Phillip Dutton | |
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Phillip Dutton and Truluck at Capability's Classic during the cross country phase of Burghley Horse Trials 2009 |
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Personal information | |
Medal record
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Phillip Peter Dutton OAM[1] (born 13 September 1963) is an Olympic-level equestrian rider. He is a dual olympic gold medalist who formally competed for Australia but now competes for the United States.[2]
Dutton was born in Nyngan and was educated at Newington College (1976–1979).[3] He pursued his passion for riding in Australia until 1991 when he moved to the United States to train in a more internationally competitive environment. In the 1996 Atlanta and 2000 Sydney Olympic Games he was a member of Australia’s Gold Medal Three-day Eventing Team and he has now represented Australia in three Olympics and four World Equestrian Games. He is very active on the U.S. eventing circuit, winning the USEA Leading Rider of the Year title in 1998, and 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, and 2006. In 2005 he was also the number one FEI World Event Rider. Phillip and his wife, Evie, live in Avondale, Pennsylvania with Evie's daughter and their twin girls. Dutton's farm, True Prospect Farm, is located in West Grove, PA. In 1997, Dutton was awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia.[4]
In 2006, Dutton announced that he would be changing his citizenship, allowing him to ride for the United States.[5] In his letter to the EFA, informing them of the change, he wrote: “I would like to thank the EFA for everything they have done for me and my career as a Three-Day Event rider... It has been an honour to be a member of the EFA and to represent Australia internationally for the past 12 years.”[6]
In April 2007, Dutton took second at the famous 4 star event the Rolex Kentucky Three Day, as his first time riding for the U.S. Later that year, he won the team gold and individual silver medal at the 2007 Pan American Games on Truluck.
In April 2008, Dutton broke the "Rolex Hex" winning his first Rolex Kentucky Three-Day Event. Dutton competed at the 2008 Summer Olympics, but was disqualified from the individual event for competing with boots that were too heavy.[7]