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‘I fell for King William instantly’: how love at first sight for Mary King grew into one of the greatest eventing partnerships of all time

As we await this month’s European Eventing Championships, we look back at the career of three-time European medallist King William. Mary King’s 1992 Badminton victor won two European team golds, plus individual bronze, world team gold, contested two Olympics and garnered celebrity status with his distinctive blaze and flair across country. Madeleine Silver charts his success
Madeleine Silver

    • Postmen in Mary King’s Devon village became accustomed in the 1990s to fielding letters addressed to her legendary eventer: “King William, Devon”.

    “I suppose there weren’t any other King Williams,” laughs Mary, 30 years on.

    The fan mail had started after Mary and the 17hh gelding had won Gatcombe in 1991 and by the following year, hundreds of letters were arriving at the yard. With his prominent blaze, alert demeanour and increasingly consistent one-day-event record, he was easy to recognise.

    “Even my mother, who was unhorsey, could always tell which one William was,” remembers Mary.

    Eventer King William: the early days

    When Mary was told that an exciting five-year-old was coming up for sale at Bernice Strong’s yard near Newbury, she leapt in her car and drove there immediately, “knowing how hard it is to find good young horses”, she says.

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