As the USA’s dressage technical advisor, at last summer’s Tokyo Games she led the way to the country’s first Olympic team silver dressage medal since 1948.
But now Debbie McDonald is out of a job. According to a U.S. Equestrian Federation spokesperson, the organization chose not to renew her contract due to the filing of a civil lawsuit alleging her husband, Robert McDonald, sexually assaulted two under-age women in California nearly a half-century ago. Debbie also is named in the lawsuit, which contends she was negligent for not protecting the teens while she was Robert McDonald’s assistant trainer. The two were not married at the time.
In addition, California’s 32d District Agricultural Association was sued. It runs the Orange County Fairgrounds, where Robert and Debbie trained at the time the incidents were alleged to take place.
USEF stated, “Debbie McDonald’s contract with USEF has expired and will not be renewed at this time. We are continuing to move forward with the balance of the plans that have been developed following a detailed review involving stakeholder feedback.”
The decision comes with the 2022 World Dressage Championships less than a year from now, and the Paris Olympics two and a half years away.
Debbie, 67, was the sweetheart of the dressage world when she became the first American Dressage World Cup Finals winner on Brentina, who shared icon status with her rider. Together they took double gold at the 1999 Pan American Games, team silver at the 2002 FEI World Equestrian Games, and team bronze at the 2004 Olympics and 2006 FEI World Equestrian Games.
With Brentina’s retirement, Debbie went on to make a name for herself as a coach, creating more Olympic medalists for the U.S., including Laura Graves, Adrienne Lyle and Kasey Perry-Glass.
Generous with her time and encouraging with her ability to make both horses and riders better, the petite trainer always put her heart and soul into her job.
Debbie and Bob McDonald at Brentina’s retirement in 2009. (Photo © by Nancy Jaffer)
Her world was shaken when allegations of sex abuse involving minors from nearly 50 years ago were made against her husband with the U.S. Center for SafeSport, and in June 2020, he was banned for life by the USEF.
Two months later, just as the matter was going to arbitration, the women involved in the matter dropped it and SafeSport instituted an administrative closure of the case. Robert McDonald was removed from the SafeSport banned list and reinstated by USEF. The two women connected with the SafeSport case are the ones who brought lawsuit, but their names are not given in the legal papers.
Debbie declined to comment, but her husband passed along a hand-written statement and thanked everyone who has supported the two of them at this time.
He added, “We are unable to comment on the matters that we know nothing about. Hearing of a lawsuit filed against us has come out of left field. We simply ask that you allow the legal process to take its course and hold your thoughts and opinions until all the evidence is put forth which we believe will vehemently demonstrate the untruth of the accusers.
“It is upsetting that these ladies hide behind Jane Does when they choose to tarnish our reputation in our sport. It is equally upsetting that we were prepared to address the accusations at the SafeSport level when SafeSport closed the case. We have been together for 43 years and fully stand by each other and know that we have done nothing within the realm of what has been asserted.
“We are confident in the end the truth will prevail. We will continue to dedicate our lives to the sport we love and focus on the training of and for our clients who have stood by us.”
