Jumping Star
Beezie Madden
Has Big Goals For The 2020 Season By Callie Sharkey
Elizabeth “Beezie” Madden is an icon in the world of equestrian sports. Her accomplishments include being an Olympic gold medalist, the first woman to cross the $1 million mark in earnings for show jumping and the only four-time USEF Equestrian of the Year. Competitions take her and husband John Madden to horse shows around the world. During the winter season, that puts her here in Wellington. She welcomes the chance to spend time in the “Winter Equestrian Capital of the World.” “I think we do travel so much, that the time we spend is Wellington is the most time we spend anywhere during the year,” Madden said. “While we don’t have a house there, it’s a little like being home. My parents live there year-round now, so I get to spend some time with them.” After medaling in the 2004 (gold), 2008 (gold and bronze) and 2016 (silver) Olympic Games, Madden’s top goal for the upcoming season will be securing her spot on Team USA for the 2020 games in Tokyo. “With it being an Olympic year, that’s our biggest goal,” she said. “We don’t know what the observation events are exactly yet, but I aim to have two or three horses that have the opportunity to compete in those events. I’m pretty close to qualifying for the World Cup Finals too, so I’d like to finish that off, 34 november november2019 2019||wellington wellingtonthe themagazine magazine 34
so I have that option to compete.” Each country has its own criteria for selecting Olympians to compete, and while Madden feels confident that she’ll be able to make the U.S. short list, she is careful not to make assumptions about her placement on the team. Just because she won medals in the past is no guarantee of future success. After all, America is home to many of the world’s top riders. “We have a complicated system. The final short list of about 10 riders is based on their performance in observation events,” she said. “I have to prove myself in good form in the spring, but we don’t know which ones are observation events yet.” She also enjoys participating in the Nations Cup events and thrives on the classical competitions even more so than special-themed events. “Any Saturday night Grand Prix is always good to see,” she said. “I think spectators love the Great Charity Challenge and the Battle of the Sexes — they seem to pour in for that. However, I prefer the classical Nations Cup competitions.”