Zara Anne Elizabeth Tindall (''née'' Phillips; born 15 May 1981) is a British
equestrian
The word equestrian is a reference to equestrianism, or horseback riding, derived from Latin ' and ', "horse".
Horseback riding (or Riding in British English)
Examples of this are:
* Equestrian sports
*Equestrian order, one of the upper classes i ...
, an
Olympian, and the daughter of
Anne, Princess Royal
Anne, Princess Royal (Anne Elizabeth Alice Louise; born 15 August 1950), is a member of the British royal family. She is the second child and only daughter of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, and the only sister of ...
, and
Captain Mark Phillips
Captain Mark Anthony Peter Phillips (born 22 September 1948) is an English Olympic gold medal-winning horseman for Great Britain and the first husband of Anne, Princess Royal, with whom he has two children. He remains a leading figure in Britis ...
. She is the niece of
King Charles III
Charles III (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November 1948) is King of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms. He was the longest-serving heir apparent and Prince of Wales and, at age 73, became the oldest person to a ...
and is 20th in the line of
succession to the British throne.
Tindall won the
Eventing World Championship The World Eventing Championships, or the eventing competition in the ''World Equestrian Games'' (WEG), began in 1966. It includes both a team and individual competition for the best horses and riders in the sport of eventing. The World Championship ...
in
Aachen in 2006. That same year, she was voted 2006
BBC Sports Personality of the Year
The BBC Sports Personality of the Year is an awards ceremony that takes place annually in December. Devised by Paul Fox in 1954, it originally consisted of just one, the BBC Sports Personality of the Year Award. Several new awards have been ...
by the public. In 2012, she carried an Olympic flame at
Cheltenham Racecourse on her horse
Toytown
''Toytown'' was a BBC radio series for children, broadcast for '' Children's Hour'' on the Home Service. The plays were based on a set of puppets created by S. G. Hulme Beaman, who also wrote the stories for the series. The first ''Toytown' ...
. As a member of the Great Britain Eventing Team, she won a
silver medal at the 2012 Summer Olympics, presented to her by her mother. She married
rugby union
Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In it ...
player
Mike Tindall in 2011.
Early life and education
Zara Anne Elizabeth Phillips was born on 15 May 1981 at 8:15 pm in the Lindo Wing of
St Mary's Hospital, London. She was
christened on 27 July 1981, at Windsor Castle; her first name was suggested by her uncle,
Charles, the then
Prince of Wales
Prince of Wales ( cy, Tywysog Cymru, ; la, Princeps Cambriae/Walliae) is a title traditionally given to the heir apparent to the English and later British throne. Prior to the conquest by Edward I in the 13th century, it was used by the rulers ...
. Her godparents are her maternal uncle, the
Duke of York; the
Countess of Lichfield; Helen, Lady Stewart, the wife of
Sir Jackie Stewart;
Andrew Parker Bowles
Brigadier Andrew Henry Parker Bowles (born 27 December 1939) is a retired British Army officer. He is the former husband of Queen Camilla.
Early life and family
Andrew Parker Bowles was born on 27 December 1939 as the eldest of four children t ...
; and
Hugh Thomas. She has an elder brother,
Peter
Peter may refer to:
People
* List of people named Peter, a list of people and fictional characters with the given name
* Peter (given name)
** Saint Peter (died 60s), apostle of Jesus, leader of the early Christian Church
* Peter (surname), a sur ...
, and two younger half-sisters, Felicity Wade (née Tonkin;
from her father's affair with Heather Tonkin) and Stephanie Phillips, from her father's second marriage to
Sandy Pflueger
Helen Sandy Pflueger (born April 14, 1954) is an American equestrienne. She has competed successfully in both eventing and dressage, finishing second at the prestigious Badminton Horse Trials in 1981 and competing on the United States Dressage ...
.
Phillips attended Beaudesert Park School in
Stroud,
Gloucestershire
Gloucestershire ( abbreviated Glos) is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn and the entire Forest of Dean.
The county town is the city of Gl ...
