Olympic regrets

IT’S something of a travesty that MerelyA-Monarch never had the chance to win an Olympic medal, as he was shortlisted in all three disciplines.

His best chance was arguably in eventing, given his invincibility as a young horse, but in 1961 and 1962 when he won Burghley and Badminton, women weren’t allowed to compete in Olympic eventing. This may have precipitated Anneli’s switch to showjumping in

1962 and although she was asked to return to eventing for Tokyo 1964, she was intoxicated by the more “technical challenge” of her new discipline.

“Showjumping was like Formula One – returning to eventing felt like a backward step,” she says.

Monarch narrowly failed to make the cut for both the 1964 and 1968 showjumping teams, despite having played a starring role in countless Nations Cup squads.

“I had three shots at the Olympics, but they all fell by the wayside,” says Anneli. “It did grate at the time, but I don’t dwell on what might have been.”