Ian Millar CM (born January 6, 1947) is a Canadian Equestrian Team athlete for

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

. He is a two-time winner of the Show Jumping World Cup, and an Olympic silver medallist. Due to his longevity and accomplishments, he is often nicknamed "Captain Canada" in his sport. He holds the record for most Olympic appearances by any athlete in any sport (10). A member of Canada's

2012 Olympic Games The 2012 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012, were an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...

team, he broke the record when he took part in his tenth Games in London 2012.

Biography

Millar was born in

Halifax, Nova Scotia Halifax is the capital and most populous municipality of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Nova Scotia, and the most populous municipality in Atlantic Canada. As of 2024, it is estimated that the population of the H ...

. He operates "Millar Brooke Farm" near the small town of

Perth, Ontario Perth is a town in Eastern Ontario, Canada. It is located on the Tay River (Ontario), Tay River, southwest of Ottawa, and is the seat of Lanark County. History The town was established as a military settlement in 1816, shortly after the War of ...

, alongside his children Jonathon Millar and Amy Millar, and daughter-in-law Kelly Soleau-Millar. In 1986 he was made a Member of the

Order of Canada The Order of Canada () is a Canadian state order, national order and the second-highest Award, honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit. To coincide with the Canadian Centennial, ce ...

, and in 1996 was inducted into the Canadian Sports Hall of Fame. In 2013, he was inducted into the Ontario Sports Hall of Fame. He has a degree in business administration from Algonquin College, and received an honorary doctorate from the

University of Guelph The University of Guelph (abbreviated U of G) is a comprehensive Public university, public research university in Guelph, Ontario, Canada. It was established in 1964 after the amalgamation of Ontario Agricultural College (1874), the MacDonald I ...

. His wife Lynn died of cancer in March 2008.

Equestrian career

Millar is a twelve-time winner of the Canadian Show Jumping Championship. He has been a staple on the Canadian Equestrian Team for decades, and has amassed over $3.5 million in prize earnings at the prestigious Spruce Meadows venue in Calgary, Alberta. With his horse, Big Ben (1976–1999), Millar won more than 40 Grand Prix titles worldwide and the Show Jumping World Cup two years in a row (1988 & 1989). At the

Pan American Games The Pan American Games, known as the Pan Am Games, is a continental multi-sport event in the Americas. It features thousands of athletes participating in competitions to win different summer sports. It is held among athletes from nations of th ...

in August 1987, Ian Millar became the second Canadian to win an individual

gold medal A gold medal is a medal awarded for highest achievement in a non-military field. Its name derives from the use of at least a fraction of gold in form of plating or alloying in its manufacture. Since the eighteenth century, gold medals have b ...

. He now has nine Pan American Games medals, including two individual golds. He holds the North American record for Grand Prix and Derby wins. He was a member of every Canadian Equestrian Team at the Show Jumping World Championships from 1972 to 2014. At the

2012 Summer Olympics The 2012 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012, were an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...

, Millar competed at his tenth games (his first having been in

1972 Within the context of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) it was the longest year ever, as two leap seconds were added during this 366-day year, an event which has not since been repeated. (If its start and end are defined using Solar time, ...

, having only missed the 1980 Games due to the US-led boycott against the Soviet Union), breaking the record set by Hubert Raudaschl. On 18 August, at the

2008 Summer Olympics The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and officially branded as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes fro ...

in Beijing, at the age of 61, Millar anchored his team (also including Jill Henselwood, Eric Lamaze, and Mac Cone) to a first-place standing. Riding '' In Style'', he completed a faultless round to lead the Canadian team into a jump-off for gold with the United States. Ultimately Canada would finish behind the American team to capture silver – Millar's first Olympic medal. Millar was named to the 2012 Olympic team, making that appearance, his tenth, a record for any Olympic athlete's appearances at Olympics. In the 2012 Olympics' Individual Jumping event, Millar finished in a three-way tie for ninth aboard his gelding Star Power, the best Canadian result. In Team Jumping, Millar, along with fellow riders Jill Henselwood and Eric Lamaze, scored a fifth-place finish for Canada. On September 14, 2014, Millar won the $1.5-million CP International at Spruce Meadows aboard Dixson, who shares bloodlines with Big Ben. This was the third time he had won the class, having won previously in 1987 and 1991 with Big Ben. On July 23, 2015, Millar won a gold medal in the Pan American Games team jumping event. On May 1, 2019, Millar announced his retirement from international competition to re-focus his attention on coaching and developing young horses.

International championship results

References

External links

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Athlete profile
at

London 2012 The 2012 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012, were an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...

web site
Ian Millar
at

The Canadian Encyclopedia ''The Canadian Encyclopedia'' (TCE; ) is the national encyclopedia of Canada, published online by the Toronto-based historical organization Historica Canada, with financial support by the federal Department of Canadian Heritage and Society of Com ...