Fouaad Mirza was in news recently for his plan to change his horse and go with Seigneur Medicott as his equine partner in the Tokyo Olympics 2021. The equestrian who bagged two silver medals at the 2018 Asian Games, will be representing India in the Tokyo Olympics, which will begin on July 23.
Mirza is the first and lone equestrian from India in two decades to qualify in the Olympic events. He becomes the third equestrian from India to book his quota in the Summer Games, followed by Indrajit Lamba in the 1996 Atlanta Games and Imtiaz Anees in the 2000 Sydney Olympics.
Born on March 6, 1992, in Bengaluru, the 29-year-old’s passion for the sport runs in his family. Inspired by his father, Hasneyn Mirza a renowned equine veterinarian, Fouaad started riding horses at the age of 5 years. However, he began his racing before pursuing an equestrian career. His first multi-sports event competition was the 2014 Jakarta Asian Games. After four years, in 2018, Fouaad dominated the media headlines by winning two silver medals at the 2018 Asian Games, becoming first in individual eventing and second in team event. In 2019, he was honoured with the Arjuna Award.
Mirza got training from jockey-turned-trainer Pesi Shroff to qualify in the Olympics after finishing second and third at the Baborowko Equestrian Festival in Poland with his horses, Seigneur Medicott (helped him win silvers at the 2018 Asian Games) and Dajara 4, respectively.
Sandra Auffarth who won a silver medal at London Olympics in the individual event, and a gold medal in the event team, is training Mirza in Bergedorf in North-West Germany for the Tokyo Olympics 2021. He will be competing in the individual event category with his horse, Seigneur Medicott at the Olympics that is scheduled to begin on July 23.
