the Hickstead British Jumping Derby in 1983 and the King George V Cup Gold Cup aged 17. He was a winner at the
Royal International Horse Show
The Royal International Horse Show (originally the International Horse Show) is the official horse show of the British Horse Society and consists of both showing and showjumping events. The event is held during July each year at the All England ...
,
Horse of the Year Show
The Horse of the Year Show - also known as HOYS (pronounced /hois/)- was founded to be a culmination of the British equestrian events year. The Show was the idea of Captain Tony Collings and was realised by the then Chairman of BSJA (now British ...
and at
London Olympia
Olympia London, sometimes referred to as the Olympia Exhibition Centre, is an convention center, exhibition centre, event space and conference centre in West Kensington, in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham, London, England. A ran ...
Ryan’s Son became a household name thanks to his endeavour.
Death
In 1987 Ryan’s Son died following an in-competition fall during the
Hickstead Derby
The British Jumping Derby meeting – known for sponsorship reasons as the Al Shira'aa Hickstead Derby Meeting – is an annual showjumping event held since 1961 at the Hickstead in June every year. It is considered one of the premier events in th ...
. It had not seemed a bad fall initially, and horse and rider walked out of the ring but three hours later, in a private stable of the master of Hickstead,
Douglas Bunn, and with the vet in attendance, Ryan’s Son collapsed suddenly and died, probably from an internal haemorrhage. John and his wife Clare, were there, so too was his mother Enid and father Donald.
References
{{reflist
Show jumping horses
Individual warmbloods
Individual male horses
1968 animal births
1987 animal deaths