Scott Brash has been immortalised in a statue made from recycled horse shoes.
The iron sculpture of Scott jumping a horse has been erected in his home town of Peebles, in the Scottish Borders.
“I am extremely overwhelmed and grateful to the community of Peebles, Bonnie Peebles and ArtFe in creating this statue in recognition of our achievements,” said Scott.
“I have always been very proud of where I came from and the community of Peebles has impressed me yet again.”
The top British showjumper, who is now based in West Sussex, attended an official unveiling ceremony on 23 December.
Bonnie Peebles — a community group in the town — commissioned the sculpture and applied to the Scottish Borders Council for planning permission last year (news, 18 February 2016). This was granted in March.
The piece was created by blacksmith Kev Paxton — who installed the giant dancing thistles at Edinburgh Airport — and his team at Edinburgh-based metal artwork company ArtFe. It was paid for through private donations and local fundraising.
“We try to make everything we do unique and as soon as we were approached about this project, we knew the direction we wanted to take,” said Kev.
“I have Borders blood in me and felt connected to the idea right from the start.”
The sculpture stands at three meters tall and took more than 1,000 man hours to create from two tonnes of used horse shoes — four of which were once worn by Scott’s Rolex Grand Slam and London 2012 Olympic team gold medal-winning ride, Hello Sanctos.
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The five-bar showjump is emblazoned with five thistles, as a nod to the Olympic rings, and is flanked by iron flowers and more thistles.
It stands on a grass area next to the Edinburgh Road at the entrance to the town.
A plaque beneath the artwork reads pays tribute to Peebles’ “local lad” turned world-class showjumper.
“We have had a gold post box for such a long time now and Scott has achieved so much since then,” Bonnie Peebles’ member Margaret Wightman told H&H last year.
