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Olympic equestrian icon Sir Mark Todd slammed after video shows him repeatedly whipping horse

Sir Mark Todd was seen in the clip repeatedly hitting the horse in order to force it to jump while it buckled in pain

An Olympic equestrian champion was forced to apologize after a video of him brutally whipping a horse with a branch sparked outrage on social media.

New Zealand horseman Sir Mark Todd, 65, was seen in the clip repeatedly hitting the horse in order to force a jump while it buckled in pain. The footage, which went viral on social media, showed the animal and rider approach the puddle before it came to a grinding halt. Todd appeared out of nowhere brandishing a branch and began attacking the horse's backside. He dealt at least ten blows before the horse finally entered a waterlogging and trotted to safety and the people behind cheered.

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The double Olympic gold medalist responded to the furor with an apology after the video went viral this week. "I wholeheartedly apologize to the horse and all involved for my actions in this video clip," he said. "One of the main things I preach is about establishing mutual respect between horse and rider and that patience and kindness is the best way to get results. I believe this is one of the main attributes along with a great empathy with animals that has enabled me to have a long and successful career in Eventing." He added, "I am very disappointed in myself that I did not adhere to that in this case."

Todd competed at seven Olympic Games, securing two gold medals and winning "Rider of the 20th Century" in 2013. The Kiwi took out his license in 2019 and now trains racehorses from his own Foxhill yard in Wiltshire. The latest incident, however, prompted equine and farm supply company Equiwarehouse to pull out any stock of Todd's merchandise from its stores. "With no regret at all, we will no longer be selling any Mark Todd clothing, horse wear, or feed," the company said in a statement, adding, "Mark Todd Eventing you should be utterly ashamed of yourself, vile 'professional' and disgrace of a human." 

Social media was also inundated with viewers blasting Todd's conduct. "This, from Sir Mark Todd, is absolutely disgusting," sportswriter Andrew Gourdie tweeted. "This is not the behavior of someone knighted for services to Equestrian Sport."

"Mark Todd you’re a scum bag," Britsh author John Suchet wrote. "I hope @jacindaardern is aware of this disgraceful abuse and takes action against Mark Todd," Dr. Paul Monaghan urged. "Mark Todd, New Zealand Equestrian, caught heavily whipping this poor horse for refusing a water obstacle. How stressed this horse must be to still refuse when being hit like this," one Twitter user wrote.

"Let's see if Sir Mark Todd will be made to pay a £250k fine, have his animals taken away, lose sponsorship deals, and have calls for him to be imprisoned," someone else added.