Terje Dahl (25 November 1935 – 10 February 2017) was a Norwegian

jockey A jockey is someone who rides horses in horse racing or steeplechase racing, primarily as a profession. The word also applies to camel riders in camel racing. The word "jockey" originated from England and was used to describe the individual ...

and

horse trainer A horse trainer is a person who tends to horses and teaches them different disciplines. Some of the responsibilities trainers have are caring for the animals' physical needs, as well as teaching them submissive behaviors and/or coaching them for e ...

who competed from the 1950s.

Career

Dahl won about 300 races in European countries and achieved 13 championnats (most wins during a season) in

steeplechase Steeplechase may refer to: * Steeplechase (horse racing), a type of horse race in which participants are required to jump over obstacles * Steeplechase (athletics), an event in athletics that derives its name from the steeplechase in horse racing ...

racing in Norway, Denmark and Sweden. As horse trainer he achieved ten championnats at

Øvrevoll Øvrevoll is a district in eastern Bærum, Norway. Geography and history The district Øvrevoll was built around the farm Øvre Vold, which stems from the separation of Voll, Akershus, Vold farm into two farms; Øvre and Nedre (Upper and Lower) ...

between 1974 and 1986. His horses recorded 948 victories at

. His most successful horse was

Noble Dancer Noble Dancer (1972 – June 27, 1994) was a British-born Thoroughbred racehorse who won back-to-back runnings of the Oslo Cup in Norway enroute to earning Horse of the Year honors. In 1976 he was sent to compete in the United States where he wa ...

, which he trained for two seasons, and is regarded the all-time best

Thoroughbred The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word ''thoroughbred'' is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed. Thoroughbreds are c ...

horse in Norway. Noble Dancer's victories at Øvrevoll included Oslo Cup 1975 and 1976, and other races. The horse was then moved to US, where it was trained by

Thomas Joseph Kelly Thomas Joseph Kelly (September 23, 1919 – April 19, 2013) was a United States Racing Hall of Fame trainer of Thoroughbred racehorses as well as an owner and breeder. Born in Pikesville, Maryland, in his teens he began working at the Balt ...

, and competed with success in top level races. His results included victories in

Hialeah Turf Cup Handicap The Hialeah Turf Cup Handicap is a discontinued American Thoroughbred horse race open to horses aged three and older that was run each year at Hialeah Park Race Track in Hialeah, Florida until the track closed at the end of the 2001 racing season. ...

(1978),

San Luis Rey Handicap The San Luis Rey Stakes is an American Thoroughbred horse race run annually at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California. Held during the third week of March, the Grade III event is open to horses of either gender, age four and up, willing to race ...

(1978 and 1979, then Gr. 1), and

United Nations Stakes The United Nations Stakes is a Graded stakes race, Grade I American Thoroughbred horse race for three-year-olds and older run over a distance of one and three-eighth miles on the grass, turf held annually in July at Monmouth Park Racetrack in Ocean ...

(1978, 1979), ending his career after a leg injury in October 1979, having earned a total of $945,893.

Personal life

A son of Gudrun Dahl, Dahl grew up in the borough of Heggeli in

Oslo Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of ...

. He married singer

Kirsti Sparboe Kirsti Sparboe (born 7 December 1946) is a Norwegian musical performer and an actress. Most of her musical career has been built on participation in the widely-popular Eurovision Song Contest in which she competed three times and scored a grand ...

in 1989, having lived together since 1979. He died on 10 February 2017, 81 years old. A race at Øvrevoll ("Terje Dahl Champion Hurdle") has been named after him.

References

1935 births 2017 deaths Norwegian jockeys Norwegian horse trainers Racehorse trainers {{Norway-equestrian-bio-stub