Michael Plumb

John Michael Plumb (born March 28, 1940) is an American equestrian and Olympic champion who competes in the sport of three-day eventing. He holds the title of the US Olympic competitor who has competed in the greatest number of Olympics, winning two team gold medals, three team silvers and one individual silver.

He has also competed at the World Equestrian Games and Pan-American Games, winning medals at both, as well as competing in the Rolex Kentucky Three Day and steeplechase events. He has been named to the Hall of Fame of the United States Eventing Association (USEA), as well as winning annual USEA awards, and is the only equestrian rider to have been inducted to the United States Olympic Hall of Fame. He was previously married to fellow Olympian Donnan Plumb, and the couple has three sons.

Personal life Plumb was born in Islip, New York, Plumb began riding at the Meadow Brooks Hounds Pony Club, where he participated in Pony Club. In 1972, he graduated from the University of Delaware. He married Donnan Sharp Plumb, a dressage rider who competed in the 1968 Summer Olympics; they later divorced. The couple had three sons – Hugh, Matt and Charlie; Charlie became a successful event rider. Matt and Hugh have had a successful auto racing career in sports car racing.

Career

Competition Plumb began his international competitive three-day event career at the 1959 Pan American Games in Chicago, Illinois. Throughout his career he competed for the United States in several other Pan-American Games, and won three gold medals, including an individual gold in 1963 and team golds in 1963 and 1967. Plumb had planned to ride his main event horse, Markham, but on the flight to the Games in Tokyo, the horse panicked, possibly due to a bad experience previously suffered in a horse trailer. In order to keep him from destroying his stall and potentially the aircraft, the horse was euthanized. Plumb instead rode Bold Minstrel, a horse loaned to him by another top-level eventer.

In 1968, at Ciudad de Mexico, Plumb took an individual 14th, while the US team again finished with a silver. At the 1972 Summer Olympics, the US team took the silver medal for the third Games in a row, while Plumb finished 20th individually. At the 1976 Games, Plumb achieved his only individual medal, taking silver, while the US team took gold. Despite the US boycott, Plumb competed at the alternate games in Fontainebleau, France. In 1992, Plumb competed in his last Olympics, placing 48th individually while the team took 10th. He has also competed multiple times at the Rolex Kentucky Three Day.

Influence In 2002, Plumb was named as one of the 50 most influential horsemen of the 20th century by the equine magazine Chronicle of the Horse. In 2003, Plumb was inducted to the United States Eventing Association Hall of Fame, along with one of his horses, Plain Sailing. Good Mixture, another of Plumb's horses, was inducted in 2009. In 2008, Plumb became the first (and to date, only) equestrian to be inducted into the United States Olympic Hall of Fame.

Plumb is reticent about discussing his accomplishments, but colleagues have referred to him as the "ultimate team member" who could be counted on to be at the top of his game and a consistent performer. As team captain at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics, he was noted for helping his teammates understand everything that was going on around them. His athleticism and personal courage have been praised by those who know him, such as Michael Page, chef d’equipe for the 1986 US World Championship team, who recounted how Plumb medaled at the competition despite three broken ribs. Plumb admits to being completely focused on riding and "not a social person", with former coach Jack le Goff saying that "horses are his only reason for being on earth".