© Public Domain / CC0 1.0 / Rob Mieremet / Anefo
British showjumper Harvey Smith is a legend in the equestrian world - after enjoying an astonishing career at the highest level for more than 30 years. The Yorkshire-born star has a lifelong love of horses, starting out in show jumping and later making the crossover to horse racing. He competed in two Olympic Games, won five silver medals in European championships, more than 50 Grand Prix titles, a bronze medal in the La Baule World Championship - and he still found time to train a Grand National winner! He is truly a person who can be called a legend of the sporting world. Now, at the age of 82, he is still involved in equestrianism, running Sue Smith Racing with his wife Sue, 73, at Craiglands Farm, their home in the Yorkshire Moors. Early life Born in 1938 in Gilstead, in the West Riding of Yorkshire, Smith was an ordinary working-class boy. His parents, Walter and Ethel, expected him to follow the family tradition and work in the construction industry. However, when he found out he would earn less than five shillings an hour as a construction worker, he decided to turn his childhood passion for horses into a career. Smith's maternal grandfather kept horses, which pulled the Bridlington lifeboat, so he always had an affinity with animals. As a child, he helped with the milk ponies for local farmer Jack Baker and began riding when he was seven years old. First pony shows When he was eight, he debuted in the riding classes at the local agricultural show. Not only was he a self-taught rider, but because of his background, he also learned to appreciate the value of money. Despite competing without a saddle, jacket, or riding hat, as he couldn’t afford them; he competed and won in early pony shows at Malham. Competing against wealthier children from upper-class backgrounds, he said later he beat them with "just a pony, a bridle and a smile." He admitted he "didn’t really take to school" and was always more of an outdoor type, who was into horses, ponies and dogs. After leaving school without any O-Levels or A-Levels, he started doing casual stints on building sites. However, he said it was determination, rather than education, that always helped him to get on in life. His father was always supportive when Smith said he was going to try and make a career of show jumping. In the early years, when he suffered a string of defeats at the hands of the show jumping greats of the day, his father would tell him not to worry. He would say, "Just jump the fences better than them!" This simple piece of advice from his father spurred Smith on to just keep on jumping the fences and improving his performance over time. Career successes One of his favourite horses of all time was a previously unknown mount called Farmer's Boy, whom he bought in 1954, for the sum of £40. For a 16-year-old youth, it was a lot of money, but Smith felt a kindred spirit in the horse when he spotted him at Botterill's Sale. He hadn't enough money, so he rushed to a public phone box to ring his dad. His advice was to "borrow the money" to secure the horse. A few hours later, Farmer's Boy was accompanying Smith back to Bingley by train! This proved an astute decision, as Farmer's Boy could really jump. The young rider and his new horse were soon enjoying Nations Cup success and became known on the international equestrian circuit. Smith found this particularly satisfying, especially when competing in Ireland, where an air of snobbery had preceded his show jumping efforts and he had been introduced scathingly as a "bricklayer". After his success on Farmer's Boy, he became well-known. He won the individual bronze medal at the 1963 European Championships in Rome, riding another of his favourite horses, O'Malley. Smith fully expected to be chosen for the British Olympic riding team in 1964 in Tokyo, Japan. The 26-year-old felt he was at the peak of his career but later spoke of his huge disappointment that the selectors didn't send for him. In 1967, he won the individual silver on Harvester at the European Championships in Rotterdam. In 1968, he made his Olympic debut when he represented Britain in show jumping at the Mexico Games. He also made the Olympic team at Munich in 1972. His best Olympic finish was fourth in the individual show jumping event in Munich. He was philosophical about not bringing home a medal, saying, "That's horses. You can't dictate to horses." In 1977, Smith won team silver at the European Championships in Vienna. He also won team silver at the European Championships at Hickstead in 1983. Winning more than 50 Grand Prix titles throughout his long career; he finally retired from show jumping in 1990, at the age of 52. Horse racing victory It is doubtful that Smith will ever retire altogether from the equestrian world. He and his wife, Sue, launched Sue Smith Racing, with the aim of establishing their own horse racing team and creating a winner. This was exactly what they did, after taking out their training licence in 1990. They started training a stable of top class racing horses, using experience gained in the show jumping world and applying it to racing. Their perseverance paid off when one of their horses, Auroras Encore, won the 2013 Grand National in style at 66/1. When Harvey and Sue spoke of their Grand National Victory with Auroras Encore, their joy was plain to see. Sue recalled it as being like a "fairy tale". Top jockeys who have worked with Sue Smith Racing include Ryan Mania, the National Hunt jockey from Galashiels, Scotland, who rode Auroras Encore in the momentous 2013 Grand National. Danny Cook, a regular jockey with them for four seasons, enjoyed success on Midnight Shadow when they won the Relkeel Hurdle at Cheltenham. Harvey's role in show jumping wasn't quite over yet, even at the age of 74. In 2012, he was honoured when he was asked to be an Olympic torch-bearer for the London Games. He carried out this duty in York when he carried the Olympic flame on horseback. In April 2020, he received the lifetime achievement award for his outstanding contribution to British Show Jumping. Harvey's sons are the renowned show jumpers, Steven and Robert Smith, both of whom have well and truly followed in their father's footsteps!We use cookies to make your experience better. To comply with the new e-Privacy directive, we need to ask for your consent to set the cookies. Learn more.