{{short description|American equestrian}} {{good article}} {{Use mdy dates|date=June 2025}} {{Use American English|date=June 2025}} {{Infobox sportsperson | name = Bruce Davidson | image = CCI Lexington 2009 - Bruce Davidson Sr Cruise Lion.jpg | caption = Davidson and Cruise Lion at the 2009 Rolex Kentucky CCI**** awards ceremony | fullname = Bruce Oram Davidson | birth_date = {{birth-date and age|December 31, 1949}} | birth_place = [[Rome, New York]], U.S. | height = {{cvt|1.80|m|0|order=flip}} | headercolor = lightsteelblue | show-medals = yes | medaltemplates = {{MedalSport | [[Equestrianism|Equestrian]] }} {{MedalCountry | the {{USA}} }} {{MedalCompetition | [[Equestrian at the Summer Olympics|Olympic Games]] }} {{MedalGold | [[1976 Summer Olympics|1976 Montreal]] | [[Equestrian at the 1976 Summer Olympics – Team eventing|Team eventing]] }} {{MedalGold | [[1984 Summer Olympics|1984 Los Angeles]] | [[Equestrian at the 1984 Summer Olympics – Team eventing|Team eventing]] }} {{MedalSilver | [[1972 Summer Olympics|1972 Munich]] | [[Equestrian at the 1972 Summer Olympics – Team eventing|Team eventing]] }} {{MedalSilver | [[1996 Summer Olympics|1996 Atlanta]] | [[Equestrian at the 1996 Summer Olympics – Team eventing|Team eventing]] }} {{MedalCompetition | [[Eventing World Championship|World Championships]] }} {{MedalGold | [[Eventing World Championship|1974 Burghley]] | Team eventing }} {{MedalGold | 1974 Burghley | {{nowrap|Individual eventing}} }} {{MedalGold | 1978 Lexington | Individual eventing }} {{MedalBronze | 1978 Lexington | Team eventing }} {{MedalBronze | 1990 Stockholm | Individual eventing }} {{MedalCompetition | [[Equestrian at the Pan American Games|Pan American Games]] }} {{MedalGold | [[1975 Pan American Games|1975 Mexico City]] | Team eventing }} {{MedalGold | [[1995 Pan American Games|1995 Mar del Plata]] | [[Equestrian at the 1995 Pan American Games|Individual eventing]] }} {{MedalSilver | [[1975 Pan American Games|1975 Mexico City]] | Individual eventing }} {{MedalSilver | [[1995 Pan American Games|1995 Mar del Plata]] | [[Equestrian at the 1995 Pan American Games|Team eventing]] }} }}
'''Bruce Oram Davidson''' (born December 31, 1949, in [[Rome, New York]]) is an [[Americans|American]] [[Equestrianism|equestrian]] who competes in the sport of [[eventing]]. He grew up in a family uninterested in horses, but began to compete in [[United States Pony Club|Pony Club]] events after a family friend introduced him to riding. He began college at [[Iowa State University]], but left in his third year to train full-time with the [[United States Equestrian Team]]. In 1974, he married, and his two children were born in 1976 and 1977. His son, Bruce Davidson Jr., has followed in his footsteps to become a top eventing rider.
At 18, Davidson tried out for the United States eventing team and was accepted. He won his first medal as a member of the silver-medal-winning US team at the [[1972 Summer Olympics]]. After that, Davidson went to win gold at the [[1976 Summer Olympics|1976]] and [[1984 Summer Olympics|1984 Olympics]] and silver in [[1996 Summer Olympics|1996]], participating unsuccessfully in 1988. He has also competed repeatedly at both the [[World Equestrian Games]] and the [[Pan American Games]], winning medals at both, as well as winning repeatedly at the top-level [[Badminton Horse Trials]] and [[Rolex Kentucky Three Day]] events. In the 1980s and early 1990s, Davidson was a consistently top-level rider on both the American and international eventing scenes. He is also known for his horse breeding and training abilities.
