Christilot Boylen is a leader, a trailblazer, and an integral part of Canadian dressage – past, present and future. The development of her competitive career is synonymous with the development of competitive dressage in Canada over the past 50 years.

With her $800 “racetrack reject” named Bonheur, a then 17-year-old Boylen represented Canada at the 1964 Olympics in Tokyo and became the youngest Olympic dressage competitor on record. Since then, Boylen has represented Canada on five more Olympic teams (1968, 1972, 1976, 1984, 1992) and four Pan American Games teams, winning individual gold in 1971, 1975 and 1985.

Boylen is the founder of CADORA (Canadian Amateur Dressage Owners Association), a national organization dedicated to supporting the sport at the grassroots level across Canada. She is also the author of several books including Canadian Entry, which chronicles her first journey to the Olympics, Basic Dressage for North America and The Horse Lovers’ Diary. She tells us another book is also in the works.

Today, at age 72, Christilot shows no signs of slowing down. She remains a fixture on the competitive scene with her current Grand Prix mount Rockylane, but her greatest influence on the sport’s future is as a coach, trainer and mentor to the next generation of Canada’s top dressage riders. She successfully coached Canadians Megan Lane and Belinda Trussell to spots on the 2018 World Equestrian Games team, and was recently named head coach of Equestrian Ontario’s GRIT program. This new athlete development initiative targets Ontario riders aged 11-30 who are working towards the goal of being named to one of Canada’s national team programs.

Memorable Moments

“The ones that stand out in my mind are being named Leading Lady Rider at Aachen, and completing the hat trick of winning three Pan American individual gold medals.”

Foreseeable Future

“My goals are the same as in most other years: to continue to enjoy and further good dressage riding and training in all aspects, be it with my students, the development of the Ontario Equestrian GRIT program, or the enjoyment of my own riding and horse.”