Peter Charles (born 1 January 1960) 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 in ...

who competes in the sport of

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 ...

. Originally a competitor for

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-west coast of continental Europe, consisting of the countries England, Scotland, and Wales. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the List of European ...

, Charles changed nationalities to Irish in 1992. In 2007, he relinquished his status as an Irish rider and once again began representing

. He was in the British team which won the gold medal at the

2012 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 ...

. Charles was appointed

Member of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

(MBE) in the 2013 New Year Honours for services to equestrianism. Charles reportedly sold his gold medal-winning horse, Vindicat W, to rock star

Bruce Springsteen Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen (born September 23, 1949) is an American Rock music, rock singer, songwriter, and guitarist. Nicknamed "the Boss", Springsteen has released 21 studio albums spanning six decades; most of his albums feature th ...

for his showjumper daughter Jessica. He is the father of Harry Charles, a member of the British team that won show jumping gold at the 2024 Paris Summer Olympics.

References

1960 births British show jumping riders Equestrians at the 1992 Summer Olympics Equestrians at the 1996 Summer Olympics Equestrians at the 2012 Summer Olympics Irish show jumping riders Living people Members of the Order of the British Empire Olympic equestrians for Ireland Irish male equestrians Olympic equestrians for Great Britain British male equestrians Sportspeople from Liverpool Olympic gold medallists for Great Britain Olympic medalists in equestrian Medalists at the 2012 Summer Olympics 20th-century Irish sportsmen {{Ireland-equestrian-bio-stub

See also

References