Steffen Peters

Steffen Peters

Steffen Peters and Legolas (2013)
Personal information
Born	(1964-09-18) September 18, 1964 (age 52) Wesel, Germany
Medal record Equestrian Representing the  United States Olympic Games 1996 Atlanta Team dressage 2016 Rio de Janeiro Team dressage World Championships 2006 Aachen Team dressage 2010 Kentucky Spécial dressage 2010 Kentucky Freestyle dressage World Cup 2009 Las Vegas Individual dressage 2007 Las Vegas Individual dressage Pan American Games 2011 Guadalajara Individual dressage 2011 Guadalajara Team dressage 2015 Toronto Individual dressage 2015 Toronto Team dressage

Steffen Peters (born September 18, 1964) is a German-born equestrian who competes for the United States in dressage. He has participated in four Olympic Games, winning a team bronze medal on two occasions (in 1996 and 2016). Peters has been successful in numerous other international competitions, including winning team bronze at the 2006 World Equestrian Games, two individual bronze medals at the 2010 World Equestrian Games and individual and team gold medals at both 2011 and 2015 Pan Am Games. The horse upon which he won many of his titles, Ravel, was retired in 2012. After 2012, his international successes came on Legolas. At the beginning of 2017, Peters handed over the ride on Legolas to his assistant rider Dawn White-O'Connor. Peters is currently working with a new international competition horse, Rosamunde.

Peters was born in Wesel, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. He began riding at age seven, and competing in weekend dressage shows. By 15, he was competing outside of Germany, at international competitions in Belgium and Denmark. He received his first horse, Udon, at age 16 as a gift from his father; this horse would carry him to a bronze medal in the 1996 Summer Olympics. In 1984, he spent the summer training in San Diego, California, before returning to Germany to perform his army service. In 1985, he returned to the United States with Udon. In 1991, he opened his own barn and acquired his first sponsor, Lila Kommerstad, who purchased Udon and as of 2012 owned a portion of Peters' Arroyo Del Mar training barn. Peters gained his US citizenship in 1992, saying, "The whole idea of being so patriotic, of feeling so close to one's country makes a difference. There are not too many other countries where the people are so patriotic. I really enjoy this about America." Peters continues to live in the San Diego area with his wife, Shannon. Their large dressage barn is home to approximately 65 horses as of 2012, around half of which the couple trains and the other half of which are in training under other riders. Outside of his competition and training schedule, he teaches in around 30 training seminars each year. His staff call him "a machine" with regard to his training and competition schedule, and in addition to riding, he participates in swimming, cycling and tennis.