==Personal life==
In 1949, Davidson was born to Francis and Annette Davidson, the former a businessman and the latter a concert pianist. He was the third of four children, and had little opportunity to be around horses until his family moved to [[Westport, Massachusetts]], when he was a child. A family friend introduced Davidson to horses, and he began attending [[United States Pony Club|Pony Club]] events. He bought, trained and sold horses until he found a championship horse in [[Irish Cap (horse)|Irish Cap]], the horse that took him to his first gold medal at the [[Eventing World Championship|1974 World Eventing Championship]].<ref name=USET>{{cite web |url=http://useventing.com/media.php?section=bios&id=435 |title=Rider Bio: Bruce Davidson |publisher=United States Eventing Association |date=July 31, 2006 |access-date=May 3, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061124213616/http://www.useventing.com/media.php?section=bios&id=435 |archive-date=November 24, 2006}}</ref> Davidson went to college at [[Iowa State University]] with a [[veterinarian|veterinary]] major,<ref name=SR>{{cite Sports-Reference |url=https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/da/bruce-davidson-1.html |title=Bruce Davidson |access-date=February 4, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200417232619/https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/da/bruce-davidson-1.html |archive-date=April 17, 2020}}</ref> but left in his third year to train with the [[United States Equestrian Team]] (USET).<ref name=USET />
In 1974, Davidson married Carol Hannum, a top rider and daughter of Nancy Hannum, who owns extensive property in Pennsylvania surrounding Davidson's Chesterland Farm.<ref>{{cite magazine |title=Sport: A Touch of Iron and Elegance |magazine=TIME |date=October 2, 1978 |access-date=May 11, 2011 |url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,948710,00.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101014124257/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,948710,00.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=October 14, 2010}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |url=http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1005948/index.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111120223833/http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1005948/index.htm |url-status=dead |archive-date=November 20, 2011 |title=A Three-day Wonder |author=Davis, Susan |date=November 14, 1994 |access-date=May 11, 2011 |journal=Sports Illustrated}}</ref> In 1976, Davidson's son, Bruce "Buck" Oram Davidson, Jr., was born, followed by a daughter, Nancy Fraser Davidson, in 1977. In 2006, Davidson's first grandson, Oram, was born to Nancy. In 2008, Averell, Nancy's daughter was born.<ref name=USET /> Buck Davidson is also an internationally competitive event rider,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Print |title=Baughman, Davidson Receive FEI Yellow Cards At Mars Maryland 5 Star |url=http://www.chronofhorse.com/article/baughman-davidson-receive-fei-yellow-cards-at-mars-maryland-5-star |access-date=November 11, 2022 |website=www.chronofhorse.com |language=en}}</ref> competing in high-level events such as the [[Rolex Kentucky Three Day]] along with his father.<ref>{{cite journal |url=http://www.thehorse.com/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=340 |title=Rolex Kentucky Three-Day Event |date=October 2, 2001 |access-date=May 3, 2011 |journal=The Horse}}</ref>
In 2002, at a competition in [[Massachusetts]], Davidson's horse suffered a fall in a freak accident. The horse, High Scope, broke his neck and died instantly, while Davidson was taken to the intensive care unit at [[Massachusetts Memorial Hospital]]. After being treated for injuries, Davidson was released.<ref>{{cite journal |url=http://www.horseandhound.co.uk/news/article.php?aid=35779&cid=397 |title=Tragedy at US event |author=Young, Barbara |date=August 8, 2002 |access-date=May 5, 2011 |journal=Horse & Hound}}</ref> In 2010, Davidson missed that year's Rolex Three Day Event in [[Kentucky]] after undergoing surgery to repair [[herniated disc]]s in his back.<ref name=Chronicle>{{cite web |url=http://www.chronofhorse.com/article/surgery-forces-bruce-davidson-sit-out-rolex-kentucky |title=Surgery Forces Bruce Davidson To Sit Out Rolex Kentucky |author=Beatty, Sarah |access-date=May 2, 2011 |date=March 23, 2010 |publisher=Chronicle of the Horse}}</ref>
==Career==