, and
Port Regis School in
Shaftesbury
Shaftesbury () is a town and civil parish in Dorset, England. It is situated on the A30 road, west of Salisbury, near the border with Wiltshire. It is the only significant hilltop settlement in Dorset, being built about above sea level on a ...
,
Dorset
Dorset ( ; archaically: Dorsetshire , ) is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The ceremonial county comprises the unitary authority areas of Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole and Dorset. Covering an area of , ...
, before following other members of the royal family in attending
Gordonstoun School
Gordonstoun School is a co-educational independent school for boarding and day pupils in Moray, Scotland. It is named after the estate owned by Sir Robert Gordon in the 17th century; the school now uses this estate as its campus. It is located ...
in
Moray, Scotland. During her schooldays, Phillips excelled at many sporting activities, representing her schools in hockey, athletics and gymnastics. She later studied at the
University of Exeter
, mottoeng = "We Follow the Light"
, established = 1838 - St Luke's College1855 - Exeter School of Art1863 - Exeter School of Science 1955 - University of Exeter (received royal charter)
, type = Public
, ...
and qualified as a
physiotherapist
Physical therapy (PT), also known as physiotherapy, is one of the allied health professions. It is provided by physical therapists who promote, maintain, or restore health through physical examination, diagnosis, management, prognosis, patien ...
.
Equestrianism
After university, Phillips began to pursue an equestrian career, in the footsteps of her parents. In June 2003, she announced that she had secured a sponsorship deal with
Cantor Index
Cantor Fitzgerald, L.P. is an American financial services firm that was founded in 1945. It specializes in institutional equity, fixed income sales and trading, and serving the middle market with investment banking services, prime brokerage, ...
, a leading company in
spread betting
Spread betting is any of various types of wagering on the outcome of an event where the pay-off is based on the accuracy of the wager, rather than a simple "win or lose" outcome, such as fixed-odds (or money-line) betting or parimutuel betting.
...
, to help cover the costs of her equestrian career.
She finished as runner-up at
Burghley Horse Trials in 2003 in her first four-star event. Tindall missed the
2004 Summer Olympics in Athens after her horse suffered an injury during training.
Riding her horse
Toytown
''Toytown'' was a BBC radio series for children, broadcast for '' Children's Hour'' on the Home Service. The plays were based on a set of puppets created by S. G. Hulme Beaman, who also wrote the stories for the series. The first ''Toytown' ...
, Tindall collected individual and team gold medals at the 2005
European Eventing Championship
The European Eventing Championships, like most other European Championships, is held every two years. Today it is a three star eventing
Eventing (also known as three day eventing or horse trials) is an equestrian event where a single horse ...
in Blenheim, and individual gold and team silver medals at the
2006 FEI World Equestrian Games in
Aachen, Germany, making her the reigning
Eventing World Champion until 2010.
The same year after her win in Germany, she was voted
BBC Sports Personality of the Year
The BBC Sports Personality of the Year is an awards ceremony that takes place annually in December. Devised by Paul Fox in 1954, it originally consisted of just one, the BBC Sports Personality of the Year Award. Several new awards have been ...
by the British viewing public (an award her mother won in 1971).
She was also appointed
Member of the Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations,
and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...
(MBE) in the
2007 New Year Honours for her services to equestrianism.
Despite winning team gold at the 2007 European Eventing Championships in Italy, she failed to defend her individual title in the show-jumping phase of the competition.
The
British Olympic Association
The British Olympic Association (BOA) is the National Olympic Committee for the United Kingdom. It is responsible for organising and overseeing the participation of athletes from the Great Britain and Northern Ireland Olympic Team, at both ...
announced that Tindall would ride Toytown for the British equestrian team at the Beijing Olympic Games 2008 in Hong Kong. However, Toytown was injured during training and she was forced to withdraw from the team.
On 25 October 2008, Tindall fell from her horse, Tsunami II, at the 15th fence of a cross-country event at
Pau, France, and broke her right collarbone. The horse broke her neck after she tipped over the hedge and was
put down. In 2009, Tindall announced she was designing her own range of equestrian clothing for
Musto Outdoor Clothing. The range is named ZP176 after the team number she was given when she first represented her country. The range was officially launched in July 2010.
