Olympic preparation
How the postponed Games could be an advantage for some horses and riders
RIDERS, probably more than any other Olympic athlete, will be qualified to rise up from the ashes of their best-laid plans and realign themselves for Tokyo’s new date in 2021.
Equestrian sport puts competitors in a particularly vulnerable position when it comes to uninvited surprises – whether it’s horses being sold, injuries or other disappointments. As eventer Harry Meade says, “we are quite used to having to readjust and recalibrate”.
While this year’s unscheduled shutdown may have been a visceral blow for those who had meticulously stage-managed their fouryear plan to peak this summer, there are also those for whom the pandemic has blasted open the door of opportunity. “For some it will be a positive move and there will be horses for whom another year of experience will put them in contention for the Games. Unfortunately for some combinations it might also be a year too late,” British eventing performance manager Dickie Waygood summarises.
“It wouldn’t surprise me, though, if we see some combinations whose performances have been accelerated because of the time they have had to work on their strength, condition and technical skills.”
British showjumping’s performance manager Di Lampard agrees that the postponement may shake up the form book, although she remains disappointed at the interruption to the British team’s campaign.
“We put so much into planning and preparing and the Olympics will certainly be a very different beast 12 months later,” says Di, who managed the British squad of Scott Brash, Ben Maher, Holly Smith and Amanda Derbyshire to team bronze at last year’s Europeans, where they also collected their
ticket for Tokyo. “We believed we had a very good squad available and potentially a very good chance of being in the medals – and the right coloured ones too.”
Despite the setbacks, Di acknowledges that as a selector you must “always keep an open mind of the partnerships coming into form”, and that competition horses “especially within the bracket of eight to 12 years old”, can improve rapidly.
“Hopefully some younger horses will be able to get in a bit more experience before next year and that will open selection up again,” she says. “For proven horses, they may be able to come back from a break and consistently do what they’ve been doing. It could work both ways.”
SHOWJUMPER James Wilson made his five-star Nations Cup debut in St Gallen last year, impressing with a double clear on the 12-year-old mare Imagine De Muze. The combination went on to produce some great results on the winter World Cup circuit, before taking a breather to present themselves as viable contenders for Nations Cup – and other teams – selection this year.
“This situation has allowed me to spend time with her and really get to know her”
ANDREW HOY ON HIS NEW RIDE CREEVAGH COOLEY
“The main way the shutdown helps me is that there was a team who won medals at the Europeans and that made them top picks,” the 25-year-old says. “It gives me a chance to have another year to try and do something that little bit better.”
William Whitaker also had a successful close to 2019, with horses owned by his then-employers Rushy Marsh Farms (RMF). When RMF unexpectedly withdrew from showjumping and sold their string earlier this year, the 30-year-old returned to his native Huddersfield without an obvious Olympic contender.
“It’s given me more time to get myself organised and on a horse that’s good enough to go to Tokyo,” he says. “Potentially we have some on the yard, but because they are all quite new and we haven’t been able to get to shows it’s difficult to know what you’ve got.
“Shows are where everyone does the business side of the sport,” he adds. “That’s where you talk to people, people see you and you see horses. The sooner we can get back to showjumping at a decent level, the better.”
For some experienced combinations, little match practice will be needed before they are back at the top of their game. But even for riders who are strong squad contenders, an additional year can reinforce their position. The postponement may allow sufficient time to produce back-ups for their top rides – a particular consideration now Olympic teams have been reduced to three athletes.
Holly Smith jumped on the past two championship teams with her superstar
Hearts Destiny, but also took on 12-year-old ex-eventer Denver last autumn. The pair were in outstanding form on the spring tours before the shutdown, tallying an impressive column of single-digit results.
“If I were to have aimed him at the Olympics this year it would have been much too soon. He’d have had to keep going without a break and it would have been too much for him physically,” Holly says. “He’s an unbelievable horse – although he still has plenty to prove as he is new to the level and hasn’t jumped a Nations Cup yet. This does give him time.”
AUSTRALIAN eventer Andrew Hoy has also found himself with an exciting addition to his string. Not only does he have “horse of a lifetime” Vassily De
Lassos – who was fourth at the World Equestrian Games (WEG) in Tryon – but he also has new ride Creevagh Cooley, bought from Michael Jung at the end of last year by Vassily’s owners Paula and David Evans.