===Competition=== At 18, Davidson participated in a tryout for aspiring eventers run by [[Neil Ayer]] and [[Jack le Goff]], who were trying to build the United States team to an international level. He had talent, and according to LeGoff, "He didn't know which diagonal he was posting when he came to me. Two years later, he was riding in the Olympics." Davidson was chosen, and began training with the USET in a four-year, seven-day-a-week program in [[Gladstone, New Jersey]].<ref>Bryant, pp. 116–117.</ref>
Davidson won team eventing medals at [[Olympic Games]] in 1972, 1976, 1984 and 1996, and also competed at the 1988 Games. In the [[1972 Summer Olympics|1972 Games]], at age 22, he took individual eighth, while the American team won silver. At the [[1976 Summer Olympics]], the team won gold while Davidson came in tenth individually. In [[1984 Summer Olympics|1984]], Davidson, who finished 13th individually, was the lowest scoring member of the gold-medal-winning United States team. At the [[1988 Summer Olympics|1988 Games]], Davidson took 18th, while the American team did not finish the competition. In [[1996 Summer Olympics|1996]], Davidson did not compete as an individual, but the American team again took silver.<ref name=SR />
Outside of the Olympics, Davidson also competed repeatedly at the Eventing World Championships and the [[Pan-American Games]]. He took both an individual and a team gold at the 1974 World Championships, and another individual gold at the 1978 Championships.<ref name=SR /> Davidson's victory at the 1974 Championships aboard Irish Cap made him the first American ever to win the event, and his win in 1978 aboard [[Might Tango]] made him the first rider of any nationality to win back-to-back championships.<ref name=HallofFame>{{cite web |url=http://useventing.com/hof/index.php?id=27 |title=Bruce Davidson |publisher=United States Eventing Association |access-date=May 2, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110929200920/http://useventing.com/hof/index.php?id=27 |archive-date=September 29, 2011 |url-status=dead}}</ref> In this event, the inexperienced Might Tango was Davidson's backup horse after Irish Cap went [[lameness (equine)|lame]], leading to a scenario which ''[[Sports Illustrated]]'' likened to "a junior high school quarterback leading [[University of Southern California|USC]] to victory in the [[Rose Bowl Game|Rose Bowl]]". Might Tango's inexperience led to increased tiredness and rumors that the activity made him go into [[Acute stress reaction|shock]], but Davidson replied that the horse was just "very tired" and praised him for his stamina.<ref>{{cite journal |url=http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1094110/index.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111126092703/http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1094110/index.htm |url-status=dead |archive-date=November 26, 2011 |title=Jumping to a Thrilling Conclusion |journal=Sports Illustrated |date=September 25, 1978 |author=Kraft, Virginia |access-date=May 11, 2011}}</ref> The United States also took a team bronze at the 1978 championships. In 1990, Davidson took an individual bronze at the World Championships in [[Stockholm]], [[Sweden]].<ref name=USET /> In 1998, Davidson competed at the World Equestrian Games in [[Rome]], where he took an individual 21st place, as well as helping the US to a team 4th.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.horsesport.org/sites/default/files/file/EVENTS/GAMES/FEI%20WORLD%20EQUESTRIAN%20GAMES/Results/Roma_1998/WEG1998_Eventing_Ind.pdf |title=World Equestrian Games – Rome – Three Day Event – Individual Championship |publisher=FEI |access-date=May 11, 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120902045110/http://www.horsesport.org/sites/default/files/file/EVENTS/GAMES/FEI%20WORLD%20EQUESTRIAN%20GAMES/Results/Roma_1998/WEG1998_Eventing_Ind.pdf |archive-date=September 2, 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.horsesport.org/sites/default/files/file/EVENTS/GAMES/FEI%20WORLD%20EQUESTRIAN%20GAMES/Results/Roma_1998/WEG1998_Eventing_Team.pdf |title=World Equestrian Games – Rome – Three Day Event – Team Championship |publisher=FEI |access-date=May 11, 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120902045123/http://www.horsesport.org/sites/default/files/file/EVENTS/GAMES/FEI%20WORLD%20EQUESTRIAN%20GAMES/Results/Roma_1998/WEG1998_Eventing_Team.pdf |archive-date=September 2, 2012}}</ref>
At the [[1975 Pan American Games]], he took both the individual and the team silver; he followed this up by an individual gold and a team silver at the [[1995 Pan American Games|1995 Games]].<ref name=HallofFame />