On 11 June 2012, Tindall was announced as a member of the British Equestrian team for the
2012 London Olympic Games
The 2012 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012) was an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...
. She competed in the Olympics on High Kingdom and won a silver medal in the team event. Her mother, Princess Anne, presented her medal. Tindall finished second at
Luhmühlen Horse Trials
The Luhmühlen Horse Trials are an annual equestrian eventing competition held in Luhmühlen, Salzhausen, Germany. Riders compete at the highest level: the CCI*****. There are only six events of this kind in the world, the others being the Bad ...
2013, on her top horse High Kingdom. At the World Equestrian Games in 2014, Tindall and High Kingdom were part of the British team that won team silver.
Tindall stopped using her maiden name, Phillips, in March 2016. She competed for the first time as Zara Tindall during her unsuccessful attempt to qualify for the
2016 Rio Olympic Games. In 2017, she won the third place at the
Kentucky Three-Day Event
The Kentucky Three-Day Event, currently the Land Rover Kentucky Three-Day Event due to sponsorship, is an eventing competition held at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, Kentucky. Land Rover Kentucky is a CCI5*-L eventing competition. Five s ...
on High Kingdom, before he retired from the sport in 2018. In November 2019, she was appointed to the non-executive role of director of the
Cheltenham Racecourse and began her role in January 2020. In August 2020, Tindall was selected for her first appearance on the British Team competing at the prestigious
FEI Nations Cup in Le Pin au Haras,
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...
. In October 2021, Tindall competed in Maryland 5 Star at Fair Hill and finished at 11th place with score 30.4, riding Gleadhill House Stud Ltd's 12-year-old horse named Class Affair. In May 2022, Tindall won the advanced class at the Chatsworth Horse Trials, riding Class Affair.
Charity work
Tindall frequently supports and attends events for various charitable causes, mainly revolving around spinal injuries, equestrianism, and children's causes. In 2005, she auctioned one of her evening gowns, worn at the London premiere of the film ''
Seabiscuit
Seabiscuit (May 23, 1933 – May 17, 1947) was a champion thoroughbred racehorse in the United States who became the top money-winning racehorse up to the 1940s. He beat the 1937 Triple Crown winner, War Admiral, by four lengths in a two-horse ...
'', to raise money for tsunami relief. She also undertook a visit to New Zealand in her role as patron of The Catwalk Trust. From 1998 to 2005, she served as the president of Club 16–24, a group which encourages young people to take an interest in racing. She is associated with Inspire, a Salisbury-based medical research charity which helps to improve the quality of life of people with spinal cord injuries. She is patron of Lucy Air Ambulance for Children, which is the UK's first dedicated air transfer service to fly critically ill infants and children to hospitals for urgent care.
Tindall has appeared at events for
The Caudwell Charitable Trust, which targets children with special needs, disabilities and serious illnesses. In 2006, she took part in a special charity day for
Cantor Index
Cantor Fitzgerald, L.P. is an American financial services firm that was founded in 1945. It specializes in institutional equity, fixed income sales and trading, and serving the middle market with investment banking services, prime brokerage, ...
, whose staff were killed in the
11 September 2001 attacks
The September 11 attacks, commonly known as 9/11, were four coordinated suicide terrorist attacks carried out by al-Qaeda against the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. That morning, nineteen terrorists hijacked four commerc ...
. In 2007, she became patron of the Mark Davies Injured Riders Fund. To help with
Sport Relief 2008, she posed for a portrait by artist
Jack Vettriano
Jack Vettriano (born Jack Hoggan, 17 November 1951) is a Scottish painter. His 1992 painting ''The Singing Butler'' became a best-selling image in Britain.
Early life
Jack Vettriano was born and grew up in the industrial seaside town of Met ...
. In 2009, she attended a celebrity poker tournament in
Monaco
Monaco (; ), officially the Principality of Monaco (french: Principauté de Monaco; Ligurian: ; oc, Principat de Mónegue), is a sovereign city-state and microstate on the French Riviera a few kilometres west of the Italian region of Lig ...
in aid of
Darfur, Sudan. In October 2010, she attended a celebrity poker tournament in London, in aid of
Cancer Research UK
Cancer Research UK (CRUK) is the world's largest independent cancer research organization. It is registered as a charity in the United Kingdom and Isle of Man, and was formed on 4 February 2002 by the merger of The Cancer Research Campaign and t ...
