Plumb First Equestrian Elected To Olympic Hall Of Fame June 19, 2008 by Nancy BrannonOn June 19, 2008 J. Michael Plumb became the first equestrian inducted into the United States Olympic Hall of Fame. He was one of 18 Olympians nominated who “represent the pinnacle of excellence in their field,” and one of the six elected to be honored in the Class of 2008. The Induction Ceremony was held in Chicago, Illinois where Plumb remarked about receiving the honor: “I know eventing, what it feels like before the dressage, the cross-country and the show jumping. This is a big performance.” Plumb has a long history of Olympic Games participation, competing in eight Olympic equestrian events total, seven of them consecutive, and several Pan American Games. He has participated in more Olympic Games than any other U.S. Olympic athlete, equestrian or otherwise. He also achieved the United States Eventing Association’s (USEA) Leading Rider of the Year Award ten times. Plumb’s first Olympic Games experience was in 1960, when he was 20 years old. He was named to every Olympic three-day team from that Games through 1984, earning six medals: Team Silver in 1964 at the Tokyo Games; Team Silver in both 1968 and 1972; Team Gold and Individual Silver in 1976 at Montreal; and a Team Gold in 1984. His latest Olympic Games participation was in 1992 at Barcelona. His success came from diligent preparation, attention to detail, and being a dependable player in the clutch - able to deliver outstanding performance when it mattered most.Riding “Blue Stone,” Plumb was the lead rider for the 1984 Gold Medal team in Los Angeles. The other team members were Karen Stives on “Ben Arthur,” Torrance Watkins Fleischmann on “Finvarra,” and Bruce Davidson on “J J Babu.” That was also the year that Joe Fargis, riding “Touch of Class,” won the Individual Gold Medal in Show Jumping and, with his team of Leslie Burr, Conrad Homfeld, and Melanie Smith of Germantown, Tennessee, won the Show Jumping Team Gold Medal. Fargis was inducted into the Show Jumping Hall of Fame in April 2008 at the Budweiser American Invitational in Tampa, Florida.After retiring from top-level competition, Plumb, now at age 67, continues to teach, ride, and train at his Southern Pines, North Carolina farm. Mid-South equestrians once had the opportunity to learn from the master. Plumb was in the Memphis area in 1997 to give a riding clinic for Delta Dressage and Combined Training Association.The U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame was established in 1979 to celebrate the achievements of America’s premier athletes. For more information on the U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame, visit http://www.usolympichalloffame.com/ and see the “class of 2008.” Information about USEA can be found at http://useventing.com/.