Phillip Dutton: ‘Hold Your Head Up High’
PH Why did you choose to move to the U.S.?
PD I had a very green horse, True Blue Girdwood, who was at the Preliminary level when I came over [from Australia]. I had been to America before and I really liked being here. Having this green horse, I felt that I might have a better chance of getting work and making ends meet in the U.S., rather than going to England where the sport was so saturated.
I like that everyone has a chance in this country. Someone once told me that for an hour’s work in America, you get more reward from that than anywhere else in the world. I believe that. It’s not a perfect country, but I believe that.
PH Was it hard to switch to U.S. citizenship?
PD It was one of the toughest decisions I went through. On one hand, my parents gave me an incredible upbringing and were big cheerleaders for my riding career. I am proud to be Australian and what that stands for.
But I hadn’t done much in Australia. I was in America and my career was happening here. There were a lot of people here who believed in me and helped me.