, of which she is patron. In 2011, she auctioned another evening gown in aide of the
Christchurch earthquake appeal, raising £22,000. In 2013, she visited the Stroud Maternity Ward to celebrate their 60th anniversary. In 2014, Tindall lent her support to the #bringbackourgirls campaign. In April 2020, Tindall participated in an Equestrian Relief initiative that would provide increased
personal protective equipment
Personal protective equipment (PPE) is protective clothing, helmets, goggles, or other garments or equipment designed to protect the wearer's body from injury or infection. The hazards addressed by protective equipment include physical, e ...
for
National Health Service
The National Health Service (NHS) is the umbrella term for the publicly funded healthcare systems of the United Kingdom (UK). Since 1948, they have been funded out of general taxation. There are three systems which are referred to using the " ...
workers.
Other activities
In June 2015, Tindall launched a line of jewellery collection, named "Zara Phillips Collection", in collaboration with Australian designer John Calleija. The equestrian themed collection featured the Saddle Suite and the Coronet Suite, with the prices ranging from $6,250 to $44,000.
On 17 September 2022, during the period of
official mourning for Queen Elizabeth II, Tindall joined her brother and six cousins, to mount a 15-minute vigil, around the coffin of the Queen, as it
lay in state at
Westminster Hall
The Palace of Westminster serves as the meeting place for both the House of Commons and the House of Lords, the two houses of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Informally known as the Houses of Parliament, the Palace lies on the north bank ...
. On 19 September, with her husband Mike and daughter Mia, she joined other family members at the state funeral.
Personal life
Zara Phillips met
rugby union
Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In it ...
player
Mike Tindall, who was playing for the
England national team, during their Rugby World Cup-winning campaign in Australia in 2003. On 21 December 2010, Buckingham Palace announced their engagement. As was at that time required by the
Royal Marriages Act 1772
The Royal Marriages Act 1772 (12 Geo 3 c. 11) was an Act of the Parliament of Great Britain which prescribed the conditions under which members of the British royal family could contract a valid marriage, in order to guard against marriages t ...
, the Queen gave her consent to the marriage in a meeting of the
Privy Council on 10 May 2011. Mike Tindall proposed to her with "a custom-designed diamond and platinum ring with a divided diamond band". The couple held a celebration on the royal yacht
''Britannia'' prior to the wedding.
The wedding was held on 30 July 2011 at the
Canongate Kirk
The Kirk of the Canongate, or Canongate Kirk, serves the Parish of Canongate in Edinburgh's Old Town, in Scotland. It is a congregation of the Church of Scotland. The parish includes the Palace of Holyroodhouse and the Scottish Parliament. It i ...
in Edinburgh, Scotland, with 400 guests in attendance.
The marriage was officiated by the Reverend Neil Gardner.
Her
off-the-rack
Ready-to-wear (or ''prêt-à-porter''; abbreviated RTW; "off-the-rack" or "off-the-peg" in casual use) is the term for ready-made garments, sold in finished condition in standardized sizes, as distinct from made-to-measure or bespoke clothin ...
ivory silk dress designed by
Stewart Parvin featured "a chevron-pleated bodice, a dropped waist, and a 'cathedral-length' train".
The
Meander Tiara was lent to her and secured the veil. Dolly Maude was her maid of honour, with her paternal half-sister, Stephanie, among the bridesmaids.
A reception was held at
Holyrood Palace following the service.
The Tindalls resided in a £1.2 million home in
Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, before moving onto the
Gatcombe Park
Gatcombe Park is the country residence of Anne, Princess Royal, between the villages of Minchinhampton (to which it belongs) and Avening in Gloucestershire, England. Built in the late 18th century to the designs of George Basevi, it is ...
estate near
Minchinhampton
Minchinhampton is an ancient Cotswolds market town in the Stroud District in Gloucestershire, South West England. The town is located on a hilltop, south-east of Stroud. The common offers wide views over the Severn Estuary into Wales and furth ...
