Mick Saywell (1942 - 2023)
Tuesday 04 April 2023
Former British team member and 1972 Olympian Michael (Mick) Saywell passed away peacefully on 2 April aged 80 with his family at his side.
Possessing a wealth of knowledge and a great support to son Andrew and daughter Louise in their showjumping careers in his later years, Mick was at the top of the showjumping tree in the 1970’s. He supplied the best British score for the team at the 1972 Munich Olympics with Hideaway for the team to finish just outside the medals in fourth alongside teammates David Broome, Harvey Smith and Ann Moore.
David Broome paid tribute: “Mick was a lovely person to have around. He had a great sense of humour and when things got tough in the team, he was the joker that broke the tension and kept the peace – and he did it brilliantly. He was a very talented jockey too, we’re all worse off without him.”
Hideaway took him to the heady heights of the Olympics but it was the eye-catching grey Chainbridge who gave Mick his most memorable wins – the prestigious King George V Gold Cup in 1976 and two years later, the 1978 Dublin Grand Prix.
The King George win inspired a 12-year-old Tim Stockdale to take up showjumping and he later begged his hero for a job, flourishing under Mick’s guidance.
Mick also rode the great Anglezarke in the early days.
“Mick had two photos next to his bed – Anglezarke and Chainbridge. They were the first things he saw every morning,” said Mick’s daughter Louise’s partner Graham Lovegrove.
Mick’s interest in horses was sparked at a young age by his grandfather WA Wagstaffe first at his home in Swinderby, Lincolnshire, and followed up with gymkhanas and unaffiliated shows on ponies Taffy and Toronto. He ‘earned his buttons’ clearing a double of railway gates as second whip on the hunting field and progressed to competing the pony Orange Peel for Sally Ireland in horse classes with great success at the local shows.
His talent took him to the stables of John ‘Jet’ Taylor and success with Spey Royal, Liberty Light and Fen Gold, Severn Hills and Severn Valley, to name just a few, followed. Mick’s famous association with Yorkshire owner Trevor Banks began in 1970 and clocked up a notable victory that year in the La Baule Grand Prix, putting them on the road to the Olympics and beyond.
An avid follower of son Andrew, daughter Louise and grandson Jake’s careers in his chosen sport kept Mick active in his later years. He was a regular at either in the arena at his Cottam, Nottinghamshire, home or at the ringside with valuable advice and insights to the very end.
Condolences to his wife Vicky, sons Andrew and Harry, daughters Nicky and Louise, eight grandchildren and one great granddaughter.
Goodnight, Mick. RIP. You will be sorely missed.
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