The charismatic double champion
First, there was Mark Todd. Twelve New Zealanders have won equestrian medals at the Olympic Games, three as individuals and nine as part of teams, at six different events, making it the country’s fourth most successful sport.
But first, there was Cambridgeborn Todd, in Los Angeles in 1984, winning gold in individual mixed eventing.
He has now been to seven different games, and will attend an eighth in Rio next month, but he remembers that first one well – although it was supposed to be his second.
‘‘The first one I was nominated for was Moscow in 1980, and I remember being really disappointed that New Zealand had boycotted the Olympics, because you think, ‘oh God, I’ve made the Olympic team and now it’s been taken away from me,’ you never think that you’re going to get another chance,’’ says Todd.
‘‘But as it’s turned out I’ve had plenty of other chances, and with Los Angeles, when I did get to go, it was tremendously exciting to be named in the team.’’
The equestrian competitions in 1984 were held at Santa Anita
‘‘There’s something about when they play your national anthem. I remember having to bite my lip, the emotion of it all sort of takes over.’’ Mark Todd
Racetrack in southern California.
‘‘The whole thing was amazing, staying in the Olympic village, the facilities at Santa Anita were amazing, it was pretty mind blowing,’’ says Todd.
‘‘Apart from all that, my horse [Charisma] felt fantastic the whole time, and he just performed really, really well the whole way through.’’
Todd had won at Badminton in England in 1980, but had no expectations heading into his first Olympics.
‘‘You never go there imagining that you are going to win a medal. I was hoping Charisma was going to do well, but as it turned out, everything just sort of fell into place.
‘‘There’s something about when they play your national anthem. I remember having to bite my lip, the emotion of it all sort of takes over and it’s pretty amazing.’’
Four years later, Todd and Charisma arrived at the games in Seoul, with many onlookers wondering if Todd’s 16-year-old mount was past his best.
‘‘He had been a pretty amazing horse, but I knew that he was still in very good form, and when I went to Seoul, it was like a feeling of deja vu,’’ says Todd.
‘‘There were so many things that felt the same as in LA, and from the moment I got there, I had a really good feeling about it. As it turned out, the horse was in the best form of his career, and he ended up having a very easy win.’’
Todd says Charisma was the best horse he has ever ridden.
‘‘He was a phenomenal athlete himself and he was a lovely, lovely horse to deal with. He was a horse that people took to their hearts, not only in New Zealand, but all around the world.’’
In Seoul, Todd was also part of the eventing team which won bronze. They repeated the feat in Barcelona in 1992, but Todd wasn’t awarded a medal as he didn’t complete the entire programme. He also went to Atlanta in 1996, Sydney in 2000 – where he won individual bronze – Beijing in 2008, and London in 2012 – where he won team bronze.
He will be there again in Rio next month, and says plenty has changed in the 32 years since he first went to an Olympics.
‘‘The standard has improved and everything’s improved so I’ve had to try and keep evolving with the sport to try and stay competitive.
‘‘When we did it in those early years we were very much amateur riders having a go, but sports in general have become a lot more professional, and our sport is no exception.’’