. The couple's home, Aston Farm, is a seven-bedroom farmhouse next to the Gatcombe Park estate. Tindall gave birth to a daughter, Mia Grace ( ),
on 17 January 2014 at
Gloucestershire Royal Hospital
Gloucestershire Royal Hospital is an acute District General Hospital on the Great Western Road in Gloucester operated by the Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.
History
In 1912, construction on a 149-bed infirmary started on Great Wes ...
, who is 21st in the line of succession. Mia was christened on 30 November 2014 at St Nicholas Church in the village of
Cherington. Her next two pregnancies ended in
miscarriage. Their second daughter, Lena Elizabeth ( ),
was born on 18 June 2018 at the Stroud Maternity Hospital, and is 22nd in the line of succession. Her christening was held at St Nicholas Church in March 2019. Their third child, son Lucas Philip, was born on 21 March 2021 at the family home in Gatcombe Park, and is 23rd in the line of succession. Lucas was christened at
Royal Chapel of All Saints
The Royal Chapel of All Saints or Queen Victoria's Chapel is a Grade II listed church in the grounds of the Royal Lodge in Windsor Great Park, Berkshire, England and is a Royal Peculiar, serving as an informal parish church for the inhabitants an ...
,
Windsor Park
Windsor Park is a football stadium in Belfast, Northern Ireland. It is the home ground of Linfield F.C. who own the land the stadium is built on, while the Irish Football Association own and operate the stadium and pay Linfield an annual renta ...
, on 21 November 2021, alongside his second cousin,
August Brooksbank. Tindall is godmother to
Prince George of Wales
Prince George of Wales (George Alexander Louis; born 22 July 2013) is a member of the British royal family. He is the eldest child of William, Prince of Wales, and Catherine, Princess of Wales. George is the eldest grandchild of King Charl ...
, the son of her cousin
William, Prince of Wales
William, Prince of Wales, (William Arthur Philip Louis; born 21 June 1982) is the heir apparent to the British throne. He is the elder son of King Charles III and his first wife Diana, Princess of Wales.
Born in London, William was edu ...
.
In December 2000, Tindall was involved in a severe car crash near
Bourton-on-the-Water
Bourton-on-the-Water is a village and civil parish in Gloucestershire, England, that lies on a wide flat vale within the Cotswolds Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The village had a population of 3,296 at the 2011 census. Much of the village ...
.
In January 2020, she was banned from driving for six months after accumulating 12 points on her licence. It was also announced that the court was fining her "£666 plus costs and a
victim surcharge of £151".
Arms
Honours
*
6 February 2002:
Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal[
* 6 February 2012: ]Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal
The Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal (french: Médaille du jubilé de diamant de la reine Elizabeth II) or The Queen's Diamond Jubilee Medal was a commemorative medal created in 2012 to mark the 60th anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II's ...
[
* 6 February 2022: ]Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee Medal
The Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee Medal (french: Médaille du jubilé de platine de la reine Elizabeth II) or The Queen's Platinum Jubilee Medal is a commemorative medal created to mark the 70th anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II's accessi ...
References
External links
*
*
''Zara Tindall''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tindall, Zara
1981 births
Living people
Alumni of the University of Exeter
Anne, Princess Royal
House of Windsor
BBC Sports Personality of the Year winners
British event riders
British female equestrians
British physiotherapists
English Anglicans
English Olympic medallists
English people of Danish descent
English people of German descent
English people of Greek descent
English people of Russian descent
English people of Scottish descent
Equestrians at the 2012 Summer Olympics
Olympic equestrians of Great Britain
Olympic medalists in equestrian
Olympic silver medallists for Great Britain
Medalists at the 2012 Summer Olympics
Members of the Order of the British Empire
People educated at Beaudesert Park School
People educated at Gordonstoun
People educated at Port Regis School
People from Paddington
Royal Olympic medalists
Rugby union players' wives and girlfriends
Sportspeople from Gloucestershire
The Sunday Times Sportswoman of the Year winners