Biography

British rider Harry Meade (40) has 12 completions of the event gaining six top-twenty placings, his best finish was 3rd in 2014. He gained his 12th completion last year (16th Away Cruising) who is one of his entries for this year.

It will be a first Badminton for Cavalier Crystal with whom Harry was 5^th at Bramham last June before going on to take 3^rd place at Burghley – a first 5* for the horse. It is also a first Badminton for Red Kite with whom Harry was 11^th in the 4*L at Bramham and later contested the horses first 5* at Pau but did not complete.

Harry is currently #5 in the world FEI rider ranking.

Harry was born and grew up in the Beaufort Hunt country, close to Badminton. In 2000, as a member of the Beaufort Pony Club, Harry was the National Pony Club eventing champion and the following year a member of the British Junior team. After leaving school he combined horses with university and gained a degree in History of Art from Bristol University. Before running his own yard Harry was apprenticed to William Fox-Pitt from whom he took over the ride on Midnight Dazzler, the horse whom he made his four-star debut at Burghley in 2005 winning awards for the ‘best first timer’ and ‘best Under-25’. Midnight Dazzler and Harry completed Burghley three times and Badminton on four occasions. In 2009 Harry became the youngest person ever to receive an Armada dish awarded for five Badminton completions.

In 2013 whilst competing at Wellington horse trials Harry suffered a rotational fall which resulted in two fractured and dislocated elbows requiring much re-constructive surgery and incapacitation.  He started riding again mid-February and in 2014 gained a fairy-tale third place at Badminton with Wild Lone and with whom he subsequently gained his first senior flag as a member of the silver medal winning British team for the 2014 WEG in Normandy. He was voted rider of the year by the Event Horse Owners Association, (EHOA), Event Riders Association (ERA) The British Equestrian Writers Association and Horse & Hound.  He has since brought on younger horses and with Away Cruising made a successful return to top level competition at Burghley in 2017.

Harry is also involved of other aspects of the sport; he is Chairman of the FEI International Riders committee, a member of the Burghley Horse Trials Directors’ Advisory Group, sits on the British Eventing’s Horse Welfare committee and in recent times has been part of the BBC commentary team and occasional columnist for Horse & Hound Magazine.

His father the late Richard Meade, won three Olympic gold medals in eventing, won Burghley in 1964 and completed Badminton 16 times winning the event twice (1970 & 1982).

In 2010 Harry married Rosie Bradford – having proposed during a Badminton course walk – and they have a daughter Lily (12) and a son Charlie (10). Harry trains with Ian Woodhead and Grant Wilson.

Away Cruising, is a 17-year-old Irish-bred grey gelding. He is by Cruise On (a son of Cruising) out of Parklands Princess by the thoroughbred Able Albert. He was acquired by Harry as a four-year-old and they have had 12 seasons together. In June 2017 he completed his first (then) four-star at Luhmuhlen and has since completed both Badminton and Burghley three times.

Cavalier Crystal is a 14-year-old Irish Irish-bred Irish Sport Horse mare. Bred by Thomas Horgan she is by Jack of Diamonds out of a mare by Cavalier Royale. She was initially produced by Alice Montgomery and Tiana Coudray and Harry took the ride in 2016 and has since produced her through the levels. At the end of a successful season in 2023 the pair finished 3^rd in her first 5* at Burghley.

Red Kite is a 13-year-old Westfalian. Bred by Bernard Niehoff he is by the Oldenberg Z Cordanos V (a son of the well know grand prix jumper Catoki) out of a Westphalian mare by Diamantino. He has been produced by Harry since a 4 year old