He has also ridden at the [[Badminton Horse Trials]], where he is one of only two Americans to win that event, and he also holds the honor of having the most wins at the Rolex Three Day Event with six victories.<ref name=SR /> Through his 1974 World Championship victory, Davidson is credited with helping to create the Rolex event, as this victory allowed the US to host the 1978 World Championships. The 1978 event turned into an annual competition that eventually became the Rolex Kentucky Three-Day, which was the first and continues to be the only four-star eventing competition in the United States. Davidson has competed at the event almost every year since it began.<ref name=Chronicle />
In 1993 and 1995, Davidson held the top place in the world eventing rankings compiled by the [[International Federation for Equestrian Sports|FEI]], and between 1980 and 1995, he was annually named the leading rider for the [[United States Combined Training Association|United States Eventing Association]].<ref name=HallofFame />
===Other=== In 2002, Davidson was named as one of the 50 most influential horsemen of the 20th century by the equine magazine ''[[The Chronicle of the Horse]]''.<ref>{{cite journal |url=http://www.thehorse.com/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=1510 |title=Most Influential Horsemen Announced |journal=The Horse |author=Church, Stephanie L. |date=October 11, 2002 |access-date=May 2, 2011}}</ref> In 2009, Davidson was inducted to the [[United States Eventing Association]] Hall of Fame, along with his horse Irish Cap. In 2003, another horse ridden by Davidson, Plain Sailing, had also been inducted.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://useventing.com/hof/index.php |title=Hall of Fame |publisher=United States Eventing Association |access-date=January 1, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120205121423/http://useventing.com/hof/index.php |archive-date=February 5, 2012 |url-status=dead}}</ref>
Davidson is also known for his success in finding and training the horses that he rides at the international level. Irish Cap was purchased at the age of five years, [[JJ Babu]] and [[Dr. Peaches]] as [[yearling (horse)|yearlings]] and Might Tango as a two-year-old ex-[[racehorse]] – all ended as championship horses.<ref name=Bryant130>Bryant, p. 130.</ref> He is currently a [[Thoroughbred]] breeder,<ref name=SR /> and at his Chesterland Farm he says that "the ultimate in the sport is to breed, train and win, to carry the whole system right on through."<ref name=Bryant130 />
==Notes== {{reflist}}
==References== * {{cite book |title=Olympic Equestrian:The Sports and the Stories from Stockholm to Sydney |author=Bryant, Jennifer O. |year=2000 |publisher=The Blood-Horse, Inc |isbn=1-58150-044-0}}
==Further reading== * {{cite book |title=Bruce Davidson, World Champion of Eventing |author1=O'Connor, Sally |author2=Hussein, Akhtar |author3=Silver, Caroline |publisher=Houghton Mifflin Co. |year=1980 |location=Boston, MA |isbn=978-0-395-29117-7}}
==External links== * [http://www.brucedavidsoneventing.com/ Bruce Davidson Eventing] * {{Olympics.com|bruce-oram-davidson|Bruce Oram Davidson|org_id=bruce-davidson|org_name=Bruce Davidson|org_archive=20200630104005}} * {{Olympedia}} * {{FEI}}
{{Olympic champions – Equestrian team eventing}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Davidson, Bruce}} [[Category:1949 births]] [[Category:Living people]] [[Category:Sportspeople from Rome, New York]] [[Category:American male equestrians]] [[Category:American event riders]] [[Category:Equestrians at the 1972 Summer Olympics]] [[Category:Equestrians at the 1976 Summer Olympics]] [[Category:Equestrians at the 1984 Summer Olympics]] [[Category:Equestrians at the 1988 Summer Olympics]] [[Category:Equestrians at the 1996 Summer Olympics]] [[Category:Medalists at the 1996 Summer Olympics]] [[Category:Medalists at the 1984 Summer Olympics]] [[Category:Medalists at the 1976 Summer Olympics]] [[Category:Medalists at the 1972 Summer Olympics]] [[Category:Olympic gold medalists for the United States in equestrian]] [[Category:Olympic silver medalists for the United States in equestrian]] [[Category:Equestrians at the 1975 Pan American Games]] [[Category:Equestrians at the 1995 Pan American Games]] [[Category:Medalists at the 1975 Pan American Games]] [[Category:Medalists at the 1995 Pan American Games]] [[Category:Pan American Games gold medalists for the United States in equestrian]] [[Category:Pan American Games silver medalists for the United States in equestrian]] [[Category:20th-century American sportsmen]]