[He was a legend, and we will never forget him]
Dislikers, real mature.
A terrible tragedy for all of the equestrian world happened today, Hickstead, a fantastic show jumper, had a heart attack after performing yet another great jumping round, the boy died proud.
Hickstead was a horse like no other and there is not exception, no equivalent, no horse that could match up to him. And may Hickstead now join the great team of show jumpers, galloping their heart free among the clouds now.
R.I.P. Stix ♥
A great article of Hickstead:
Eric Lamaze's stallion Hickstead, whose resume included gold- and silver-medal performances at the 2008 Summer Olympics and a seemingly endless list of triumphs at Spruce Meadows, collapsed and died during Sunday's Rolex FEI World Cup event in Verona, Italy.
"It's just very, very sad for that to happen to the horse, to happen to Eric, to happen to the sport," said Mac Cone, a member of Canada's silver-medal jumping team at the 2008 Olympics, where Lamaze and Hickstead also won gold in individual jumping.
"I think he's the best show-jumper I've ever seen in my life. It's too bad it had to come to an end."
According to a statement released by the Fédération Equestre Internationale (FEI), Lamaze and Hickstead had just completed a 13-fence track with a single rail down in Sunday's event in Italy when the 15-year-old Dutch Warmblood collapsed and died.
Attempts to revive the horse were not successful.
The event was stopped, with other competitors gathering in the arena for a moment of silence.
On Sunday afternoon, Lamaze's publicist issued a statement saying the horse suffered an apparent heart attack.
"It is the most tragic thing that has ever happened," Lamaze said in the statement.
"We had him until he was 15, and we had a great time together. He was the best horse in the world. We are all devastated."
In addition to his success at the Olympics, Lamaze and Hickstead claimed bronze at the 2007 Pan-American Games and 2010 World Equestrian Games.
Their last major triumph came in September at the Spruce Meadows Masters just outside of Calgary, where the duo became two-time winners of the $1 million CN International.
After that event, the 43-year-old rider from Schomberg, Ont., told reporters, "This is the best horse in the world, in my opinion, and to show it to all these fans here is special."
On Sunday afternoon, Spruce Meadows issued a statement on its website, saying "All of us at Spruce Meadows, and in the horse sport community, are stunned and saddened by the passing of Hickstead ... As fans we can be thankful that some of their greatest moments together took place at Spruce Meadows, including their incredible 2011 season, where they firmly established themselves as Number 1 in the world in the Rolex Rankings. Hickstead and Eric Lamaze are truly one of the greatest combinations in the history of our sport."
In the wake of Sunday's tragedy, his competitors echoed those sentiments.
"I'm sure Eric would be the first one to tell you that much of his success was due to that wonderful, wonderful horse. He'll be sorely missed by Eric and he'll be sorely missed by Canada," Cone said. "So few of us in this sport, as riders, get a horse like that. Never, really. It just doesn't happen. For Eric to be the lucky one to get one like that, I'm sure it totally changed his life."
As word of Hickstead's death spread, condolences for Lamaze and Hickstead's owners, Torrey Pines and Ashland Stables Inc., poured in from around the world.
"We will always be grateful for the time and triumphs we all shared with Hickstead," said Akaash Maharaj, the head of Equine Canada and the Canadian national equestrian team. "We know that generations of future equestrians will draw inspiration from his life."
FEI president Princess Haya added, "This is a terrible loss, but Hickstead truly will never be forgotten. We were very lucky to have known him."
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HOLY MOLY
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