Imtiaz,s love for horses began at the age of 5. He rode every evening after school and won his first competition at 6.

His BIS classmates remember birthday parties at his home, and a bedroom filled with pictures of horses; after the cake was cut the whole lot would traipse off to the racecourse to watch Imtiaz demonstrate his skills on horseback.

However, it wasn’t clear to him from the start that this was where his future lay, because it wasn’t the only sport he was good at. He says, “I always dreamt of representing India but wasn’t sure in what sport. I was a good athlete when at BIS, and thought that was my path forward. I was convinced that if Carl Lewis & Mark Spitz could win 5 gold medals each, I could win at least one!”

Imtiaz took his time making up his mind about which sport he would make his own, but he says one thing he was always sure of: “Not a day went by when I wouldn’t dream of wearing the Indian blazer, giving victory speeches, and singing our national anthem.”

Meanwhile, his riding went from strength to strength. He began to compete nationally, winning several medals, and represented India at Junior level. He became the first civilian rider to do so in an Army-dominated sport. He was selected to represent India at the Asian Games where he took bronze, and subsequently won bronze at the Asia Pacific Games as well. His real ambition, though, was to represent India at the Olympics in Equestrian, which no one had done before. Since the training and levels of competition available in India were inadequate, Imtiaz had to move to Australia where he trained hard for four years. He has written a book describing all the highs and lows of his experience, which is to be published soon, and would like to encourage every young person who has a dream to read it.

Imtiaz qualified and represented India at the Olympics in 2000. He says, “It was a proud moment for me to wear the Olympic blazer, something I had dreamt of since I was five.” He went on to represent India at the World Championships in Spain, again being the only Indian to do so. Imtiaz says, “It has been 20 years and no one else has been able to achieve that.” He is grateful to his mentors, sponsors, and parents for their unstinting support.

After 25 years abroad, Imtiaz recently moved back to India to start his own equestrian training facility on the beachside in a small town called Nargol, 180km from Mumbai. “I have lived my life to its fullest”, says Imtiaz. “I have travelled the world and met some amazing people thanks to horses. I have worked for Royal Families and trained national and international level riders in America and Australia. I am the only qualified instructor in India in Equestrian.”

“I welcome all BIS students and Alumni to reach out as I would be happy to mentor others to achieve their goal. All you have to have is determination, discipline, and dedication! My motto,” says Imtiaz.

You can check out Seahorse Equestrian on Facebook or visit his website for more details.

Imtiaz is a current BIS parent.