Pippa Funnell MBE is a hugely popular event rider, an Olympic medallist and the first winner of the Rolex Grand Slam.
Pippa Funnell and 2019 European team silver medallist Majas Hope.
Pippa has been a member of the British team at three Olympic Games where she has won two team silvers and an individual bronze medal. She made her Olympic debut with team silver at the 2000 Games in Sydney on Supreme Rock. In 2004, in Athens, she took team silver and individual bronze on Primmore’s Pride. She also rode at the 2016 Rio Games on Billy The Biz.
Pippa Funnell and Supreme Rock at the Sydney Olympics.
She was also the back to back winner of the individual title at the European Eventing Championships in 1999 and 2001 riding Supreme Rock. She has won five other European medals t00 – team gold in 1999, 2001 and 2003, individual bronze in 2003 (Walk On Star), team silver in 2015 (Sandman 7) and team silver in 2019 (Majas Hope).
She has also collected team bronze at the World Equestrian Games, in 2002 riding Supreme Rock.
Pippa also rode as an individual at the 2010 World Equestrian Games on Redesigned, finishing fifth.
Yes. Pippa has won Badminton Horse Trials three times (in 2002 and 2003 with Supreme Rock and in 2005 with Primmore’s Pride) and Burghley Horse Trials twice (in 2003 on Primmore’s Pride and 2019 on MGH Grafton Street). She also won the Kentucky Three-Day Event in 2003 with Primmore’s Pride.
Pippa’s three five-star wins in 2003 made her the first winner of the Rolex Grand Slam, the big-money prize given to any event rider who can consecutively win the world’s three leading five-stars at Badminton, Burghley and Kentucky.
Her Burghley win in 2019 landed her the Horserail Moment of the Year accolade at that year’s Horse & Hound Awards, in partnership with NAF.
Yes, Pippa’s husband is the top British showjumper William Funnell.
The couple run The Billy Stud in Surrey, along with Donal Barnwell, and through that breed and produce top showjumpers and eventers.
Billy The Biz was the first horse bred by The Billy Stud to compete at the Olympics when Pippa and the grey were called up from the reserve bench to go to Rio in 2016.
Pippa showjumps at a high level as well as eventing. Her successes over the coloured poles include second place in the prestigious Queen’s Cup at the Royal International Horse Show at Hickstead in 2018 riding Billy Congo.
Pippa Funnell and Billy Congo take second in the 2018 Queen’s Cup.
Yes, Pippa has written a series of children’s books called Tilly’s Pony Tails and Tilly’s Horse Magic.
Pippa has also been involved with a number of video games, including Take The Reins, Saddle Up With Pippa Funnell, Ranch Rescue and The Stud Farm Inheritance.
Pippa has also written an autobiography, in which she discusses her struggles to overcome nerves to compete at the highest level and how sports psychology helped her. She was one of the first top riders to talk openly about the value of sports psychology in the sport.
Eventer and World Horse Welfare patron Pippa Funnell paid a visit to the charity’s Glenda Spooner Farm in Somerset to assess the potential of some of the horses and ponies that are almost ready for rehoming
Willberry Wonder Pony, wonder women, amazing jumpers and naughty horses all featured at Barbury
Big names head to the prestigious Nations Cup in Germany to show their form before the Europeans
There are two surprising pairs missing from the British long-list for this year's senior eventing championship
Two horses in the holding box and one loose one added some drama to the first horse inspection at the German four-star
Find out who impressed the judges in the dressage at Bramham
Could Team GB have its first winner at the German four-star since 2010?
The top rider is recovering at home after a fall at Ballindenisk CCI3*
It was a game of snakes and ladders in the team showjumping this morning, as France moved up and New Zealand had a disastrous time
Australia came to the fore today as Britain dropped out of both the team and individual reckoning
The team standings are incredibly tight after three riders from each nation have been through the arena
Find out which riders take the pathfinder and anchor spots over the next few days
There were nervous moments for one nation at the first horse inspection
With the first horse inspection for the Olympic eventing happening today (5 August), find out how British team member Pippa Funnell prepares for an Olympics
Pippa Funnell will now ride at the Games and a new travelling reserve has been named
Find out which horses and riders will represent Team GB in Rio next month
The London 2012 team silver medallist is not among the British eventers nominated for this summer's Games
Today's showjumping shuffled the order of the top riders
The main British contenders for the Games were out in force this afternoon
The top British eventer discloses details of her heavy fall at Withington Manor, plus her hopes for the rest of this season