Selection for Tokyo would mark an impressive eighth Olympic appearance for Andrew, as well as presenting one of his strongest chances to top his individual silver at Sydney 2000 with a gold.
“It’s a different perspective for everyone
“I am still young and it’s nice to have the extra year at my age”
LOTTIE FRY
and from my perspective the postponement is absolutely fantastic,” he says. “We can always dream and I would like to think that I have a very good chance of a strong performance in Tokyo – but with only three in a team, my first goal is to put the selectors in a position where they can’t afford to leave me at home.”
Vassily has an excellent track record in all three phases, and is particularly known for his speed cross-country, but lockdown has presented the 61-year-old rider with the chance to find critical extra marks in the dressage.
“My goal with Vassily is a 75% or better score, and it’s going in the right direction,” says Andrew.
His relationship with Creevagh Cooley has also had time to blossom and his enthusiasm for this 12-year-old mare, who had qualified for Tokyo with Michael, is obvious.
“I did have the chance to take her out to Belgium jumping in February before the lockdown and she was extraordinary; we jumped three days in 1.30m classes and she didn’t touch a pole,” Andrew says. “Now this situation has allowed me to spend time with her and really get to know her.”
Beating Vassily De Lassos into second place at Strzegom’s CCI4*-L in Poland last October was Harry Meade, a contender from left field with his partner of two weeks, Mandy Gray’s Superstition. It was a remarkable first four-star long victory for Harry with a horse he had sat on only a handful of times.
The 11-year-old, who came from Lucy Jackson, “wasn’t bought with the Olympics in mind”, but the extra time will certainly broaden this new partnership’s horizons.
Harry remains guarded as it’s still early days for the combination, but he does acknowledge that their performance in Poland would have had positives for selectors.
“Strzegom was a similar style of course to what we are likely to see in Tokyo, the track is twisty and the time was very tight – he proved ideally suited to that kind of course,” he says.
“He can cope with any level of technicality and he’s not only fast, he’s very adjustable with it. He’s also a good traveller – it’s a long trip.”
He added that the break from competition had been a “golden time” for informed training with all the horses.
“They have continued to make progress,” says Harry. “If Superstition continues to show good form then he could be in the mix, but a lot can happen in 12 months.”
THE extra year will give riders the opportunity to resolve some question marks ahead of selection – a situation that could also benefit experienced dressage squad member Emile Faurie, who acknowledges he may not have been “right up there” as a pick for a 2020 Olympic team.
His Tryon partner Dono Di Maggi OLD was sold last spring, and of his two top-level contenders, Quentano 2 is for sale – making his viability uncertain – while Shilo is an unknown quantity at international level.
In Shilo’s one FEI outing, at Keysoe in March, the “hugely talented, but quite tricky” 11-year-old demonstrated potential, finishing sixth in the grand prix special.
“It definitely gives Shilo a hand. It’s a question of ‘wait and see’ with him,” Emile says.
Described as a “livewire”, he is the type of horse who needs more competition experience, but Emile has been able to use the downtime.
“It has been lovely to have so much time to spend with the horses, even the younger ones, because I’ve not been teaching so much. You’re not restricted to having only 40 minutes and then having to crack on with the next one. It’s been really beneficial in learning more about them,” he notes.
It is not just less experienced horses, but also upcoming riders who now have an additional year to progress. Twenty-fouryear-old Lottie Fry, 2018 under-25 European dressage champion with Dark Legend, made her senior championship debut at last year’s Europeans in Rotterdam.
With Carl Hester and Charlotte Dujardin almost certainties for the British Tokyo dressage squad, there is tough competition for that third slot, and the postponement can only bolster Lottie’s campaign.
As well as her 12-year-old championship partner Dark Legend, she also has the 11-yearold Everdale and her 2018 seven-year-old world champion Glamourdale as contenders.
“It’s a positive as my horses are young and I am still young and it’s nice to have the extra year at my age,” Lottie says. “It gives them all time to get a bit stronger and more experience can only be a good thing.”