Lee Pearson

Sir David Lee Pearson CBE, who competes as plain old Lee Pearson, is a quite remarkable man. Born in the Staffordshire village of Cheddleton in 1974, Pearson was born with arthrogryposis multiplex congenita (AMC), which inhibits limb movements. He first entered the public eye as a child when, in 1980, then-Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher presented him with a Child of Courage Award. As an adult, he became one of Britain’s most distinguished Paralympians, winning no fewer than 14 gold medals at Paralympic dressage events between 2000 and 2021. He also became the first openly gay member of the British Paralympic team and has since become a vocal advocate of LGBTQ+ rights and visibility. His services to equestrianism have seen him bestowed with honours, culminating in his 2017 knighthood.

Sir David was always a keen dressage rider but didn’t turn professional until his early twenties — he was inspired by watching the event at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics. By the time of the 2000 Paralympics in Sydney, he had qualified for the British team and won his first dressage medals: two individual and one team. He successfully defended his Paralympic titles at the 2004 and 2008 Games before “only” winning silver and bronze at London 2012 (he did, however, help Team GB to maintain the team gold medal). He returned to form in 2016, and at the delayed Tokyo Games in 2021, he once more came home with three gold medals.

Away from the competitive arena, Sir David lives in his native Staffordshire, running a dressage yard of his own and travelling around the country to teach other young hopefuls.