West Grove's Phillip Dutton takes Bronze at Olympics
08/10/2016 12:26PM ● By J. Chambless
Dutton, who lives in West Grove, frequently competes at events at Fair Hill International in Fair Hill, Md. Dutton has five horses entered on Aug. 13 and 14 at Fair Hill International's August Horse Trials, which are held at the Cecil County Fairgrounds. Spectators are encouraged to welcome Dutton home from a successful Olympic Games. Admission is free.
Equestrian Boyd Martin of Cochranville, and his horse Blackfoot Mystery, owned by the Blackfoot Mystery Syndicate, also competed on the US Eventing Team, finishing 16th. Martin will ride four horses at Fair Hill International's August Horse Trials. More information can be found at http://www.fairhillinternational.com/fhi-horsetrials.
On Aug. 9, on his website (www.phillipdutton.com), Dutton wrote:
WHAT A HORSE! HND Group’s Mighty Nice had just one rail down between his two show jumping rounds today to win the individual bronze medal at the 2016 Olympic Games. Considering the incredible effort he made yesterday on cross country, I could not be more proud of the way Happy jumped today. I’ve never had a horse with a bigger heart. Even when he is tired or not feeling his best, he just keeps trying.
I truly think Happy genuinely loves the sport, and I’m thrilled for the horse and his owners: Caroline Moran, Kevin Keane, Annie Jones, Michael Bombar and Evie Dutton. His late owner Bruce Duchossois believed very strongly in the talent of this horse. We wish Bruce could have been here to see Happy win a bronze medal at the Olympics, but we know he is watching over him.
We wouldn’t be here without the help of many, many people. Thank you to Emma Ford — who deserves this medal as much as I do — my family, my team, my owners, my sponsors and especially to everyone who has cheered us on back home. We have been overwhelmed by the support and are so excited to bring an Olympic medal home to the USA!
