William de Rham

William de Rham of Saint-Sulpice was active in equestrian events for over 50 years, first competing in his teens and winning his last event at the age of 71. The height of his international career came in 1956 when he competed with the Swiss team at the 1956 Olympics, where the equestrian events were held in Stockholm. There, he placed 19th in the individual event, and ninth in the team event alongside Marc Büchler and Alexander Stoffel. de Rham also competed at the FEI Jumping Nations Cup on 10 occasions during the 1950s and was a member of the Swiss Armed Forces, reaching the rank of Major. de Rham, a longtime promoter of equestrianism, was a member and president of the Société Hippique du Léman, and continued riding horses into his late 80s.

de Rham’s grandfather, also named William (1866–1915), was the founder of a successful property management and real estate company under the family name, deRham SA, based in Lausanne. Following the death of his father, Pierre, William de Rham headed the company from 1960 to 1990 before being succeeded by his son, Yvan. The de Rham family has a long history in equestrianism, and is the owner of La Garance equestrian center in Ecublens.